The movie "Iron Man 3" was recently number one at the box office.

Iron Man, the steel statue, is number one at Joe's Used Auto Parts in New Ringgold.

The character of Iron Man was created by writer Stan Lee for Marvel Comics and made its debut in 1963. Unlike the modernized, multicolored version shown in the film, the original Iron Man suit was silver. This silver suit of steel is the one that artist Charles Applegate used as a prototype when he created an Iron Man made of stainless steel.

Applegate is a welder by trade but has been an artist most of his life. Last year, Elizabeth Zaprazny called Applegate and commissioned him to build a life-sized Iron Man.

"It was a big job," Applegate said. "It took me 10 months to finish."

Using illustrations from the original Iron Man comics, Applegate painstakingly created a silver statue of the Marvel superhero that stands 6 feet tall and weighs 300 pounds.

In Applegate's Danielsville home are more sculptures. In front of his home is a large horse head with a flowing mane made of strands of slivered silver.

"I thought about this horse for about three years before finally starting it," he said.

In his backyard, he has a replica of an eagle in flight. Also made of steel, it took him five months to complete. His home and yard are filled with his art, including wood sculptures, animals, dragons and Indian artifacts.

Applegate's love of art started with drawing and painting. His dad made plywood cutouts and Applegate started working with wood.

An avid hunter, he moved on to wood sculptures of animals. As an apprentice in welding school, he became enamored with metal.

"Metal is versatile," he said. "I can do a lot of things with it. At first, I used regular sheet metal, but it would rust outside, so now I use stainless steel."

The Iron Man statue watches over the large property at Joe's Used Auto Parts, 2401 Summer Valley Road in New Ringgold, where used cars, auto parts and scrap metal are offered for sale.

The statue's proud owner said she was thrilled with the finished product.

"It's beautiful," she said.

Applegate's art is for sale. He can be reached at Wild Things by Charles W. Applegate at 610-767-0649.