How close was Marvel to disappearing before the MCU existed?

The answer

On December 27, 1996, Marvel filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after its stock plummeted from $35.75 per share in 1993 to just $2.38 by 1996. The 1990s comics speculation bubble had burst, and Marvel was $250 million in debt. In 2005, Marvel secured a desperate $525 million credit line from Merrill Lynch, putting characters like Captain America, Thor, and Black Panther up as collateral. If their first self-financed film failed, they would lose the rights to those heroes. That gamble was Iron Man (2008), which grossed $585 million and saved the company, leading to Disney's $4 billion acquisition in 2009.