Cover of the first ''Pilote'' issue #0 ''Pilote'' () was a French comic magazine published from 1959 to 1989. Showcasing most of the major French or Belgian comics talents of its day the magazine introduced major series such as ''

Astérix ''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...

'', ''

Barbe-Rouge ''Redbeard'' ('' French: Barbe-Rouge'') is a series of Belgian comic books, originally published in French, created by writer Jean-Michel Charlier and artist Victor Hubinon in 1959. After their deaths the series was continued by other writers ...

'', ''

Blueberry Blueberries are a widely distributed and widespread group of perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berries. They are classified in the section ''Cyanococcus'' within the genus ''Vaccinium''. ''Vaccinium'' also includes cranberries, bi ...

'', ''

Achille Talon ''Achille Talon'' is a Franco-Belgian comics series featuring an eponymous main character, created by Greg (the pseudonym of Michel Regnier). Starting publication in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''Pilote'' in 1963, the series presents the ...

'', and '' Valérian et Laureline''. Major comics writers like

René Goscinny René Goscinny (, ; 14 August 1926 – 5 November 1977) was a French comic editor and writer, who created the ''Astérix'' comic book series with illustrator Albert Uderzo. Raised largely in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he attended French schoo ...

Jean-Michel Charlier Jean-Michel Charlier (; 30 October 1924 – 10 July 1989) was a Belgian comics writer. He was a co-founder of the famed Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''Pilote''. Life Charlier was born in Liège, Belgium, in 1924.De Weyer, Geert (2005). ...

Greg Greg is a masculine given name, and often a shortened form of the given name Gregory. Greg (more commonly spelled " Gregg") is also a surname. People with the name *Greg Abbott (disambiguation), multiple people *Greg Abel (born 1961/1962), Canadi ...

Pierre Christin Pierre Christin (; born 27 July 1938) is a French comics creator and writer. Biography Christin was born at Saint-Mandé in 1938. After graduating from the Sorbonne, Christin pursued graduate studies in political science at SciencesPo and bec ...

and

Jacques Lob Jacques Lob (19 August 1932 – 24 May 1990) was a French comic book creator, known for several comics creations, including '' Superdupont''. Biography Jacques Lob began his career as an illustrator of humorous cartoons that were published in va ...

were featured in the magazine, as were artists such as

Jijé Joseph Gillain (), better known by his pen name Jijé (; 13 January 1914 – 19 June 1980), was a Belgian comics artist, best known for being a seminal artist on the ''Spirou et Fantasio'' strip (and for having introduced the Fantasio character) a ...

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia *St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Manitob ...

Albert Uderzo Alberto Aleandro Uderzo (; ; 25 April 1927 – 24 March 2020), better known as Albert Uderzo, was a French comic book artist and scriptwriter. He is best known as the co-creator and illustrator of the ''Astérix'' series in collaboration with Re ...

, Jean (Mœbius) Giraud,

Enki Bilal Enki Bilal (born Enes Bilal; born 7 October 1951) is a French comic book creator, comics artist and film director. Biography Early life Bilal was born in Belgrade, PR Serbia, Yugoslavia, to a Czech mother, Ana, who came to Belgrade as child from ...

Jean-Claude Mézières Jean-Claude Mézières (; 23 September 1938 – 23 January 2022) was a French ''bandes dessinées'' artist and illustrator. Born in Paris and raised in nearby Saint-Mandé, he was introduced to drawing by his elder brother and influenced by co ...

Jacques Tardi Jacques Tardi (; born 30 August 1946) is a French comic artist. He is often credited solely as Tardi. Biography Tardi was born on 30 August 1946 in Valence, Drôme. After graduating from the École nationale des beaux-arts de Lyon and the Éco ...

Philippe Druillet Philippe Druillet (; born 28 June 1944) is a French comics artist and creator, and an innovator in visual design. Biography Philippe Druillet was born in Toulouse, Haute-Garonne, France, but spent his youth in Spain, returning to France in 1952 ...

Marcel Gotlib Marcel Gottlieb (14 July 1934 – 4 December 2016), known professionally as Gotlib, was a French comics artist/writer and publisher. Through his own work and the magazines he co-founded, ''L'Écho des savanes'' and ''Fluide Glacial'', he was a key ...

Alexis Alexis may refer to: People Mononym * Alexis (poet) ( – ), a Greek comic poet * Alexis (sculptor), an ancient Greek artist who lived around the 3rd or 4th century BC * Alexis (singer) (born 1968), German pop singer * Alexis (comics) (1946–1977 ...

, and

Annie Goetzinger Annie Goetzinger (18 August 1951 – 20 December 2017) was a comics artist and graphic novelist from Paris, France. From the mid-1970s until her death in 2017, she worked on award-winning graphic novels as well as press cartoons for newspapers su ...

. ''Pilote'' also published several international talents such as

Hugo Pratt Ugo Eugenio Prat, better known as Hugo Pratt (15 June 1927 – 20 August 1995), was an Italian comic book creator who was known for combining strong storytelling with extensive historical research on works such as ''Corto Maltese''. He was indu ...

Frank Bellamy Frank Bellamy (21 May 1917 Khoury, George. ''True Brit: Celebrating The Comic Book Artists Of England'' (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2004). – 5 July 1976) was a British comics artist, best known for his work on the ''Eagle'' comic, for which h ...

and

Robert Crumb Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...

History

Following the publication of a teaser issue number 0 on June 1, ''Pilote'' made its debut proper on 29 October 1959. The magazine was started by experienced comics writers Goscinny and Charlier, and artists Albert Uderzo and Jean Hébrard. Previously this team had worked together on several other projects, creating ''Le Supplément Illustré'', a cartoon supplement for stuff like newspapers, and providing cartoons for ''Radio-Télé'', a magazine published by Radio-Luxembourg. ''Pilote'' was marketed by Radio-Luxembourg, and featured editorials written by popular radio personalities of the day. The 300,000 copies of the first issue sold out in one day. Unlike Belgian competitive magazines, such as ''

Tintin Tintin or Tin Tin may refer to: ''The Adventures of Tintin'' * ''The Adventures of Tintin'', a comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé ** Tintin (character), a fictional character in the series ** ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (film), 2011, ...

'' and '' Spirou'', the magazine was, already from the beginning, more directly aimed at an adolescent audience. Charlier and Goscinny handled most of the initial writing. Although Charlier came up with two popular series, ''

Tanguy et Laverdure ''Les Aventures de Tanguy et Laverdure'' is a Franco-Belgian comics (''bande dessinée'') series created by Jean-Michel Charlier and Albert Uderzo, about the two pilots Michel Tanguy and Ernest Laverdure, and their adventures in the French Air For ...

'' with Albert Uderzo and ''Barbe-Rouge'' (''

Redbeard Redbeard or Red Beard may refer to: People * Frederick Barbarossa (Redbeard), another name for Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor (1122–1190) * Oruç Reis or Redbeard (''Barbarossa'') (1474–1518), Ottoman naval commander * Hayreddin Barbarossa ...

'') with

Victor Hubinon Victor Hubinon (26 April 1924 – 8 January 1979) was a Belgian comic-book artist, best known for the series ''Buck Danny'' and ''Redbeard''. Biography Victor Hubinon was born in Angleur, Belgium, in 1924.De Weyer, Geert (2005). "Victor Hubino ...

, it was Goscinny and Uderzo’s ''Astérix le Gaulois'' which was the biggest hit and the magazine’s initial mainstay.

Difficulties

Financial problems arose in 1960, but were resolved when the magazine was bought out by

Dargaud Société Dargaud, doing business as Les Éditions Dargaud, is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics series, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. It was founded in 1936 by Georges Dargaud (), publishing its first comics in 1943. ...

publishers. Dargaud expanded the magazine with several new series, including Charlier and Giraud’s ''Blueberry'' and Greg's ''Achille Tallon'' in 1963. In 1967 the popular science-fiction series '' Valérian et Laureline'' debuted and in 1968 the popular Western comedy ''

Lucky Luke ''Lucky Luke'' is a Western ''bande dessinée'' series created by Belgian cartoonist Morris in 1946. Morris wrote and drew the series single-handedly until 1955, after which he started collaborating with French writer René Goscinny. Their par ...

'' (by Morris) was transferred to ''Pilote'' from '' Spirou'' magazine. Other notable appearances included series from the British comics magazine ''

Eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

'' such as ''Fraser l'Africain'' (''

Fraser of Africa ''Fraser of Africa'' is a comic strip that ran one page a week in full colour in the British comic ''Eagle'' in 1960–61, written by George Beardmore and illustrated by Frank Bellamy. It follows Martin Fraser, a white hunter in the game reserves o ...

'') and ''Winston Churchill'' by Frank Bellamy. Attempts were made in the 1970s to update the magazine with material of more interest to adults, but many artists like Druillet and Giraud felt ''Pilote'' was no longer the appropriate vehicle for their aspirations and left to found new magazines such as '' Métal Hurlant'' (the French original that inspired '' Heavy Metal''). Partly as a result, Dargaud reduced ''Pilote''’s publication schedule from weekly to monthly in 1974, and René Goscinny was replaced as editor-in-chief. At this time, a new generation of artists also started publishing in ''Pilote'', namely

Caza Caza (), the pseudonym of Philippe Cazaumayou (; born 14 November 1941), is a French comics artist. Biography At 18, Cazaumayou started a career in advertising which lasted for ten years, but in 1970 he entered the field of bandes dessinées, ...

, Lauzier, and

F'Murr Richard Peyzaret (March 31, 1946 – April 10, 2018), better known by his pen name F'Murrr or F'Murr, was a French cartoonist and comic book writer. He was most famous for the long-running series ''Le Génie des alpages'' (''The Genius of the Mount ...

. Their comics reflected the new, more adult direction. Sales initially improved but a steady erosion took place through the 1980s as interest in the medium declined. ''Pilote'' was merged with the comics magazine ''

Charlie Mensuel ''Charlie Mensuel'' (or simply ''Charlie'', "mensuel" being a French term for a monthly periodical) was a French monthly comics magazine. Its publication began in February 1969, and ceased in February 1986. Tagged ''"The newspaper full of humour ...

'' in 1986 and continued as ''Pilote et Charlie'' until 1988, when the name was changed back to ''Pilote''. However, declining sales prompted Dargaud to suspend publication after what became the final issue on 1 October 1989. After 1989, there has been no regular publications of the magazine, although the name has been used for occasional oversized specials.

Main authors and series

: ''Timoléon et Stanislas'' (1969–1973), ''Al Crane'' (1976–1977) *

Philippe Bertrand Philippe Bertrand (1663–1724) was a French sculptor of the late 17th and early 18th century. He received commissions for sculptures for both the Château de Marly and Versailles. In November, 1701, he was made a full member of the Académie de ...

: ''Linda aime l'art'' (1983–1989) *

: ''Légendes d'Aujourd'hui'' (1976–1982), ''

La foire aux immortels ''The Carnival of Immortals'' (french: La Foire aux immortels; also published in English as ''Gods in Chaos'' and ''A Bedlam of Immortals'') is a 1980 science fiction graphic novel written and illustrated by the Yugoslavian-born French cartoonist ...

'' (1980) * Michel Blanc-Dumont: ''Jonathan Cartland'' (1974–1988) *

Claire Bretécher Claire Bretécher (; 17 April 1940 – 10 February 2020)
on Lambiek Comiclopedia was a French cartoonist, known particularly for her p ...

: ''Cellulite'' (1969–1977) *

Cabu Jean Maurice Jules Cabut (; 13 January 19387 January 2015), known by the pen-name Cabu (), was a French comic strip artist and caricaturist. He was murdered in the January 2015 shooting attack on the ''Charlie Hebdo'' newspaper offices. Cabu w ...

: ''Grand Duduche'' (1963–1982) *

: ''Scènes de la vie de banlieue'' (1975–1979) * Jean Chakir: ''Séraphin contre Angelure'' (1962–1970) *

: ''

'' (1963–1973), ''

'' (1959–1969), ''

'' (1959–1970) *

: ''

Valérian and Laureline ''Valérian and Laureline'' (french: Valérian et Laureline), also known as ''Valérian: Spatio-Temporal Agent'' (french: Valérian, agent spatio-temporel) or just ''Valérian'', is a French science fiction comics series, created by writer Pie ...

'' (1967–1985), ''Légendes d'Aujourd'hui'' (1976–1982) * Delinx: ''Buck Gallo'' (1963–1969) *

: ''

Lone Sloane Lone Sloane is a science fiction comics character created in 1966 by the French cartoonist Philippe Druillet. Publication history Lone Sloane first appeared in Druillet's own debut, ''Mystère des Abîmes'', published in 1966. Other stories were ...

'' (1970–1974) *

: ''

Le Génie des alpages ''Le Génie des alpages'' is a French humoristic comic book series by F'Murr. The series first appeared in ''Pilote'' magazine on January 11, 1973. In 1976 Les Éditions Dargaud started publication of hardcover albums. Synopsis The short stories ...

'' (1973–1989) *

Fred Fred may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Frederico Ro ...

: '' Philémon'' (1965–1986) *

Jean Giraud Jean Henri Gaston Giraud (; 8 May 1938 – 10 March 2012) was a French artist, cartoonist, and writer who worked in the Bandes dessinées, Franco-Belgian ''bandes dessinées'' (BD) tradition. Giraud garnered worldwide acclaim under the pseu ...

: ''Blueberry'' (1963–1973) *

Christian Godard Christian Godard (born March 24, 1932, in Paris) is a French cartoonist of the series '' Martin Milan'' for ''Tintin'' magazine. He has also worked on the following series, among others: * ''Le vagabond des limbes'' * '' Norbert and Kari'' * '' Tou ...

: ''Norbert et Kari'' (1963–1970), '' Vagabond des limbes'' (1978–1987) *

: ''

Asterix ''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...

'' (1959–1973), ''

'' (1967–1973), ''

Iznogoud ''Iznogoud'' (pronounced "he's/is no good" with a French (language), French Accent (dialect), accent) is a French comics series featuring an eponymous character, created by the comic book creator, comics writer René Goscinny and comics artist Je ...

'' (1968–1977), '' Petit Nicolas'' (1959–1965) *

: ''

Dingodossiers ''Les Dingodossiers'' is a humorous series of comics created by French artists Marcel Gotlib (cartoonist) and René Goscinny (writer) first published in ''Pilote'' magazine from 1965 to 1967. Style The term ''dingodossiers'' is a portmanteau of ...

'' (1965–1967), ''

Rubrique-à-Brac ''Rubrique-à-Brac'' is a humorous comic strip series created in 1968 by Gotlib. The title is a portmanteau of the French words ''rubrique'' (section) and ''bric-à-brac''. Initially published in ''Pilote'' magazine, the series was republished a ...

'' (1968–1973) *

: ''

'' (1963–1981) * Laurence Harlé: ''Jonathan Cartland'' (1974–1988) *

: ''Barbe-Rouge'' (1959–1969) *

: ''Tanguy et Laverdure'' (1966–1970) *

Claude Lacroix Claude Lacroix (1944 – 2 March 2021) was a French comic book author and screenwriter. Biography Lacroix's first comics were published in ' in 1964, and subsequently in ''Candide'', ''Arts et Loisirs'', ''Elle'', ''Plexus'', ''Hara-Kiri'', ', ...

: ''Homme au chapeau mou'' (1977–1983) * Lauzier: ''Tranche de Vie'' (1970–1978), ''Al Crane'' (1976–1977) *

: ''Submerman'' (1967–1970) *

Nikita Mandryka Nikita Mandryka (20 October 1940 – 13 June 2021) was a French cartoonist. He started drawing in the '' Vaillant'' magazine, before moving to ''Pilote'' in 1967, and then created ''L'Écho des savanes'' along with Claire Bretécher and Marcel ...

: ''Concombre masqué'' (1971–1981), ''Clopinettes'' (1970–1973) *

Martial Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman poet from Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of ''Epigrams'', published in Rome between AD 86 and ...

: ''Tony Laflamme'' (1963–1971) *

: ''Valérian and Laureline'' (1967–1985) *

: ''Lucky Luke'' (1967–1973) * Antonio Hernandez Palacios: ''

Mac Coy Mac or MAC most commonly refers to: * Mac (computer), a family of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * A variant of the word macaroni, mostly used in the name of the dish mac and cheese * Ma ...

'' (1974–1989) *

Julio Ribera Julio is the Spanish equivalent of the month July and may refer to: *Julio (given name) *Julio (surname) *Júlio de Castilhos, a municipality of the western part of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * ''Julio'' (album), a 1983 compilation albu ...

: '' Vagabond des limbes'' (1978–1987), ''Dracurella'' (1973–1982) * Sempé: ''Petit Nicolas'' (1959–1965) *

Jean Tabary Jean Tabary (5 March 1930 – 18 August 2011) was a French comics artist. Biography Tabary was born in Stockholm and made his comics debut with ''Richard et Charlie'' published in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine '' Vaillant'' on 5 November ...

: ''Iznogoud'' (1968–1977), ''Valentin le vagabond'' (1962–1974) * François Thomas: ''Stan Caïman'' (1982–1989) *

: ''Asterix'' (1959–1973), ''Tanguy et Laverdure'' (1959–1967)
File:Claire Bretécher en 1973 - 2.jpg, File:Philippe Druillet en 1973.jpg, File:Fred (auteur) en 1973.jpg, File:Marcel Gotlib en 1973.jpg, File:Nikita Mandryka en 1973.jpg, File:Jean-Claude Mézières en 1973.jpg, File:Jean Tabary en 1973.jpg, File:Albert Uderzo en 1973.jpg,

Circulation

References

''Pilote'' publications by year
BDoubliées Footnotes

External links

La mémoire de ''Pilote''
issue descriptions on BDoubliées {{DEFAULTSORT:Pilote 1959 establishments in France 1989 disestablishments in France Defunct magazines published in France Comics magazines published in France French-language magazines 1959 comics debuts 1989 comics endings Magazines established in 1959 Magazines disestablished in 1989