René Goscinny (, ; 14 August 1926 – 5 November 1977) was a French comic editor and writer, who created the ''
Astérix''
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. ...
series with illustrator
Albert Uderzo. Raised largely in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the Capital city, capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
, where he attended French schools, he lived for a time in the United States. There he met Belgian cartoonist
Morris. After his return to France, they collaborated for more than 20 years on the comic series ''
Lucky Luke'' (in what was considered the series' golden age).
He wrote ''
Iznogoud'' with
Jean Tabary. Goscinny also wrote a series of children's books known as ''
Le Petit Nicolas
''Le Petit Nicolas'' (Little Nicholas) is a series of French children's books created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was first published on 30 March 1959. The books depict an idealized version of childhood in 19 ...
'' (''Little Nicolas'') illustrated by
Jean-Jacques Sempé
Jean-Jacques Sempé, usually known as Sempé (; 17 August 1932 – 11 August 2022), was a French cartoonist. He is known for the series of children's books he created with René Goscinny, ''Le Petit Nicolas'', and also for his poster-like illust ...
.
Early life
Goscinny was born in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
in 1926, to
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
immigrants from
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
.
His parents were Stanisław Simkha Gościnny, a chemical engineer from
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is official ...
, and Anna (Hanna) Bereśniak-Gościnna from Chodorków (
Ходорків), a small village near Kyiv in Ukraine. Goscinny's maternal grandfather, Abraham Lazare Berezniak, founded a printing company. Claude, Goscinny's older brother, was six years older, born on 10 December 1920.
Stanisław and Anna had met in Paris and married in 1919. When René was two, the Gościnnys moved to
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the Capital city, capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
, because his father had been hired as a chemical engineer there. René had a happy childhood in Buenos Aires and studied in French-language schools there. He was often the "class clown", probably to compensate for a natural shyness. He started drawing very early on, inspired by the illustrated stories which he enjoyed reading.
In December 1943, the year after Goscinny graduated from lycée or high school, his father died of a
cerebral hemorrhage
Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...
(stroke). The youth had to go to work. The next year, he got his first job, as an assistant accountant in a tire recovery factory. After being laid off the following years, Goscinny became a junior illustrator in an advertising agency.
Goscinny, along with his mother, emigrated from Argentina and immigrated to New York, United States in 1945, to join her brother Boris. To avoid service in the
United States Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...
, he travelled to France to join the
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...
in 1946. He served at
Aubagne, in the 141st Alpine Infantry Battalion. Promoted to senior
corporal
Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...
, he became the appointed artist of the regiment and drew illustrations and posters for the army.
First works
The following year, Goscinny worked on an illustrated version of the
Balzac short story "
The Girl with the Golden Eyes." In April of that year he returned to New York.
There he went through the most difficult period of his life. For a while, Goscinny was jobless, alone, and living in poverty. By 1948, though, he had begun working in a small studio, where he became friends with future ''
MAD Magazine'' contributors
Will Elder,
Jack Davis, and
Harvey Kurtzman.
Goscinny became art director at
Kunen Publishers Kunen may refer to:
*Kenneth Kunen
Herbert Kenneth Kunen (August 2, 1943August 14, 2020) was a professor of mathematics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison who worked in set theory and its applications to various areas of mathematics, s ...
, where he wrote four books for children.
Around this time he met two Belgian comic artists, Joseph Gillain, better known as
Jijé, and Maurice de Bevere, also known as
Morris. Morris lived in the US for six years, having already started his cartoon series ''
Lucky Luke.'' (He and Goscinny collaborated on this, with Goscinny writing it from 1955 until his death in 1977, a period described as its golden age).
Georges Troisfontaines, chief of the
World Press agency
In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
, convinced Goscinny to return to France in 1951 in order to work for his agency as the head of the
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
office. There he met
Albert Uderzo, with whom he started a longtime collaboration.
They started out with some work for ''
Bonnes Soirées
Bonnes may refer to:
* Bonnes, Charente, a commune in the department of Charente, France
* Bonnes, Vienne, a commune in the department of Vienne, France
* Étienne Bonnes (1894 – after 1924), French rugby union player who competed in the 1924 Su ...
'', a women's magazine for which Goscinny wrote ''Sylvie''. Goscinny and Uderzo also launched the series ''Jehan Pistolet'' and ''Luc Junior,'' in the magazine ''La Libre Junior''.
In 1955, Goscinny, together with Uderzo,
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) ...
, and
Jean Hébrad
Jean may refer to:
People
* Jean (female given name)
* Jean (male given name)
* Jean (surname)
Fictional characters
* Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character
* Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations
* Jean ...
, founded the syndicate Edipress/Edifrance. The syndicate launched publications such as ''Clairon'' for the factory union and ''Pistolin'' for a chocolate company. Goscinny and Uderzo cooperated on the series ''Bill Blanchart'' in ''Jeannot'', ''Pistolet'' in ''Pistolin,'' and ''Benjamin et Benjamine'' in the magazine of the same name. Under the pseudonym Agostini, Goscinny wrote ''
Le Petit Nicolas
''Le Petit Nicolas'' (Little Nicholas) is a series of French children's books created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was first published on 30 March 1959. The books depict an idealized version of childhood in 19 ...
'' for
Jean-Jacques Sempé
Jean-Jacques Sempé, usually known as Sempé (; 17 August 1932 – 11 August 2022), was a French cartoonist. He is known for the series of children's books he created with René Goscinny, ''Le Petit Nicolas'', and also for his poster-like illust ...
in ''
Le Moustique.'' It was later published in ''
Sud-Ouest'' and ''
Pilote'' magazines.
In 1956, Goscinny began a collaboration with ''
Tintin'' magazine. He wrote some short stories for
Jo Angenot
Jo, jo, JO, or J.O. may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Jo'' (film), a 1972 French comedy
* ''Jo'' (TV series), a French TV series
*"Jo", a song by Goldfrapp from '' Tales of Us''
*"Jo", a song by Mr. Oizo from '' Lambs Anger''
* Jo a fict ...
and
Albert Weinberg
Albert may refer to:
Companies
* Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic
* Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands
* Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia
* Albert Productions, a record label
* Albert ...
, and worked on ''Signor Spaghetti'' with
Dino Attanasio, ''Monsieur Tric'' with
Bob de Moor, ''
Prudence Petitpas
Prudence Petitpas was a Belgian comics series, created by Maurice Maréchal.
Concept
''Prudence Petitpas'' is a humoristic series about an old lady, Prudence Petitpas, who lives in the fictional village Moucheron. Much like Miss Marple, she inves ...
'' with
Maurice Maréchal, ''Globul le Martien'' and ''Alphonse'' with
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
, ''Strapontin'' with
Berck and ''
Modeste et Pompon'' with
André Franquin. An early creation with Uderzo, ''
Oumpah-pah
''Oumpah-pah le Peau-Rouge'' (''Ompa-pa the Redskin'') is a comics series created by comics artist Albert Uderzo and comics author René Goscinny, best known as the creators of Asterix. The series first appeared in the weekly ''Tintin'' magaz ...
'', was also adapted for serial publication in ''Tintin'' from 1958 to 1962.
In addition, Goscinny appeared in the magazines ''
Paris-Flirt'' (''Lili Manequin'' with
Will) and ''
Vaillant'' (''Boniface et Anatole'' with Jordom, ''Pipsi'' with Godard).
''Pilote'' and ''Astérix'' (1959)
In 1959, the Édifrance/Édipresse syndicate started the
Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''
Pilote''.
Goscinny became one of the most productive writers for the magazine. In the magazine's first issue, he launched ''
Astérix'', with Uderzo. The series was an instant hit and remains popular worldwide. Goscinny also restarted the series ''Le Petit Nicolas'' and ''Jehan Pistolet'', now called ''Jehan Soupolet''. Goscinny also began ''Jacquot le Mousse'' and ''Tromblon et Bottaclou'' with Godard.
The magazine was bought by
Georges Dargaud in 1960, and Goscinny became editor-in-chief. He also began new series like ''Les Divagations de Monsieur Sait-Tout'' (with Martial), ''La Potachologie Illustrée'' (with
Cabu), ''Les Dingodossiers'' (with
Gotlib) and ''La Forêt de Chênebeau'' (with
Mic Delinx). With
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 ...
, he launched ''Calife Haroun El Poussah'' in ''Record'', a series that was later continued in ''Pilote'' as ''
Iznogoud''. With
Raymond Macherot he created ''Pantoufle'' for ''
Spirou''.
Family
Goscinny married Gilberte Pollaro-Millo in 1967. In 1968 their daughter Anne Goscinny was born. She also became an author.
Anne Goscinny, the daughter of René Goscinny, co-wrote the screenplay for ''Little Nicholas: Happy As Can Be,'' 2022 animation film with Michel Fessler and Massoubre.
Death
Goscinny died at 51, in Paris of
cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...
on 5 November 1977, during a routine
stress test at his doctor's office. He was buried in the Jewish Cemetery in
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
. In accordance with his will, most of his money was transferred to the
chief rabbinate of France.
Goscinny's death occurred halfway through the writing of ''
Asterix in Belgium'' (published in 1979, two years after his death). As a homage to Goscinny, Uderzo drew darkened skies and rain into the comic for the rest of the book, to mark the point at which Goscinny died. There is a further tribute at the end of ''Asterix in Belgium''; near the lower left corner of the final panel of the album, Uderzo drew a rabbit sadly looking over its shoulders towards Goscinny's signature.
After Goscinny's death, Uderzo began to write ''Asterix'' himself and continued the series, although at a much slower pace, until passing the series over in 2011 to writer
Jean-Yves Ferri
Jean-Yves Ferri () (born 20 April 1959) is a French writer, designer, and colourist of comics.
On 25 July 2011, he was chosen as the writer for the next installment of the Asterix series created by René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. Uderzo perso ...
and illustrator
Didier Conrad. Tabary similarly began to write ''Iznogoud'' himself, whereas Morris continued ''Lucky Luke'' with various other writers.
In a tribute to Goscinny, Uderzo gave his late colleague's likeness to the Jewish character Saul ben Ephishul in the 1981 album ''L'Odyssée d'Astérix'' ("
Asterix and the Black Gold"), which is dedicated to Goscinny's memory.
Awards and honors
*1974:
Adamson Award for best international comic strip artist, Sweden
*2005: Inducted in the
Will Eisner Hall of Fame
The following is a list of winners of the Eisner Award, sorted by category.
The Eisner Awards have been presented since 1988, but there were no Eisner Awards in 1990 due to balloting mix-ups."Eisners Cancelled," ''The Comics Journal'' #137 (Sept. ...
as a Judges' choice, U.S.
Since 1996, the
René Goscinny Award is presented at the yearly
Angoulême International Comics Festival in France as an encouragement for young comic writers.
According to
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...
's
Index Translationum, Goscinny, as of August 2017, was the
20th most-translated author, with 2,200 translations of his work.
On 23 January 2020, a life-sized bronze statue of Goscinny was unveiled near his former home in Paris. It was the first public statue in Paris dedicated to a comic book author.
Filmography
Bibliography
:
*a. As part of a writers' team coming up with gags.
*b. The series ''Lucky Luke'', ''Modeste et Pompon'', ''Asterix'' and ''Iznogoud'' were continued by other writers after Goscinny's death.
Notes
References
Goscinny publications in ''Pilote''an
BDoubliées
Bedetheque
External links
Goscinny official site
Astérix official siteOn Dupuis.comGoscinny biographyon Asterix International!
on Lambiek Comiclopedia
Daughter Annlighting Hanuka candles with family.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goscinny, Rene
1926 births
1977 deaths
20th-century French illustrators
20th-century French military personnel
20th-century French writers
Asterix
Comic book editors
French Army soldiers
French cartoonists
French children's writers
French comics writers
French editors
French magazine editors
French expatriates in Argentina
French expatriates in the United States
French male writers
French people of Polish-Jewish descent
French satirists
Jewish artists
Jewish French writers
Lucky Luke
Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame inductees
Writers from Paris
César Honorary Award recipients