Willy Linthout (born 1 May 1953) is a

Belgian comics Belgian comics are a distinct subgroup in the comics history, and played a major role in the development of European comics, alongside France with whom they share a long common history. While the comics in the two major language groups and regio ...

author, best known for the ''

Urbanus Urbain Servranckx (born 7 June 1949), better known as Urbanus, is a Belgian comedian, actor, singer and comic book writer. Although he is most famous as comedian, some of his songs became hits, such as ''Bakske vol met stro'' (1979), ''Madammen ...

'' comics and his graphic novel '' Years of the Elephant''.

Biography

Willy Linthout was born in

Eksaarde Lokeren () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders, and belongs to the Waasland, also called ''Land van Waas'', of which it is the second most important city after Sint-Niklaas. The city, located on the river ...

near Lokeren,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

in 1953. He was a mechanic and a comics collector when he made his first comic book. Linthout had the idea of creating a comic strip whose main character would be based on the comedian

. Through publisher Jef Meert, a meeting at Urbanus' house was arranged. The comedian liked Linthout's idea, as well as the drawings. Linthout made the first two albums of ''

'' alone. The first album, which appeared in 1983, sold 50,000 copies right away, and ''Urbanus'' became one of the most popular Flemish comic strips. So far, 135 albums have appeared. The series is noted for its

black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...

and satire. Linthout also collaborates on the popular '' Kiekeboe'' comic strip of

Merho Merho, born Robert Merhottein on 24 October 1948, is a Belgian comic-book writer and artist, best known for creating the comic strip ''De Kiekeboes''. Early life Robert Merhottein was born in Antwerp, Belgium in 1948.De Weyer, Geert (2005). "Mer ...

, and has created together with Luc Cromheecke the series '' Roboboy''. In 2007, after the suicide of his son, he wrote and drew the

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

''Jaren van de Olifant'' ('' Years of the Elephant''), which was nominated for a number of international awards and won the

Bronzen Adhemar The ''Bronzen Adhemar'' (Dutch for "Brass Adhemar") is the official Flemish Community Cultural Prize for Comics, given to a Flemish comics author for his body of work. It is awarded by the Flemish Ministry of Culture during Strip Turnhout, the maj ...

, the most important Flemish comics award.

Bibliography

*''

'': 1983–present, 135 volumes,

Standaard Uitgeverij Standaard Uitgeverij is a Belgian publisher, and the leading publisher in the Dutch language market of Flanders. History In 1919, the Standaard group was created, mainly consisting of a chain of bookshops ( Standaard Boekhandel), a newspaper (''De ...

, written by Urbanus and Linthout *'' Roboboy'': 2003–present, 6 volumes,

Dupuis Éditions Dupuis S.A. () is a Belgium, Belgian publisher of comic albums and magazines. Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis was founded in 1922 by Jean Dupuis, and is mostly famous for its comic comics album, albums and magazines. It is ...

and Catullus, art by Luc Cromheecke *'' Years of the Elephant'', 2007, Bries (in 8 small volumes) and

Meulenhoff Uitgeverij Lannoo Groep is a Belgian publishing group, based in Tielt, with assets in Belgium and the Netherlands. Its Belgian subsidiary is Uitgeverij Lannoo. Its Dutch subsidiary is LannooMeulenhoff. Over the years Lannoo evolved from Catholic ...

/ Manteau (in 1 184 page volume): published in English by Ponent Mon S.L. *''Het Laatste Station'', 2008, 3 volumes, Standaard Uitgeverij, art by Erik Wielaert

Awards

*2007: nominated for the

Stripschapprijs The Stripschapprijs is a Dutch prize awarded to comic creators for their entire body of work. It is awarded annually by the ''Stripschap'', the Dutch Society of comics fans, since 1974. The prize is non-pecuniary, but is considered the most import ...

Album of the Year (Dutch, literary) for ''The Year of the Elephant'' part 1 *2008: nominated for the

Prix Saint-Michel The Prix Saint-Michel is a series of comic awards presented by the city of Brussels, with a focus on Franco-Belgian comics. They were first awarded in 1971, and although often said to be the oldest European comics awards, they are actually the s ...

for best Dutch language comic *2009:

for ''The Year of the Elephant'' *2010: nominated for the

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

s for Best U.S. Edition of International Material and Best Writer/Artist-Nonfiction * 2010: nominated for the Award for Best Dutch Language Youth Comic at the Stripschapprizes for ''Roboboy'' 6 * 2010: nominated for the Award for Best Dutch Language Comic at the

for ''The Year of the Elephant''

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Linthout, Willy Living people 1953 births Belgian comics writers Belgian comics artists Belgian satirists Belgian humorists People from Lokeren