Jan Lööf (born 30 May 1940 in

Trollhättan Trollhättan () is the 23rd-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Trollhättan Municipality, Västra Götaland County. It is situated by Göta älv, near the lake Vänern, and has a population of approximately 50,000 in the city proper. It is l ...

) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

illustrator, author, comic creator, and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

musician. Lööf studied at

Konstfack Konstfack, or University of Arts, Crafts and Design, is a university college for higher education in the area of art, crafts and design in Stockholm, Sweden. History Konstfack has had several different names since it was founded in 1844 by the ...

in Stockholm in the early 1960s. From 1967 until 1973 he created his most famous comic strip ''Felix'', which soon gained popularity into many parts of the world. Mixing humor and adventure, ''Felix'' has sometimes been described as a more naivistic or underground style version of ''Tintin'', in terms of the drawing style, but in its themes and morale it is also somewhat

leftist Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soc ...

. Later, Lööf created other comics, such as ''

Bellman Bellman may refer to: * Town crier, an officer of the court who makes public pronouncements * Bellhop, a hotel porter * Bellman (surname) * Bellman (diving), a standby diver and diver's attendant * Bellman hangar, a prefabricated, portable aircraf ...

'' (a humor strip about a Stockholm

hobo A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; and a bum neither travels nor works. E ...

) and ''Ville'' (1975–76), a "comedic adventure" about an unemployed Stockholm author, teaming up with

Olof Palme Sven Olof Joachim Palme (; ; 30 January 1927 – 28 February 1986) was a Swedish politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Sweden from 1969 to 1976 and 1982 to 1986. Palme led the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1969 until ...

and

Carl XVI Gustaf Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. He ascended the throne on the death of his grandfather, Gustaf VI Adolf, on 15 September 1973. He is the youngest child and only son of Prince Gustaf Adolf, ...

to fight the bad guys. This was originally serialized in the Swedish periodical Vi. In the early 1970s, Lööf participated as an actor in a few productions, among them the Swedish cult children's TV show ''Tårtan'' (The Cake, 1972) about three incompetent and filthy sailors-turned-bakers. His children's books are continually popular, both in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

and elsewhere. Among them are ''

The Story of the Red Apple ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

'' (Sagan om det röda äpplet, 1974) and '' Uncle Louie's Fantastic Sea Voyage'' (Morfar är sjörövare, 1966 – lit. Grandpa is a Pirate). Based on these books Lööf produced his own children's show, the animated ''Skrot-Nisse och Hans Vänner'' (Scrap-Nisse and his Friends), for

Swedish National Television Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

in 1985. He has also illustrated children's books written by his friend and colleague

Carl Johan De Geer Baron Carl Johan Louis De Geer af Finspång (born 13 July 1938) is a Swedish artist, writer, musician and '' friherre'' (baron) of the De Geer noble family. De Geer was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He grew up in a castle in Skåne, in southe ...

Awards

Jan Lööf has received a number of awards. *2011:

Astrid Lindgren Prize The Astrid Lindgren-priset, or Astrid Lindgren Prize in English, is a Swedish literary award for children's literature named after the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren (; ; 14 November 1907 – 28 January 200 ...

*2010: Selma Lagerlöf Prize *2009: "Urhunden" *2005: Bokjuryn ( :sv:Bokjuryn) *1985:

Golden Antenna Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...

( :sv:Guldantennen) *1977:

Elsa Beskow Plaque Elsa may refer to: ELSA (acronym) *ELSA Technology, a manufacturer of computer hardware *English Language Skills Assessment *English Longitudinal Study of Ageing *Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects research *European Law Students' Association *Euro ...

( :sv:Elsa Beskow-plaketten) *1976: 91:an Scholarship Award( :sv:91:an-stipendiet) *1974: Expressen's Heffalump ( :sv:Expressens Heffalump) *1968: Adamson Award

References

External links

– About the creation of the series Felix, and its leftism (in Swedish)11hj1 * []` {{DEFAULTSORT:Loof, Jan Swedish comics writers Swedish comics artists Swedish comic strip cartoonists Swedish illustrators 1940 births Living people People from Trollhättan Recipients of the Astrid Lindgren Prize