Raoul Cauvin
Encyclopedia
Raoul Cauvin is a Belgian
comics
author and one of the most popular in the humorist field.
, Belgium
in 1938. He studied lithography
at the Institut Saint-Luc in Tournai
, but upon leaving school found that there no jobs available for lithographers. He started working at Dupuis
in 1960 as a cameraman for the small animation studio
the publishing house had started, working on early Smurfs cartoons and other short movies. After a few years, he started writing comics and has since became one of the most prolific Franco-Belgian comics
authors, almost always staying true to Dupuis and the weekly comics magazine
Spirou
. Some of his earliest work was for artists like Claire Bretécher
, Gennaux and Eddy Ryssack.
When Lucky Luke
, the successful, long-running Western
series, moved from Spirou to rival magazine Pilote
, Cauvin came up with Les Tuniques Bleues
(French for "Blue Coats") which is set among the U.S. Cavalry around the time of the American Civil War
. It was at first drawn by Louis Salvérius who, upon his death, was replaced by Lambil
, and has since become a major best-selling comic book series with more than 15 million albums sold.
Cauvin added other another success in 1972 with Sammy
, about bodyguards in Chicago
during the Prohibition era
, drawn by Berck
. A short stint on Spirou and Fantasio (drawn by Nic Broca) was not so successful. Cauvin continued to work for the animation studio as well, writing the scripts for the Musti, Tip and Tap and The Pili's cartoons by Ray Goossens
.
He has lived in Nivelles
since 1991. By November 1999, he had published over 237 albums, selling over 45 million in total.
as background, while Sammy
plays in the time of Al Capone
and Eliot Ness
, and Les Mousquetaires describes the adventures of three musketeer
s in the 17th century. But with Agent 212 (French for "Officer 212"), featuring a rather stupid cop, he started to make his stories more contemporary, and in the 1980s he breached increasingly taboo
subjects and introduced more critical views with themes like nursing and hospitals in Les Femmes en blanc ("The Women in White") with Philippe Bercovici
, Les Paparazzi
or gravediggers in Pierre Tombal.
Although best known for Les Tuniques Bleues, he and Lambil
also worked on a comics series called Pauvre Lampil ("Poor Lampil"), a semi-autobiographical account of the trials and tribulations of a melancholic comic strip artist and his love-hate relationship with his scriptwriter, caricatures of Lambil and Cauvin themselves. In fact, aside from Lambil (whose name is changed to "Lampil"), other characters, including their colleagues in the comic book industry, are referred to by their real or pen-names: Cauvin himself, Fournier
, Franquin
etc.
Cauvin has also taken up more fantastic themes like that of a love angel in Cupido or the hard life of a vulture falling in love with an owl in Les Voraces. Other more recent series include Cédric
, a domestic strip surrounding a pre-adolescent schoolboy, and Les Psy ("The Shrinks") about a psychiatrist
whose patients' eccentricities often lead him to question his own sanity. A lot of Cauvin's characters are of the short-tempered sort, easily provoked and exploding in rage when things go wrong.
He makes his scripts in the form of a rudimentary comic, suggesting a page lay-out, and he has also made a few comics completely on his own, but with limited success.
Whatever the critics think of him though, he continues to be very successful with the public and sought after by artists, at one stage writing almost a dozen series at a time. In 2006 alone, he had six series in the list of best selling new comics of the ACBD, with Cédric securing the fourth spot with 288,900 albums and Les Tuniques Bleues at ten with 184,800 copies. His other most successful comics were Les Femmes en Blanc (78,000 copies), Agent 212 (66,000 copies), Les Psy (51,500 copies) and Pierre Tombal (45,700 copies). In 2010, he was the 7th bestselling author of comics in France, with sales of 569,000 copies that year.
and published in album by Dupuis
unless otherwise stated.
Footnotes
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
comics
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
author and one of the most popular in the humorist field.
Biography
Raoul Cauvin was born in AntoingAntoing
Antoing is a Walloon municipality of Belgium located in the province of Hainaut. It consists of the former municipalities of Antoing, Maubray, Péronnes-lez-Antoing, Bruyelle, Calonne and Fontenoy.-History:...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
in 1938. He studied lithography
Lithography
Lithography is a method for printing using a stone or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface...
at the Institut Saint-Luc in Tournai
Tournai
Tournai is a Walloon city and municipality of Belgium located 85 kilometres southwest of Brussels, on the river Scheldt, in the province of Hainaut....
, but upon leaving school found that there no jobs available for lithographers. He started working at Dupuis
Dupuis
Éditions Dupuis S.A. is a Belgian publisher of comic books and magazines.Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis was founded in 1922 by Jean Dupuis, and is mostly famous for its comic albums and magazines. It is originally a French language publisher, but publishes many editions both in French...
in 1960 as a cameraman for the small animation studio
Animation studio
An animation studio is a company producing animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, and hold a major stake in the sales or rentals of the media produced...
the publishing house had started, working on early Smurfs cartoons and other short movies. After a few years, he started writing comics and has since became one of the most prolific Franco-Belgian comics
Franco-Belgian comics
Franco-Belgian comics are comics that are created in Belgium and France. These countries have a long tradition in comics and comic books, where they are known as BDs, an abbreviation of bande dessinée in French and stripverhalen in Dutch...
authors, almost always staying true to Dupuis and the weekly comics magazine
Franco-Belgian comics magazines
Belgium and France have a long tradition in comics. They have a common history for comics and magazines.In the early years of its history, magazines had a large place on the comics market and were often the only place where comics were published. Most of them were kids-targeted.In the 1970s,...
Spirou
Spirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
. Some of his earliest work was for artists like Claire Bretécher
Claire Bretécher
Claire Bretécher is a French cartoonist, known particularly for her portrayals of women and gender issues. Her creations include the Frustrés, and the unimpressed teenager Agrippine.-Biography:...
, Gennaux and Eddy Ryssack.
When Lucky Luke
Lucky Luke
Lucky Luke is a Belgian comics series created by Belgian cartoonist, Maurice De Bevere better known as Morris, the original artist, and was for one period written by René Goscinny...
, the successful, long-running Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
series, moved from Spirou to rival magazine Pilote
Pilote
thumb|Cover of the first Pilote teaser issue, #0.Pilote was a French comics periodical 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 le Gaulois, Blueberry, Achille Talon, and Valérian et...
, Cauvin came up with Les Tuniques Bleues
Les Tuniques Bleues
Les Tuniques Bleues is a Belgian series of bandes dessinées , first featured in Spirou and later published by Dupuis. Created by Louis Salverius, the series was taken up by artist Willy Lambillotte and writer Raoul Cauvin. It follows two United States cavalrymen through a series of battles and...
(French for "Blue Coats") which is set among the U.S. Cavalry around the time of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. It was at first drawn by Louis Salvérius who, upon his death, was replaced by Lambil
Lambil
Lambil is a Belgian comic-book artist, best known for the series Les Tuniques Bleues, which has been published in English as "The Blue Tunics" and "The Bluecoats".-Biography:Willy Lambillotte was born in Tamines, Belgium in 1936...
, and has since become a major best-selling comic book series with more than 15 million albums sold.
Cauvin added other another success in 1972 with Sammy
Sammy (comics)
Sammy is a popular humour Belgian comics series. It first started in 1970 in the weekly comic Spirou magazine, has been published in book form and even been the subject of several omnibus editions by Dupuis...
, about bodyguards in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
during the Prohibition era
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
, drawn by Berck
Arthur Berckmans
Arthur Berckmans , better known as Berck, is a Belgian comics author, best known for Sammy.-Biography:Arthur Berckmans was born in Leuven in 1929. He studied drawing at the Art academy of Leuven and at the Saint Lucas Institute in Brussels. His first job as an illustrator was in 1948 for the...
. A short stint on Spirou and Fantasio (drawn by Nic Broca) was not so successful. Cauvin continued to work for the animation studio as well, writing the scripts for the Musti, Tip and Tap and The Pili's cartoons by Ray Goossens
Ray Goossens
Ray Goossens was a Flemish artist, animator and director best known for creating Musti.-Biography:Ray Goossens was born in Merksem, Belgium in 1924. Interested in animation from before World War II, he created the animation studio AFIM in Antwerp in 1940, together with Jules Luyckx and Henri...
.
He has lived in Nivelles
Nivelles
Nivelles is a Walloon city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. The Nivelles municipality includes the old communes of Baulers, Bornival, Thines, and Monstreux....
since 1991. By November 1999, he had published over 237 albums, selling over 45 million in total.
Themes
Cauvin's work is almost always humoristic, but he produces both long stories (i.e. 44 pages) and short gags (between half a page and 6 pages). He started mainly with historical series: Les Tuniques Bleues uses the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
as background, while Sammy
Sammy (comics)
Sammy is a popular humour Belgian comics series. It first started in 1970 in the weekly comic Spirou magazine, has been published in book form and even been the subject of several omnibus editions by Dupuis...
plays in the time of Al Capone
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
and Eliot Ness
Eliot Ness
Eliot Ness was an American Prohibition agent, famous for his efforts to enforce Prohibition in Chicago, Illinois, and the leader of a legendary team of law enforcement agents nicknamed The Untouchables.- Early life :...
, and Les Mousquetaires describes the adventures of three musketeer
Musketeer
A musketeer was an early modern type of infantry soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern armies, particularly in Europe. They sometimes could fight on horseback, like a dragoon or a cavalryman...
s in the 17th century. But with Agent 212 (French for "Officer 212"), featuring a rather stupid cop, he started to make his stories more contemporary, and in the 1980s he breached increasingly taboo
Taboo
A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...
subjects and introduced more critical views with themes like nursing and hospitals in Les Femmes en blanc ("The Women in White") with Philippe Bercovici
Philippe Bercovici
Philippe Bercovici is a French comics artist of Franco-Belgian comics. Having illustrated a wide range of series, Bercovici is perhaps most known for Les Femmes en Blanc written by Cauvin, started in 1981...
, Les Paparazzi
Paparazzi
Paparazzi is an Italian term used to refer to photojournalists who specialize in candid photography of celebrities, politicians, and other prominent people...
or gravediggers in Pierre Tombal.
Although best known for Les Tuniques Bleues, he and Lambil
Lambil
Lambil is a Belgian comic-book artist, best known for the series Les Tuniques Bleues, which has been published in English as "The Blue Tunics" and "The Bluecoats".-Biography:Willy Lambillotte was born in Tamines, Belgium in 1936...
also worked on a comics series called Pauvre Lampil ("Poor Lampil"), a semi-autobiographical account of the trials and tribulations of a melancholic comic strip artist and his love-hate relationship with his scriptwriter, caricatures of Lambil and Cauvin themselves. In fact, aside from Lambil (whose name is changed to "Lampil"), other characters, including their colleagues in the comic book industry, are referred to by their real or pen-names: Cauvin himself, Fournier
Jean-Claude Fournier
Jean-Claude Fournier , known simply as Fournier, is a French cartoonist best known as the comic book artist who handled Spirou et Fantasio in the years 1969-1979.-Biography:...
, Franquin
André Franquin
André Franquin was an influential Belgian comics artist, whose best known comic strip creations are Gaston and Marsupilami, created while he worked on the Spirou et Fantasio comic strip from 1947 to 1969, during a period seen by many as the series' golden age.-Franquin's beginnings:Franquin was...
etc.
Cauvin has also taken up more fantastic themes like that of a love angel in Cupido or the hard life of a vulture falling in love with an owl in Les Voraces. Other more recent series include Cédric
Cédric
Cédric is a Belgian comic strip created by writer Raoul Cauvin and drawn by Laudec. A series of animated cartoons based on the comic have been produced as well.-Story:...
, a domestic strip surrounding a pre-adolescent schoolboy, and Les Psy ("The Shrinks") about a psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
whose patients' eccentricities often lead him to question his own sanity. A lot of Cauvin's characters are of the short-tempered sort, easily provoked and exploding in rage when things go wrong.
He makes his scripts in the form of a rudimentary comic, suggesting a page lay-out, and he has also made a few comics completely on his own, but with limited success.
Critics and success
His works are often seen as more artisanal than artistic by the critics, while others consider him an uncontested master of the humoristic comic.Whatever the critics think of him though, he continues to be very successful with the public and sought after by artists, at one stage writing almost a dozen series at a time. In 2006 alone, he had six series in the list of best selling new comics of the ACBD, with Cédric securing the fourth spot with 288,900 albums and Les Tuniques Bleues at ten with 184,800 copies. His other most successful comics were Les Femmes en Blanc (78,000 copies), Agent 212 (66,000 copies), Les Psy (51,500 copies) and Pierre Tombal (45,700 copies). In 2010, he was the 7th bestselling author of comics in France, with sales of 569,000 copies that year.
Selected bibliography
All stories originally appeared in SpirouSpirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
and published in album by Dupuis
Dupuis
Éditions Dupuis S.A. is a Belgian publisher of comic books and magazines.Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis was founded in 1922 by Jean Dupuis, and is mostly famous for its comic albums and magazines. It is originally a French language publisher, but publishes many editions both in French...
unless otherwise stated.
- Agent 212Agent 212Agent 212 is the name of a humorous Belgian comic about a large police officer. The comic series is written by Raoul Cauvin, and drawn by Daniel Kox, and has been published in the Spirou/Robbedoes magazine since 1975. Dupuis has also published 26 comic books in French and Dutch featuring the...
(artist: Daniel Kox; 26 albums, since 1975) - Boulouloum et Guiliguili (artist: Mazel; 10 albums, between 1975 and 1988)
- CédricCédricCédric is a Belgian comic strip created by writer Raoul Cauvin and drawn by Laudec. A series of animated cartoons based on the comic have been produced as well.-Story:...
(artist: Laudec; 23 albums, since 1989) - CRS=Détresse (artist: AchdéAchdéAchdé, the pseudonym of Hervé Darmenton , is a French comic book writer and artist. The pseudonym is based on the French pronunciation of his initials, “H.D.”...
; 12 albums published by DargaudDargaudLes Éditions Dargaud is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics series, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. It was founded in 1943 by Georges Dargaud.Initially, Dargaud published novels for women...
, since 1993) - CupidonCupidon (comics)Cupidon is a Belgian comics series written by Raoul Cauvin and drawn by Malik-Publication history:Cupidon made its debut in the comics magazine Spirou on October 5, 1988. To date 19 albums have been published by Dupuis.-Synopsis:...
(artist Malik; 21 albums, since 1988) - Les Femmes en blancLes Femmes en BlancLes Femmes en blanc is a Belgian comics humor series of 32 volumes, for which the script was created by Raoul Cauvin and whose design was directed by Philippe Bercovici. Colours were done by Leonardo. The first volume was released in 1986....
(artist: Philippe BercoviciPhilippe BercoviciPhilippe Bercovici is a French comics artist of Franco-Belgian comics. Having illustrated a wide range of series, Bercovici is perhaps most known for Les Femmes en Blanc written by Cauvin, started in 1981...
; 31 albums, since 1986) - Godaille et Godasse (artist: Sandron; 5 albums, between 1982 and 1988)
- Les Grandes amours contrariées (artist: Philippe Bercovici; 1 album in 1982)
- Les Mousquetaires (artist: Mazel; 8 albums, between 1972 and 1998)
- NatachaNatacha (comics)Natacha is a Franco-Belgian comics series, created by François Walthéry and Gos. Drawn by Walthéry, its stories have been written by several authors including Gos, Peyo, Maurice Tillieux, Raoul Cauvin and Marc Wasterlain. It was first published in the comics magazine Spirou on February 26, 1970...
(artist: François WalthéryFrançois WalthéryFrançois Walthéry is a Belgian comics artist, best known for his series featuring an adventurous flight attendant, Natacha.-Biography:...
; Album #13 in 1988) - Les Naufragés (artist: Claire BretécherClaire BretécherClaire Bretécher is a French cartoonist, known particularly for her portrayals of women and gender issues. Her creations include the Frustrés, and the unimpressed teenager Agrippine.-Biography:...
; 1 album, in 1968) - Les Paparazzi (artist: Mazel; 10 albums, since 1996)
- Pauvre Lampil (artist: LambilLambilLambil is a Belgian comic-book artist, best known for the series Les Tuniques Bleues, which has been published in English as "The Blue Tunics" and "The Bluecoats".-Biography:Willy Lambillotte was born in Tamines, Belgium in 1936...
; 7 albums, between 1973 and 1995) - Pierre Tombal (artist: Marc Hardy; 25 albums, since 1983)
- Du côté de chez Poje (artist: Carpentier; 20 albums, since 1986)
- Les Psy (artist: Bédu; 15 albums, since 1992)
- SammySammy (comics)Sammy is a popular humour Belgian comics series. It first started in 1970 in the weekly comic Spirou magazine, has been published in book form and even been the subject of several omnibus editions by Dupuis...
(artist: BerckArthur BerckmansArthur Berckmans , better known as Berck, is a Belgian comics author, best known for Sammy.-Biography:Arthur Berckmans was born in Leuven in 1929. He studied drawing at the Art academy of Leuven and at the Saint Lucas Institute in Brussels. His first job as an illustrator was in 1948 for the...
, since 1995 Jean-Pol; 40 albums, since 1970) - Spirou et FantasioSpirou et FantasioSpirou et Fantasio is one of the most popular classic Franco-Belgian comic strips. The series, which has been running since 1938, shares many characteristics with other European humorous adventure comics like Tintin and Asterix...
(artist: Nic Broca; Albums #30-#32, between 1983 and 1984) - Taxi Girl (artist: Laudec, 2 albums, between 1994 and 1996)
- Les Tuniques BleuesLes Tuniques BleuesLes Tuniques Bleues is a Belgian series of bandes dessinées , first featured in Spirou and later published by Dupuis. Created by Louis Salverius, the series was taken up by artist Willy Lambillotte and writer Raoul Cauvin. It follows two United States cavalrymen through a series of battles and...
(artist: Salvérius, after his death Lambil; 52 albums, since 1968) - Le Vieux Bleu (artist: François Walthéry, 1 album, in 1980)
- Les Voraces (artist: Glem; 5 albums, between 1986 and 1994)
Awards
- 1975: Best Comical Album at the Prix Saint-MichelPrix Saint-MichelThe 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 are the second oldest comics award in Europe still presented, behind the Adamson Awards...
, BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium for Sammy - 1976: Best Foreign AuthorAngoulême International Comics Festival Other awardsA number of awards was only presented at the Angoulême International Comics Festival for a short time.-Award for best French artist:* 1974: Alexis* 1975: Jacques Tardi* 1976: André Cheret* 1977: Moebius* 1978: Paul Gillon-Award for best foreign artist:...
at the Angoulême International Comics FestivalAngoulême International Comics FestivalThe Angoulême International Comics Festival is the largest comics festival in Europe. It has occurred every year since 1974 in Angoulême, France, in the month of January.The four-day festival is notable for awarding several prestigious prizes in cartooning...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... - 2001: Nomination for Best Youth AlbumAngoulême International Comics Festival Prix Jeunesse 9-12 ansThe Prix Jeunesse 9-12 ans is awarded to comics authors at the Angoulême International Comics Festival. It rewards the best album for a 9 to 12 years old targeted public.The award started in 1981 as the "Alfred enfant", without the distinction in age groups....
at the Angoulême International Comics Festival, France for CRS = détresse - 2004: Prix Canal J for the best youth album for CédricCédricCédric is a Belgian comic strip created by writer Raoul Cauvin and drawn by Laudec. A series of animated cartoons based on the comic have been produced as well.-Story:...
- 2005: Prix Canal J for Cédric
- 2006: Nomination for Best Album at the Albert Uderzo Awards in NîmesNîmesNîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
, France for Les Tuniques Bleues - 2008: Grand Prix Saint-MichelPrix Saint-MichelThe 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 are the second oldest comics award in Europe still presented, behind the Adamson Awards...
Sources
- De Saeger, Kris (1995), Dossier Cauvin. Arboris. ISBN 90-343-2435-4
- Cauvin publications in Spirou BDoubliées
Footnotes
External links
- Cauvin at DupuisDupuisÉditions Dupuis S.A. is a Belgian publisher of comic books and magazines.Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis was founded in 1922 by Jean Dupuis, and is mostly famous for its comic albums and magazines. It is originally a French language publisher, but publishes many editions both in French...
- Cauvin biography on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Cauvin biography Top Game
- Raoul Cauvin fansite