René Goscinny
Encyclopedia
René Goscinny was a French
comics editor and writer, who is best known for the comic book
Astérix
, which he created with illustrator Albert Uderzo
, and for his work on the comic series Lucky Luke
with Morris
(considered the series' golden age) and Iznogoud
with Jean Tabary
.
immigrants from Poland
; his parents were Stanisław Simkha Gościnny (the surname means hospitable in Polish, Simkha is his Jewish name meaning happiness), a chemical engineer from Warsaw
, Poland, and Anna (Hanna) Bereśniak-Gościnna from Chodorków, a small village near Zhitomir, in the Second Polish Republic
, now Ukraine
. Claude, René's older brother was born 6 years earlier; on 10 December 1920. Stanisław and Anna had met in Paris and married in 1919. The Gościnnys moved to Buenos Aires
, Argentina
, two years after René's birth, because of a chemical engineer post Stanisław had obtained there. He spent a happy childhood in Buenos Aires, and studied in the French schools there. He had a habit of being 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 he graduated from school, 17 year old Goscinny lost his father to a cerebral hemorrhage, forcing him to find a job. The next year, he got his first job, as an assistant accountant in a tire recovery factory, and when he was laid off the following year, he became a junior illustrator in an advertising agency.
Goscinny, along with his mother, left Argentina and went to New York in 1945, to join their uncle Boris. To avoid service in the US military, he travelled to France to join the French Army
in 1946. He served at Aubagne
, in the 141st Alpine Infantry Battalion. Promoted to senior corporal
, he became the appointed illustrator of the regiment and drew illustrations and posters for the army.
, Jack Davis
and Harvey Kurtzman
. Goscinny then became art director at Kunen Publishers where he wrote four books for children. Around this time he met Joseph Gillain, better known as Jijé
, and Maurice de Bevere aka Morris
, the cartoonist
and author of the series Lucky Luke
(which Goscinny would write from 1955 to his death in 1977).
Also, he met Georges Troisfontaines
, chief of the World Press agency, who convinced Goscinny to return to Paris and work for his agency as the head of Paris office in 1951. Here, he met Albert Uderzo, with whom he started a longtime cooperation. They started out with some work for Bonnes Soirées, a female magazine for which Goscinny wrote Sylvie. Goscinny and Uderzo also launched the series Jehan Pistolet and Luc Junior in La Libre Junior.
In 1955, Goscinny, accompanied by Jean-Michel Charlier
, Albert Uderzo
and Jean Hébrad, founded the syndicate Edipress/Edifrance. The syndicate launched publications like 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
for Jean-Jacques Sempé
in Le Moustique and later Sud-Ouest and Pilote
.
In 1956, Goscinny began a collaboration with the magazine Tintin
. He wrote some short stories for Jo Angenot and Albert Weinberg, and worked on Signor Spaghetti with Dino Attanasio
, Monsieur Tric with Bob de Moor
, Prudence Petitpas with Maurice Maréchal, Globul le Martien and Alphonse with Tibet
, Strapontin with Berck
and Modeste et Pompon
with André Franquin
. An early creation with Uderzo, Oumpah-pah
, was also adapted for serial publication in Tintin from 1958-1962. In addition, Goscinny appeared in the magazines Paris-Flirt (Lili Manequin with Will
) and Vaillant (Boniface et Anatole with Jordom, Pipsi with Godard).
Pilote
. Goscinny became one of the most productive writers for the magazine. In the magazine's first issue, he launched his most famous creation, Astérix
, with Uderzo. This series was an instant hit and is now known 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, 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
.
on 5 November 1977, during a stress test
at his doctor's office. He was buried in the Jewish Cemetery of Nice. In accordance with his will, most of his money was transferred to the chief rabbinate of France.
Since Goscinny's untimely death, Uderzo has continued to produce the Asterix series, although at the much slower pace of one book every three to five years. The critical reception of the books written without Goscinny has been mixed to poor.
In a tribute to Goscinny, Uderzo gave his likeness to one of the characters in L'Odyssée d'Astérix ("Asterix and the Black Gold").
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
's Index Translationum
, Goscinny, as of April 2008, was the 22nd most translated author, with 1,800 translations of his work. (This figure does not take in account his additional work under pseudonyms.)
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
comics editor and writer, who is best known for the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
Astérix
Asterix
Asterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
, which he created with illustrator Albert Uderzo
Albert Uderzo
Albert Uderzo is a French comic book artist, and scriptwriter. He is best known for his work on the Astérix series, but also drew other comics such as Oumpah-pah, also in collaboration with René Goscinny.-Early life:...
, and for his work on the comic series 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...
with Morris
Morris (comics)
Maurice De Bevere , better known as Morris, was a Belgian cartoonist and the creator of Lucky Luke. His pen name is an alternate spelling of his first name.-Biography:...
(considered the series' golden age) and Iznogoud
Iznogoud
Iznogoud |French]] accent) is a French comics series featuring an eponymous character, created by the comics writer René Goscinny and comics artist Jean Tabary...
with Jean Tabary
Jean Tabary
-Biography:Tabary was born in Stockholm and made his comics debut with Richard et Charlie published in the comics magazine Vaillant on November 5, 1956...
.
Early life
Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, to a family of JewishJudaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
immigrants from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
; his parents were Stanisław Simkha Gościnny (the surname means hospitable in Polish, Simkha is his Jewish name meaning happiness), a chemical engineer from Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Poland, and Anna (Hanna) Bereśniak-Gościnna from Chodorków, a small village near Zhitomir, in the Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, now Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. Claude, René's older brother was born 6 years earlier; on 10 December 1920. Stanisław and Anna had met in Paris and married in 1919. The Gościnnys moved to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, two years after René's birth, because of a chemical engineer post Stanisław had obtained there. He spent a happy childhood in Buenos Aires, and studied in the French schools there. He had a habit of being 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 he graduated from school, 17 year old Goscinny lost his father to a cerebral hemorrhage, forcing him to find a job. The next year, he got his first job, as an assistant accountant in a tire recovery factory, and when he was laid off the following year, he became a junior illustrator in an advertising agency.
Goscinny, along with his mother, left Argentina and went to New York in 1945, to join their uncle Boris. To avoid service in the US military, he travelled to France to join the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
in 1946. He served at Aubagne
Aubagne
Aubagne is a commune located east of Marseille in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France.The French Foreign Legion has its headquarters there...
, in the 141st Alpine Infantry Battalion. Promoted to senior corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
, he became the appointed illustrator of the regiment and drew illustrations and posters for the army.
First works
The following year, he illustrated the book The Girl with The Eyes of Gold and returned to New York. On his arrival Goscinny went through the most difficult period of his life. For a while, he was jobless, alone and totally broke. By 1948, though, he recovered and started working in a small studio where he met and became friends with future Mad alumni Will ElderWill Elder
William Elder was an American illustrator and comic book artist who worked in numerous areas of commercial art, but is best known for a zany cartoon style that helped launch Harvey Kurtzman's Mad comic book in 1952....
, Jack Davis
Jack Davis (cartoonist)
Jack Davis is an American cartoonist and illustrator, known for his advertising art, magazine covers, film posters, record album art and numerous comic book stories...
and Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic books and magazines. Kurtzman often signed his name H. Kurtz, followed by a stick figure Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, Brooklyn, New York – February 21, 1993) was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic...
. Goscinny then became art director at Kunen Publishers where he wrote four books for children. Around this time he met Joseph Gillain, better known as Jijé
Jijé
Jijé was a Belgian comics artist, best known for being a seminal artist on the Spirou et Fantasio strip and the creator of one of the first major European western strips, Jerry Spring.-Biography:Born Joseph Gillain in Gedinne, Namur, he completed various art studies Jijé (13 January 1914 – 20...
, and Maurice de Bevere aka Morris
Morris (comics)
Maurice De Bevere , better known as Morris, was a Belgian cartoonist and the creator of Lucky Luke. His pen name is an alternate spelling of his first name.-Biography:...
, the cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
and author of the series 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...
(which Goscinny would write from 1955 to his death in 1977).
Also, he met Georges Troisfontaines
Georges Troisfontaines
Georges Troisfontaines was the founder of the World Press agency, and one of the co-authors of the series Buck Danny.After his first work for the comics magazine Spirou before WWII, in which he published strips in relation to aviation, he created in the 1940s the World Press agency...
, chief of the World Press agency, who convinced Goscinny to return to Paris and work for his agency as the head of Paris office in 1951. Here, he met Albert Uderzo, with whom he started a longtime cooperation. They started out with some work for Bonnes Soirées, a female magazine for which Goscinny wrote Sylvie. Goscinny and Uderzo also launched the series Jehan Pistolet and Luc Junior in La Libre Junior.
In 1955, Goscinny, accompanied by Jean-Michel Charlier
Jean-Michel Charlier
Jean-Michel Charlier was a Belgian script writer best known as a writer of realistic European comics. He was a co-founder of the famed European comics magazine Pilote.-Biography:...
, Albert Uderzo
Albert Uderzo
Albert Uderzo is a French comic book artist, and scriptwriter. He is best known for his work on the Astérix series, but also drew other comics such as Oumpah-pah, also in collaboration with René Goscinny.-Early life:...
and Jean Hébrad, founded the syndicate Edipress/Edifrance. The syndicate launched publications like 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
Le Petit Nicolas is a series of French children's books. It was created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was published for the first time on March 29, 1959...
for Jean-Jacques Sempé
Jean-Jacques Sempé
Jean-Jacques Sempé, usually known as Sempé , is a French cartoonist. Some of his cartoons are quite striking, but retain a sentimental and often a somewhat gentle edge to them, even if the topic is a difficult one to approach...
in Le Moustique and later Sud-Ouest and 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...
.
In 1956, Goscinny began a collaboration with the magazine Tintin
Tintin (magazine)
Le journal de Tintin or Kuifje , was a weekly Belgian comics magazine of the second half of the 20th century...
. He wrote some short stories for Jo Angenot and Albert Weinberg, and worked on Signor Spaghetti with Dino Attanasio
Dino Attanasio
Dino Attanasio is an Italian author of humoristic comics.-Biography:Attanasio was born in Milan....
, Monsieur Tric with Bob de Moor
Bob de Moor
Bob de Moor is the pen name of Robert Frans Marie De Moor , a Belgian comics creator. Chiefly noted as an artist, he is considered an early master of the Ligne claire style. He wrote and drew several comics series on his own, but also collaborated with Hergé on several volumes of The Adventures of...
, Prudence Petitpas with Maurice Maréchal, Globul le Martien and Alphonse with Tibet
Tibet (comics)
Tibet, the pseudonym of Gilbert Gascard , was a French comics artist and writer in the Franco-Belgian comics genre...
, Strapontin with 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...
and Modeste et Pompon
Modeste et Pompon
Modeste et Pompon is a Belgian comic series consisting mainly of humorous one-page short stories about a temperamental young man and his girlfriend...
with André 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...
. An early creation with Uderzo, Oumpah-pah
Oumpah-pah
Oumpah-pah le Peau-Rouge is a comics series created by comics artist Albert Uderzo and comics author René Goscinny, best known as the creators of Asterix the Gaul. The series first appeared in the weekly Journal de Tintin in 1958 though it remained serialised for a relatively short time...
, was also adapted for serial publication in Tintin from 1958-1962. In addition, Goscinny appeared in the magazines Paris-Flirt (Lili Manequin with Will
Will (comics)
Willy Maltaite known by the pseudonym Will, was a comics creator and comics artist in the Franco-Belgian tradition...
) and Vaillant (Boniface et Anatole with Jordom, Pipsi with Godard).
Pilote and Astérix
In 1959, the Édifrance/Édipresse syndicate started the comics magazineFranco-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,...
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...
. Goscinny became one of the most productive writers for the magazine. In the magazine's first issue, he launched his most famous creation, Astérix
Asterix
Asterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
, with Uderzo. This series was an instant hit and is now known 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
Cabu
Cabu is a French comic strip artist and caricaturist.He started out studying art at the École Estienne in Paris and his drawings were first published by 1954 in a local newspaper...
), Les Dingodossiers (with Gotlib
Marcel Gotlieb
Gotlib is a French comics artist/writer and publisher. Through his own work and the magazines he co-founded, L' Écho des Savanes and Fluide Glacial, Gotlib was one of the key figures in the switch in French-language comics from their children's entertainment roots to an adult tone and readership...
) and La Forêt de Chênebeau (with Mic Delinx). With Tabary, he launched Calife Haroun El Poussah in Record, a series that was later continued in Pilote as Iznogoud
Iznogoud
Iznogoud |French]] accent) is a French comics series featuring an eponymous character, created by the comics writer René Goscinny and comics artist Jean Tabary...
. With Raymond Macherot
Raymond Macherot
Raymond Macherot was a Belgian cartoonist. Although not nearly as famous as fellow Belgian cartoonists such as Hergé or André Franquin, Macherot's work, both as artist and writer, remains highly regarded among critics and collectors.-The Tintin years:Raymond Macherot was born in Verviers, Belgium...
he created Pantoufle for Spirou
Spirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
.
Family
Goscinny married Gilberte Pollaro-Millo in 1967. In 1968 their daughter Anne Goscinny was born, who also became an author.Death
Goscinny died at 51, in Paris of cardiac arrestCardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively...
on 5 November 1977, during a stress test
Cardiac stress test
Cardiac stress test is a test used in medicine and cardiology to measure the heart's ability to respond to external stress in a controlled clinical environment....
at his doctor's office. He was buried in the Jewish Cemetery of Nice. In accordance with his will, most of his money was transferred to the chief rabbinate of France.
Since Goscinny's untimely death, Uderzo has continued to produce the Asterix series, although at the much slower pace of one book every three to five years. The critical reception of the books written without Goscinny has been mixed to poor.
In a tribute to Goscinny, Uderzo gave his likeness to one of the characters in L'Odyssée d'Astérix ("Asterix and the Black Gold").
Awards
- 1974: Adamson AwardAdamson AwardsAdamson Awards is a Swedish award awarded to notable cartoonists, named after the famous Swedish comic strip "Adamson" .They have been presented by the Swedish Academy of Comic Art at the annual Gothenburg Book Fair since 1965...
for best international comic strip artist, Sweden - 2005: Inducted in the Will Eisner Hall of FameEisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
as a Judges' choice, U.S.
Since 1996, the René Goscinny Award
Angoulême International Comics Festival René Goscinny award
The René Goscinny award, named after the writer of Asterix and Lucky Luke, is awarded to comic writers at the Angoulême International Comics Festival. It was first awarded in 1988 and again every year since 1995. The award is given in order to encourage young comic writers, those whose comic...
is presented at the yearly Angoulême International Comics Festival
Angoulême International Comics Festival
The 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...
in France as an encouragement for young comic writers.
According to UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
's Index Translationum
Index Translationum
The Index Translationum is UNESCO's database of book translations. Books have been translated for thousands of years, with no central record of the fact. The League of Nations established a record of translations in 1932. In 1946, the United Nations superseded the League and UNESCO was assigned the...
, Goscinny, as of April 2008, was the 22nd most translated author, with 1,800 translations of his work. (This figure does not take in account his additional work under pseudonyms.)
External links
- Goscinny official site
- Astérix official site
- On Dupuis.com
- Goscinny biography on Asterix International!
- Goscinny biography on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Daughter Ann lighting Hanuka candles with family.