Boule et Bill
Encyclopedia
Boule et Bill is a popular comic
, created in 1959 by the Belgian
writer-artist
Jean Roba
in collaboration with Maurice Rosy
. In 2003 the artistic responsibility of the series was passed on to Roba's former assistant Laurent Verron. The stories center around a typical family: a man and his wife, their young son Boule and Bill the cocker spaniel
.
Spirou
on December 24, 1959.. The ambition was to make a sort of European Peanuts
. The debut was made in a so-called mini-récit (mini-story), a story in 32 very small pages, printed on the inner spread of the magazine. Roba had until then mainly made illustrations for the magazine and had helped some other authors (including André Franquin
), and now started with his own series. A few months later, a four page comic with the same heroes appeared, and shortly thereafter Roba created a weekly one page comic. For the next twenty-five years, Boule et Bill was one of the most popular series of the magazine, and appeared mostly on the back cover. Some of the strips were even published in the rival Le Journal de Mickey
, which was based mainly around Walt Disney
characters like Mickey Mouse
and Donald Duck
.
21 Albums were edited by Dupuis
until 1985, containing one long story and some 800 gags. Thereafter, Roba changed from editor, moving to Dargaud
. In 2006, Jean Roba died, but he had announced that he wanted the series to be continued, and had appointed Verron as his successor.
. Bill, while slightly anthropomorphized
, basically acts as a normal dog, and the whole series places comical adventures in the realistic setting of a normal family in a normal town, with normal lives. Most of the gags happen in or around the house, but also include an almost yearly holiday setting with the family travelling away from home, usually at the beach.
, then from 1988 by Dargaud
.
Footnotes
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...
, created in 1959 by the Belgian
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...
writer-artist
Comic book creator
A comic book creator is someone who creates a comic book or graphic novel.The production of a comic book by one of the major comic book companies in the U.S...
Jean Roba
Jean Roba
Jean Roba was a Belgian comics author from the Marcinelle school. His best-known work is Boule et Bill.-Biography:...
in collaboration with Maurice Rosy
Maurice Rosy
Maurice Rosy , is a Belgian comics writer who also worked as artistic director of Spirou during its golden period.-Biography:...
. In 2003 the artistic responsibility of the series was passed on to Roba's former assistant Laurent Verron. The stories center around a typical family: a man and his wife, their young son Boule and Bill the cocker spaniel
English Cocker Spaniel
The English Cocker Spaniel is a breed of gun dog. The English Cocker Spaniel is an active, good-natured, sporting dog, standing well up at the withers and compactly built. There are "field" or "working" cockers and "show" cockers...
.
History
Boule et Bill first appeared in 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,...
Spirou
Spirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
on December 24, 1959.. The ambition was to make a sort of European Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
. The debut was made in a so-called mini-récit (mini-story), a story in 32 very small pages, printed on the inner spread of the magazine. Roba had until then mainly made illustrations for the magazine and had helped some other authors (including 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...
), and now started with his own series. A few months later, a four page comic with the same heroes appeared, and shortly thereafter Roba created a weekly one page comic. For the next twenty-five years, Boule et Bill was one of the most popular series of the magazine, and appeared mostly on the back cover. Some of the strips were even published in the rival Le Journal de Mickey
Le Journal de Mickey
Le Journal de Mickey is a French weekly comics magazine established in 1934 and currently published by Disney Hachette Presse. It is centered around the adventures of Mickey Mouse and other Disney figures but contains also other comics. It is credited with "the birth of the modern bande dessinée"...
, which was based mainly around Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
characters like Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
and Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
.
21 Albums were edited 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...
until 1985, containing one long story and some 800 gags. Thereafter, Roba changed from editor, moving to Dargaud
Dargaud
Les 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...
. In 2006, Jean Roba died, but he had announced that he wanted the series to be continued, and had appointed Verron as his successor.
Story
Boule et Bill relates the homely adventures of seven-year-old boy Boule and his dog Bill, a Cocker Spaniel, as well as that of Boule's mother and father and Caroline the turtleTurtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
. Bill, while slightly anthropomorphized
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
, basically acts as a normal dog, and the whole series places comical adventures in the realistic setting of a normal family in a normal town, with normal lives. Most of the gags happen in or around the house, but also include an almost yearly holiday setting with the family travelling away from home, usually at the beach.
Characters
- Boule is a young boy, always dressed in a blue overalls and a yellow T-shirt. He is an ordinary boy who goes to school and has friends with whom he plays a lot.
- Bill is a Cocker Spaniel. He can't speak but resorts to many tricks to make himself understood. He can communicate with other animals, such as his best friend, Caroline. He is very resourceful and cunning to find food, likes sleeping on sofas but dislikes bathing. Some of the most recurring gags revolve around Boule and his dad tricking Bill into a bathtub for a reluctant wash. His long ears provide him with many abilities.
- Boule's mother stays at home and complies with domestic tasks. Her concerns are to keep the house clean and to prevent disasters from Boule and Bill's ideas.
- Boule's father tries to educate his son properly by taking advantage of his questions and blunders. However, he fails most of the time, even if he is quite proud of his personal knowledge. He works for an advertising company, likes gardening and sleeping on a sofa, also appreciated by Bill, which provides some recurring gags.
- Caroline is a green turtle who belong to Boule's family. She lives in the garden. When Bill first met her, he feared she could eat his bones, but was then reassured, for she eats only lettuce. Caroline is insomniacInsomniaInsomnia is most often defined by an individual's report of sleeping difficulties. While the term is sometimes used in sleep literature to describe a disorder demonstrated by polysomnographic evidence of disturbed sleep, insomnia is often defined as a positive response to either of two questions:...
.
- Madame Stick is the neighbour of Boule's family. The widow of a colonel, she is very strict and severe. She is the owner of Corporal, a cat who is Bill's greatest enemy.
- Gérard is a young snobbish boy, owner of a dog similar to him. He tries to dwarf Boule and Bill but ends up being overcome by their inventiveness.
- Monsieur Coupon-Dubois is the boss of Boule's father. Very respectable man, Boule's father sometimes invites him to his home or is being trusted with precious objects, and finds it difficult to prevent Bill's blunders.
- Pouf is Boule's best friend, but is as a rival for Bill, who often teases him. He wear long hair which covers most of his head and a cap.
- Hildegarde is Pouf's cousin who lives in the country. She appeared a few times in the series.
- Boule's teacher is caricatured under MorrisMorris-People:* Morris , a common family name * Morris , Belgian cartoonist, creator of Lucky Luke* Morris, one of the 14 Tribes of Galway, Ireland-Places:In Canada*Morris, Manitoba...
's features.
Original albums
Boule et Bill were first published by DupuisDupuis
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...
, then from 1988 by Dargaud
Dargaud
Les 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...
.
- Tel Boule, tel Bill
- Boule et Bill déboulent
- Les Copains d’abord
- Système Bill
- Bulle et Bill
- Tu te rappelles, Bill ?
- Bill ou Face
- Souvenirs de famille
- Le fauve est lâché
- Bill, chien modèle
- Bill de match
- Sieste sur ordonnance
- Papa, Maman, Boule et… moi
- Une vie de chien
- Attention chien marrant !
- Jeux de Bill
- Ce coquin cocker
- Carnet de Bill
- Ras le Bill
- Bill, nom d'un chien !
- Bill est maboul
- Globe-trotters
- Strip-Cocker
- Billets de Bill
- Les V'là !, 1999
- Faut rigoler !, 1999
- Bwouf allo Bill ?, 1999
- Les Quatre Saisons, 2001
- Quel cirque !, 2003
- La Bande à Bill, 2005
- Graine de cocker, 2007
- Mon meilleur ami, 2009
Other publications
- In 1999, the Boule et Bill series was entirely reedited by Dupuis, in albums of 48 strips, whereas the former albums were composed of either 64, 56 or 48 pages. This series consists of 24 albums published by Dupuis plus three albums originally published by Dargaud and reedited. The nine first albums of the original collection were replaced by 14 albums with different names. The other albums kept their original names, apart from the former 22nd album which was renamed Les v'la!. This new series went on after Roba's death with three new albums drawn by Verron: Quel Cirque! (2003), La bande à Bill (2005), Graine de cocker (2007).
- In 1979 Une extraordinaire aventure de Boule et Bill: Bill a disparu ! was published in Spirou; written by André-Paul DuchateauAndré-Paul DuchâteauAndré-Paul Duchâteau is a Belgian comics writer and mystery novelist. He worked with Tibet on Ric Hochet. He has also written under the pseudonym Michel Vasseur.-Awards:*1974: Grand Prix de Littérature Policière - French Prize...
, Bill goes missing and the various characters from Spirou magazine search for him.
- In 1987 L'album de famille de Boule et Bill was published by Dargaud.
- In 1997 Boule et Bill en famille was published .
- In 1999 Boule et Bill font la fête was published in commemoration of Boule et Bill's 40th anniversary.
- Four Best of Boule et Bill albums composed of previously published strips were published in 2003 and 2004: Plumes poils et compagnie, En vadrouille, Jeux d'hiver, and Home sweet home.
- A series of books for children was published in pocket format, illustrated by Roba and written by Fanny Joly, published by Mango as part of the Bibliomango line.
- An album, A l'école ... vite !, was published in 1999 by Atlas.
- Various special advertising albums were published.
English translations
Cinebook has published two books in English, with Boule and Bill renamed Billy and Buddy, respectively.- Remember this, Buddy? - Jun 2009 - ISBN 9781905460915
- Bored Silly with Billy - Sep 2010 - ISBN 9781849180498
Impact
Boule et Bill is among the best-selling French language comics, with 300,000 copies for the new album by Verron in 2009.- An animated television series based on Boule and Bill was broadcast on RTFRadiodiffusion-Télévision FrançaiseRadiodiffusion-Télévision Française was the French national public broadcasting organization established on 9 February 1949 to replace the post-war "Radiodiffusion Française" , which had been founded in 1945...
in 1960, then later in 2000 on TF1TF1TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
. - In 2002 La PosteLa PosteLa Poste may refer to:* La Poste, the postal service of France* La Poste Suisse, the French name for Swiss Post* La Poste, the French name for De Post - La Poste - Die Post of Belgium* La Poste Tunisienne, the Tunisian postal service...
, France's post officePost officeA post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
system, issued two postage stampPostage stampA postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s illustrating Boule and Bill. Three out of eight were semi-postal stamps benefiting the French Red Cross. - A wall painting representing Boule and Bill was painted in BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
. - A statue of Boule and Bill was erected in JetteJetteJette is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium.The Vrije Universiteit Brussel, the Dutch-speaking university of Brussels has built its hospital and medical campus in Jette, while its other buildings are in the so-called Etterbeek campus actually...
, BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , 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...
, next to where lived Roba.
Sources
- Boule et Bill publications in Spirou BDoubliées
- Boule et Bill albums Bedetheque
Footnotes