| Blek | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Editoriale Dardo |
| First appearance | 1954 |
| Created by | EsseGesse |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Yannick Leroc |
| Partnerships | Roddy, Occultis |
| Abilities | Strength, marksmanship |
Il Grande Blek is anItalianWestern comic book, first published inItaly on October 3, 1954, byEditoriale Dardo.Blek was written and illustrated by Giovanni Sinchetto, Dario Guzzon and Pietro Sartoris, a trio also known asEsseGesse.[1]
Blek is the leader of a group oftrappers during theAmerican Revolutionary War, who fight against the cruelRedcoats, the symbol ofBritish colonialist oppression. Blek's best friends and allies are his stepson Roddy Lassiter and Professor Cornelius Occultis. Although not present in every episode, lawyer Connoly, the leader of American revolutionaries inBoston, is another prominent character.Benjamin Franklin also made occasional appearances.
Theprototype of the character was published in another comic calledIl Piccolo Trapper in 1953, inspired by the works ofFenimore Cooper andZane Grey.[2] The blonde giant appeared a year later. From 1954 to 1967, 654strips were published in theCollana Araldo series. In its heyday, the strip boasted a weekly circulation of 400,000. However, the authors moved on to createComandante Mark after a financial disagreement with the original publisher in 1965.
In addition to Italy,Blek was reprinted in other countries such as Greece (asΜΠΛΕΚ), Turkey (asTeksas, Çelik Blek), France (asBlek le Roc), and former Yugoslavia (asVeliki Blek). TheSlovenian national minority in Italy was introduced to Blek inSlovene in 1959 (asSilni Tom, meaningTough Tom); the Slovenian translation was changed toVeliki Blek in the 1990s. In Scandinavia, he was called Davy Crockett, although he has nothing to do with thehistorical figure.
Carlo Cedroni, Nicola Del Principe and many others continued the production forÉditions Lug, while the list of French authors includedJean-Yves Mitton[3] and André Amouriq.[4] The title peaked at 300,000 copies. Blek also received a revamped origin; writer Marcel Navarro revealed "Blek" means "Golden Hair" in the language ofNative Americans, but that he was born Yannick Leroc inSaint-Malo, France on November 27, 1749.[5]
In former Yugoslavia, Blek was published in theLunov magnus strip andStrip zabavnik series. The character reached the print run of 100,000, so in 1978 the local publisher (Dnevnik fromNovi Sad) decided to produce its own licensed material, colloquially known asYU Blek. The writers were Petar Aladžić, Predrag Ivanović, Miodrag Milanović, Ivica Mitrović andSvetozar Obradović. The list of artists included Stevan Brajdić, Milorad Žarić, Miodrag Ivanović, Predrag Ivanović, D. Ivković,Branislav Kerac, Bojan Kerzan, Pavel Koza,Vladimir Krstić, Spasoje Kulauzov, Marinko Lebović, B. Ljubičić, Stevo Maslek, Nikola Maslovara, Radič Mijatović, Željko Mitrović, Ahmet Muminović, Slavko Pejak, Dušan Pivac,Branko Plavšić, Zdravko Popović,Sibin Slavković (pen name "S. Žunjević"), Ljubomir Filipov and Adam Čurdinjaković. More than 70 episodes were produced, including asticker album.
In Greece, it was journalist and comic writer Stelios Anemodouras (1917 - 2000) who first publishedIl Grande Blek stories on a weekly basis for almost 25 years (1969 - 1994). He, then continued the Blek edition on a monthly basis, until 2011 when his publishing house titled "Periodikos Typos" (by his son, Giorgos Anemodouras) ended its operating. From 2014 Stelios Anemodouras' grandson, Leokratis Anemodouras has been publishing the new Blek magazine ("ΜΠΛΕΚ, τα Καλύτερα Κόμικς" by "Mikros Iros" Co[6]), today on a 2montly basis. During the 70s, Stelios Anemodouras along with illustrator Byron Aptosoglou (1923 - 1990) created 8 newIl Grande Blek stories, which were published, mainly in theΜεγάλος ΜΠΛΕΚ mag. New Greek stories by writers Nikos D. Nikolaidis and Giorgos Pol. Papadakis, illustrated by comic artist Kostas Fragiadakis, were published both in Greek and Italian editions, a few years ago.
The strip inspiredIl Grande Blek, a 1987 film directed byGiuseppe Piccioni about a boy who loves comics.[7]