Luciano Bottaro facts for kids

Luciano Bottaro (born November 16, 1931 – died November 25, 2006) was a talented comic book artist from Italy. He was known for his unique drawing style, which was very popular across Europe. Many countries, like France, Germany, and Spain, published his comics. His work was also enjoyed in places as far away as Argentina, Australia, and Brazil.

Bottaro was inspired by famous cartoonists like Otto Messmer, who created Felix the Cat, and Winsor McCay, known for Little Nemo in Slumberland. He also admired the Disney adaptations by Carl Barks and Floyd Gottfredson.

A Young Artist's Journey

Luciano Bottaro was born in Rapallo, Italy. In 1949, he decided to stop studying accounting (which is about managing money) to become a cartoonist. That same year, he started his career working for an Italian magazine called Lo Scolaro. His first character was Aroldo il Bucaniere, a type of pirate.

He also worked for other well-known Italian publishers. These included La Domenica del Corriere, Edizioni Alpe, and Mondadori, which published Disney comics in Italy. His first Disney story was "Paperino e le onorificenze" (Donald Duck and the Honors). It was written by Alberto Testa and came out in 1952.

In 1952, he began working with Guido Scala and Franco Aloisi. Later, Carlo Chendi joined them. People unofficially called their group the "Rapallo's School." This was before they officially started their own company, the "Bierrecì Studios."

Creating Comics at Bierrecì Studios

Besides working on famous Disney characters, Luciano Bottaro also created many of his own characters for different magazines. Some of these included Whisky & Gogo, Baldo, Pon Pon, Giò Polpetta, and Maramao.

In 1958, he started the Bierrecì Studios with his friends Carlo Chendi and Giorgio Rebuffi. This was a place where they could create and publish their own comics.

The first comic book from Bierrecì Studios was Re di Picche (King of Spades). This comic told the adventures of the king from a deck of cards. It was a funny and sometimes dark parody (a humorous imitation) of the military world. It was inspired by the famous book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

One of Bottaro's most popular characters was Pepito. Pepito was a funny buccaneer (a pirate-like adventurer) from the 1600s. He often fought against the greedy Governor of a Spanish Caribbean colony. Surprisingly, Pepito became more popular outside of Italy than in his home country. It was published in many different countries.

Many other cartoonists started working with Bierrecì Studios. These included Maria Luisa Uggetti, Tiberio Colantuoni, Ivo Milazzo, and Giancarlo Berardi. They worked on various characters, including Mickey Mouse, Uncle Scrooge, and characters from Warner Bros..

The studio also made comic versions of Carosello. This was an Italian television program from the 1950s and 1960s that showed the first advertisements in Italy.

Remembering His Work

In 2018, a special book was dedicated to Luciano Bottaro as part of the Disney Masters book series by Fantagraphics Books. The book was called Donald Duck: Uncle Scrooge's Money Rocket. Its ISBN is 978-1-68396-109-3.

See also

In Spanish: Luciano Bottaro para niños