Pif Gadget
Pif Gadget (also simply known as Pif) was a French comics magazine for children that ran from 1969 to 1993 and 2004 to 2009. Its readership peaked in the early 1970s.
Predecessors
Pif has its origins in Le Jeune Patriote, a youth magazine published by
Publication history
Pif Gadget started again as a weekly magazine with issue number 1, released on February 24, 1969, but retained the old number relative to Vaillant.
The cover of Pif Gadget had the strapline Tout en récits complets (all in complete stories) indicating that none of the comic strips were serialized over multiple issues. However, this reference disappeared in December 1973 with the number 250 and the appearance of the first serialized stories, taking up the model of its competitors.
Its featured comics included:
- Rahan
- Doc Justice
- Hugo Pratt's Corto Maltese
- Marcel Gotlib's Gai-Luron
- Nikita Mandryka's Les Aventures potagères du Concombre masqué
- Raymond Poïvet and Roger Lecureux's Les Pionniers de l'Espérance
- Le Grêlé 7/13
- Nasdine Hodja
- Jean Cézard's Arthur le fantôme justicier
- Les Rigolus et les Tristus
- Jean Tabary's Totoche and its spin-off Corinne et Jeannot
- Dicentim le petit Franc
Documentary filmmaker Fredric Lean created a series based on 'Docteur Justice' for French TV network M6.[3]
Pif Gadget's record print run was one million copies, first on April 6, 1970, and again in September 1971. This set a record for a European comic strip that still stands. The paper also benefited from being able to reach the
Pif Gadget was revived as a monthly magazine in July 2004 under the aegis of Pif Editions, with runs of approximately 100,000 units. Saddled with about 4 million euros of debt, the 6-person company went into receivership (redressement judiciaire) in March 2007 and was wound up (liquidation judiciaire) on January 15, 2009.[4] The last issue was published in November 2008.
It has been relaunched in 2015 as a quarterly named "Super Pif".
Similar comics
Pif inspired similar comics in other countries including Yps in Germany and Jippo in Scandinavia.[5]
Notes
- ^ "Vaillant, le journal de PIF et Pif gadget en 1945". BDoubliées.(in French)
- ^ a b "Vaillant, le journal de PIF et Pif gadget en 1969". BDoubliées.(in French)
- ^ "Award de Docteur Justice". Pif Collection. Archived from the original on 2014-11-21.
- ^ [1] "Pif gadget" met la clé sous la porte, Le Monde, January 22, 2009. (in French)
- ^ [2] Couik et Dicentim chez les Nordiques (in French)
References
- Richard Médioni, Pif Gadget: la véritable histoire des origines à 1973, édition Vaillant collector, 2003.
- La mémoire de Vaillant et Pif BD oubliées (in French)
External links
- Pif Gadget, 27th issue (in French)
- Pif Collection (in French)
- Le bozo-bozo, génial casse-tête/tour de magie (in French)
- Rahan's site (in French)
- Vaillant/Pif – on Lambiek Comiclopedia