Celebrity Death: Albert Uderzo, co-creator and artist of Asterix, at 92.

[Jussi]

Asterix co-creator Albert Uderzo dies aged 92

In an interview with The Connexion in 2008, the Frenchman joked that Asterix was born "at the best time of the day - aperitif time!"

He and Goscinny were sitting on the balcony of his apartment trying to dream up a character for the new magazine aimed at children.

"The brief was very precise - François Clauteaux, one of the magazine's founders, wanted a character taken from French culture," Uderzo recalled.

"At the time it was important to try to set yourself apart from the American superheroes, or certain reporters one could mention [Tintin].

"So I looked back through history with René and reviewed all the different periods of French history. We needed something original which no-one else had worked on.

"When we got to the Gauls - eureka!"

For my generation, the Asterix and Tintin albums were the comic albums which we grew up with.

“The year is 50BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely … One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders. And life is not easy for the Roman legionaries who garrison the fortified camps of Totorum, Aquarium, Laudanum and Compendium.”

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[beowulf]

I have all the Asterix and Obelix books at my parents from when I was a kid. Loved them growing up.

 

[ProstheticConscience]

I have all the Asterix and Obelix books at my parents from when I was a kid. Loved them growing up.

Used to have the entire collection myself. Yup. Also loved them growing up.

RIP.

 

[NyQuil]

I loved the little inside jokes about the various countries in Europe.

I didn't get them all as a kid, but they're definitely pretty slick.

 

[Jussi]

I have all the Asterix and Obelix books at my parents from when I was a kid. Loved them growing up.

I have "most" of them. Haven't read the new ones (last one I have I think is "Asterix & the Magic Carpet"). My friend used to have all of them plus all the Lucky Luke (the one Asterix co-creator Rene Goscinny wrote for a long time) ones I didn't have and I borrowed the ones I didn't have and more often than not, I din't buy them, even if I found them at the local antiquarian bookshop.

 

[Jussi]

I loved the little inside jokes about the various countries in Europe.

I didn't get them all as a kid, but they're definitely pretty slick.

The bit in "Asterix the Legionary" about the complicate nature of bureaucracy still hits the target.