Clifton (comics)
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| Colonel Clifton | |
|---|---|
 picture by Jo-El Azara, 1969 |
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| Author(s) | Raymond Macherot Rodrigue with Bob de Groot |
| Current status / schedule | Running |
| Launch date | 1959 |
| Syndicate(s) | Lombard Editions, Brussels |
| Genre(s) | Humor |
Clifton is a Franco-Belgian comics series in the humorous spy-genre, featuring the exploits of Colonel Sir Harold Wilberforce Clifton. It was created by Raymond Macherot in 1959, and has since passed on to various artists and scenarists. Over the fifty years of publication of Clifton comic books, approximately 20 full books and 20 smaller stories have been published, totalling about 800 pages.
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[edit] Character
A British colonel, retired from MI5, though sometimes still active for the British government, Clifton functions as an amateur sleuth, and his phlegmatic approach to stress leads to humorous situations. Harold Clifton lives in Puddington, near London, supported by housekeeper Mrs Partridge, who makes a prize-winning goulash. Clifton drives a red MG TD from the early fifties, which gets mangled in most stories, but is repaired regardless of cost. Clifton's hobbies include Boy Scouting (he's Boy Scoutmaster Singing Heron), cats, and collecting cigar wraps. He received a Knighthood in 1993 for saving a member of the Royal family.
Note: in later adventures it was established that Clifton served in the RAF as a fighter pilot during the war. Thus his proper rank would probably be that of Group Captain.
[edit] Publication history
It was originally Raymond Macherot who created the Colonel Clifton character, and the first story was published in the comics magazine Tintin on December 16, 1959.[1] In preliminary studies, Macherot had used Colonel Horatio Amaory Crickett as a working name, but before the first story decided on Colonel Clifton instead. Clifton's first names Harold Wilberforce were not mentioned until the second story. After three stories, published in 1959-1960, Macherot went on to do other work, and eventually left Tintin for the competitor Spirou, leaving behind his Tintin-owned work.[2] Clifton was shelved for six years.
In 1969 Jo-El Azara and Greg revived the series, collaborating on the story Les lutins diaboliques, and in 1975, with the story Le mystère de la voix qui court, the duo of Turk and De Groot began a long-lasting collaboration of Clifton volumes.
There followed another change in 1983 as Bédu took over the artwork from Turk and worked with De Groot until the 90s.[3] In 1991 Bédu became responsible for both artwork and scenario with the story Le clan Mc Gregor, the last story serialised in French Tintin, and continued to work alone for the following two stories published directly to albums.
In 2003, after a long inactive period, Rodrigue collaborated with Bob de Groot who returned to write Clifton scripts, and two volumes have been published since.
[edit] Timeline of major stories
| Artist | Scenarist | Year* | FR title | NL title | EN title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Macherot | Macherot | 1959 | Les enquêtes du colonel Clifton | De onderzoekingen van kolonel Clifton | ||
| Macherot | Macherot | 1960 | Clifton à New York | Clifton in New York | ||
| Macherot | Macherot | 1960 | Clifton et les espions | Clifton en de spionnen | ||
| Jo-El Azara | Greg | 1969 | Les lutins diaboliques | De duivelse dwergen | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1970 | Le mystère de la voix qui court | Het geheim van de rennende stem | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1972 | Le voleur qui rit | De lachende dief | The laughing thief | |
| Turk | De Groot | 1974 | Alias Lord X | Alias Lord X | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1975 | Sir Jason | Sir Jason | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1976 | Ce cher Mr Wilkinson | Dear Mr Wilkinson | Dear Mr Wilkinson | |
| Turk | De Groot | 1978 | 7 jours pour mourir | 7 dagen om te sterven | 7 days to die | |
| Turk | De Groot | 1979 | Atout...coeur! | Hartkloppingen! | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1980 | Une panthère pour le colonel | Een panter voor de kolonel | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1982 | Weekend à tuer | Weekend om te doden | ||
| Turk | De Groot | 1983 | Kidnapping | Kidnapping | ||
| Bédu | De Groot | 1984 | Passé composé | Uit de oude doos | ||
| Bédu | De Groot | 1986 | La mémoire brisée | Geheugenverlies | ||
| Bédu | De Groot | 1987 | Dernière scéance | Laatste voorstelling | ||
| Bédu | De Groot | 1990 | Matoutou-falaise | Matoutou-falaise | ||
| Bédu | Bédu | 1991 | Le clan Mc Gregor | |||
| Bédu | Bédu | 1992 | Mortelle saison | Een fataal spel | ||
| Bédu | Bédu | 1995 | Le baiser du cobra | De kus van de cobra | ||
| Rodrigue | De Groot | 2003 | Jade | Jade | Jade | |
| Rodrigue | De Groot | 2005 | Lune noire | Zwarte maan | Black Moon |
- *Denotes original year of publication until Tintin ceased to be published, and Clifton no longer serialised
[edit] Publications in magazines
The cartoonists worked with original French language stories, whereas all were published simultaneously in French and Dutch, the two main Belgian languages, in the weekly French language magazines Tintin and Junior, and Dutch language Kuifje and Ons Volkske, all published by Lombard Editions in Brussels. Clifton also ran in other magazines, across Europe such as the German publications Zack and YPS.
[edit] Translations
Beside French and Dutch, the stories were translated into Finnish, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, English (published by Cinebook Ltd, a specialist in Franco-Belgian comics), and also into German where in most publications Clifton is named Percy Pickwick.
[edit] Adaptation
In the mid-eighties a Clifton movie was made by Belvision, the film department of Lombard.
[edit] Sources
- Clifton publications in Belgian Tintin and French Tintin BDoubliées (French)
- Footnotes
- ^ BDoubliées. Tintin année 1959 (French).
- ^ Lambiek Comiclopedia. Raymond Macherot.
- ^ Lambiek Comiclopedia. Bédu.
