Zep

For other uses, see Zep (disambiguation).
Zep
Born Philippe Chappuis
December 15, 1967
Geneva, Switzerland
Nationality Swiss
Area(s) artist, writer
Notable works
Titeuf
Victor
Awards full list

Zep (born December 15, 1967) is the pseudonym of Philippe Chappuis, a comics creator from Switzerland, known for his series Titeuf, a popular character in French-speaking countries, and Tchô!, the associated Franco-Belgian comics magazine.

Biography

Chappuis' pseudonym derives from the first BD magazine he created at age twelve, named "Zep" in honour of Led Zeppelin (a fan of Bob Dylan, references to his musical tastes are often found in his comics). His career began with gags published in Spirou magazine in 1987, and the character Victor which started appearing in 1988.[1]

At first struggling to find publication, the series Titeuf was initially published in the fanzine Sauve qui peut ("Escape those who can") before it was noticed by Glénat executive Jean-Claude Camano.[2] Zep joined Glénat in 1992, and first Titeuf book Dieu, le sexe et les bretelles (God, Sex And Suspenders) appeared in 1993 and sold only a few thousand copies, but the following books have gradually won over a huge readership, outselling traditional French favorites such as Astérix and Lucky Luke.[3] Today 11 million copies of the series have been sold, and the series is considered the greatest moneymaker in the French comics market.[4] Titeuf books have been translated into 15 languages, including Chinese, Italian and German. In the UK, Titeuf appeared under the name Tootuff in The Dandy.

The name "Titeuf" ostensibly derives from French tête d'oeuf (egg-head), but it could also be the familiar, contracted and inverted (verlan) form of petite fête (little party).

Bibliography

  1. Dieu, le sexe et les bretelles, 1993
  2. L’amour c’est pô propre, 1993
  3. Ça épate les filles, 1994
  4. C’est pô juste, 1995
  5. Titeuf et le derrière des choses, 1996
  6. Tchô, monde cruel, 1997
  7. Le miracle de la vie, 1998
  8. Lâchez-moi le slip, 2000
  9. La loi du préau, 2002
  10. Nadia se marie, 2004
  11. Mes meilleurs copains, 2006
  12. Le sens de la vie, 2008
  1. L'invincible, 2004
  2. Le redoutable, 2005
  3. L'invulnérable, 2006

Awards

Sources

Footnotes
  1. Lambiek Comiclopedia. "Zep".
  2. TV5Monde. "Émission du 22 mars" (in French).
  3. Ratier, Gilles. "ACBD bilan 2006: the new Titeuf had an initial run of 1,8 million copies in French alone, making it the best selling album of the year". ACBD.fr. Archived from the original on 2007-03-05. Retrieved 2007-02-08.
  4. Castrillón, Marcos. "Beyond Borders – Not That Innocent". Ninth Art.
  5. France-Jeunes.net. "Titeuf" (in French).
  6. ActuaBD. "Titeuf : les secrets d’un triomphe" (in French).
  7. 7.0 7.1 "Titeuf – "Le Sens de la vie", Prix CANAL J 2009 du Meilleur Album Jeunesse" (in French). BDZoom. 27 April 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2009.

External links