Le Chat
Le Chat | |
---|---|
Publicity shot of Le Chat, resting on a bureau. Drawn by Philippe Geluck | |
Publication information | |
Publisher | Casterman (Belgium) |
First appearance | 1983. |
Created by | Philippe Geluck |
Le Chat (French for "the cat") was a Belgian daily comic strip, created by Philippe Geluck and published in the newspaper Le Soir from March 22, 1983 until March 23, 2013.[1]
During its run it quickly became one of the bestselling Franco-Belgian comics series and the mascot of Le Soir. While virtually an icon in Wallonia he's far less well known in Flanders.[2]
Concept
Le Chat is an adult, human-sized obese, anthropomorphic cat who typically wears a suit. He always has the same physical expression. He often comes up with elaborate reasonings which lead to hilariously absurd conclusions e.g. by taking metaphors literally or by adding increasingly unlikely what-ifs to ordinary situations.
One page in length, it appeared weekly in the "Victor" supplement of Belgian newspaper Le Soir. For Le Chat's 20th anniversary in 2003, Le Soir allowed Geluck to illustrate that day's entire newspaper. An exhibition of Le Chat's history (and that of his creator), "Le Chat s'expose", was first held at the Autoworld Motor Museum in Brussels in Spring 2004, and has since toured Europe. In March–October 2006 it even appeared at Les Champs Libres in Rennes.
In popular culture
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Stripmuur_de_Kat.jpg/220px-Stripmuur_de_Kat.jpg)
As part of the Brussels' Comic Book Route a wall in the Zuidlaan/Boulevard du Midi in Brussels was dedicated to "Le Chat"[3] in August 1993.
On October 11, 2008 Le Chat received his own market place in Hotton in the Belgian province Luxembourg. A statue of him, sculpted by François Deboucq, was placed in the center, depicting him holding an umbrella which rains water down from inside.[4]
On July 3, 2015 it was announced that "Le Chat" would receive his own museum.[5]
Bibliography
- Le Chat, 2001
- Le Retour du Chat, 2001
- La Vengeance du Chat, 2002
- Le Quatrième Chat, 2002
- Le Chat au Congo, 2003
- Ma langue au Chat, 2004
- Le Chat à Malibu, 2005
- Le Chat 1999,9999, 1999
- L'Avenir du Chat, 1999
- Le Chat est content, 2000
- L'Affaire le Chat, 2001 (Available in English as "The Cat's travels" in 2010)
- Et vous, chat va ?, 2003
- Le Chat a encore frappé, 2005
- La Marque du Chat, 2007
- Une Vie de Chat, 2008
- Le Chat, Acte XVI, 2010
- Le Meilleur du Chat, 1994 (Available in English as "God save the Cat" in 2008)
- L'Excellent du Chat, 1996
- Le Succulent du Chat, 1999
- Entrechats, 1999
- Le Top du Chat, 2009
- La Rumba du Chat, 2019
Sources
- Gaumer, Patrick (2010). "Chat (Le)". Dictionnaire mondial de la BD (in French). Paris: Éditions Larousse. ISBN 978-2035843319.
- ^ "'De Kat' verdwijnt na dertig jaar uit Waalse kranten". Hln.be. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ https://www.lambiek.net/artists/g/geluck_philippe.htm
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Une Place du Chat à Hotton — Commune de Hotton". Hotton.be. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Le Chat de Geluck aura son musée à Bruxelles". Deredactie.be. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
External links
- Belgian comic strips
- Franco-Belgian comics
- Belgian comics characters
- Fictional cats
- Anthropomorphic cats
- Comics about cats
- 1983 comics debuts
- 2013 comics endings
- Comics characters introduced in 1983
- Gag cartoon comics
- Gag-a-day comics
- Satirical comics
- Political comic strips
- Fictional Belgian people
- Magazine mascots
- Bande dessinée stubs