Ould Ribba Pirate du Désert

Eugène Giroud, better known as Eugène Gire, was born in the Ardèche and started illustrating in 1935. Two years later, he drew his first comic strip, 'Hégésippe Dupont', for L'Épatant. From the early 1940s, Gire took on creating comics for Collection Junior of Éditions des Remparts ('Toto Tourbillon') and for the magazine Hardi Les Gars. Starting in 1945, he created various comics for the Collection Chiche, like 'Londa', 'Brouille et Petrouchka', 'La Guerre des Micropoussites', 'Télé et Fone' and 'Histoire de Huipatte et Hurrar'. Starting in 1946, Gire was one of the most prolific authors for the Groupe Vaillant. For their main periodical Vaillant, he created humorous series like 'La Pension Radicelle', 'À Babord' and 'Père O.K.'. He was also present in the female equivalent of the magazine, Vaillante, with 'Les Aventures d'Alice au Pays des Merveilles' and 'Les Mille et une Nuits'. In addition, he made the series 'R. Hudi Junior' in Dimanche Fillette and 34 Caméra, 'Kam et Rah les Terribles' for Caméra and 'Le Gars lent Fierabras' in Ce Soir. Due to serious illness, Gire had to quit all his activities in 1968. Some of his series were continued by his son, Michel-Paul Giroud. Text (c) Lambiek