The Belgian author Morris is best known for his humorous cowboy series 'Lucky Luke' (1947), whose adventures he has drawn for nearly his entire career. Together with René Goscinny he made a funny satire of the western genre, particularly every Hollywood cliché. The franchise spawned unforgettable characters like Luke's wisecracking horse Jolly Jumper, the mind boggingly stupid prison dog Ratanplan and the crooked Dalton gang. Morris used a simple, but effective drawing style. He applied dynamic cinematographic techniques and atmospheric colours in his lay-out. He also did a lot of research to give the backgrounds a historically accurate look, combined with cameos of Wild West legends. All these efforts gave 'Lucky Luke' the look and feel of a genuine cowboy movie.'Lucky Luke' inspired films (both animated as well as live-action), TV series, songs and video games. Even Morris' death hasn't kept the "poor lonesome cowboy" from riding, with new albums still being produced by his successors. It made the series a global success on par with Hergé's 'Tintin' and René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo's 'Astérix". Last but not least, it was Morris who once called comics an art form, more specifically the "Ninth Art", a nickname which has stuck ever since.
Text (c) Lambiek
