Serbian comic book alphabet

In the period from the second half of the 50s of the last century until the collapse of socialist Yugoslavia, comics publishing was widespread and appreciated - it is enough to mention the circulations that were measured in hundreds of thousands and tens of regular editions. Of course, distribution and circulation were not a measure of reputation and influence, so the comic had its problems, and at best it was considered a cheap distraction, but it also went so far as to be considered junk and harmful to the youth. The question is whether such a status was worse for publishing than today, when circulations are a hundred times smaller - in the best case - and the reputation is far greater and comics are considered a form of art. But that's another story.

The beginnings of the largest comics publisher in SFRY were more than modest and unexpected. The roots Children's newspaper can be seen on January 12, 1957, when in Gornji Milanovac two teachers of the Elementary School "Takovski Partisanski Bataljon" and a group of students started a school newspaper (in which comics had a significant position) called "Dečja politika" with a circulation of 1.000 copies. The sheet is torn. As expected, the daily newspaper "Politika" rebelled because of the name, so the very next issue was renamed "Dečje novine". During the first years, the school newspaper went from monthly to fortnightly, and even to weekly publication, and the circulation very quickly rose to six figures. The magazine was distributed throughout the republic, including Yugoslavia. Five years after its establishment, the magazine leaves the school and the editorial office establishes a newspaper publishing company Children's newspaperThe rest is history.

Borisav Čeliković, one of the authors of the exhibition "Strip in Children's newspaper: beginnings (1957–1964)", which is open in the Museum of Rudnička-Takov Region in Gornji Milanovac until April 4, says that "from the very beginning, comics in Children's newspaper had its place. In the first three school years of publication, these were comics by Desimir Žižović Buin, a self-taught artist from Gornji Milanovac. Every issue of the school year 1956/7. it had Buin's author's seal - a strip of comics with the adventures of the champion students and several illustrations. Thus began a collaboration that would last for several decades, as long as Buin was an associate Children's newspaper".

Since 1958, publishing Children's newspaper the famous comic also joins Never a slave with the even more famous characters Mirko and Slavko, which later became a separate publication, and the comic with these heroes was published in about six hundred episodes. An important segment Children's newspaper in that period, they included stories from NOB and children, but also precious comics from national history and folklore. Buin was the author of some of them, such as The Dragon and the Emperor's Son, Death of Duke Priezda and others. The monograph also talks about this period From Buin to Marvel and Disney Borisava Čelikovića, the first of the four planned volumes of Fr Children's newspaper.

...

School year 1959/60. Buin was joined by then eighteen-year-old Miodrag Đuričić, followed by Leo Korelc, Toma Kurta, Nikola Mitrović Kokan and renowned members of the Belgrade school of caricature and animated film - cartoonists Aleksandar Klas, Slobodan Milić and Radoslav Rade Ivanović. A special wave of author's domestic comics is forming, which would have reached who knows what peaks if everything had not been called into question by the turbulent events of the early 1970s. Namely, after the Cultural Action Congress in Kragujevac in 1971, when comics were classified as shund and such publications were publicly burned, a special "shund tax" was imposed, which represented an additional financial levy on publishers in Serbia. As the most widely circulated and largest publisher at the time, Children's newspaper were particularly affected by that expenditure. On the other hand, it provided an opportunity for publishers in other republics and provinces, to which this regulation did not apply, to take their share of the cake.

Forwards Children's newspaper were too big to lose the battle. Through changes in form and format, as well as various publishing experiments, Children's newspaper have managed to survive. The biggest victim in this is the domestic comics, since in accordance with the laws of the market and Children's newspaper they are slowly turning to licensed comics. Magazines are launched in which domestic authors find themselves side by side with world-famous titles. Already in the first issue Ex-almanac from 1974, the American was published Dan Derry end Herlock Holmes Furtinger and Jules. And then there was a flood of similar shows like Beats, Comic book (which retained the orientation of domestic comics) i A gem of a comic book (oriented primarily towards licensed Frankovan comics like McCoy, Blueberry, Gastona, Talic Tom, with trips to American production).

Despite the difficulties in publishing, Children's newspaper have maintained their fame and status as the largest comics publisher in the SFRY area all that time. Domestic authors are thanks Children's newspaper were given the opportunity to try their hand at publishing outside the borders of that country, and it is a big question how publishing in these areas would have looked if there had not been a general disintegration and wars. We'll never know. But we can remember.

Real journalism costs money, and we will not be bought by tycoons and corporations. Support us with a one-time or monthly donation. The time for it is now!