'Maurice et Patapon'. Translation: "Why were so theater seats so bad?" - "They did it on purpose. Before you accuse the seat of having broken your ass, don't think about saying that the play blew your balls."
Stéphane Charbonnier, who used the pen name Charb, was a French satirical cartoonist. He was best known for his work for Charlie Hebdo since the relaunch in 1992, in which he participated with artists like Val, Cabu and Gébé. He became a frequent contributor to the magazine, with his agressive and political cartoons and comics, that included the anti-capitalist cat and dog 'Maurice et Patapon'.
He additionally started collaborations with magazines like Psikopat, Fluide Glacial, Chien Méchant, L'Humanité Dimanche, Télépoche and Mon Quotidien. His character 'Marcel Keuf, le flic' and his chronic 'La fatwa de l'Ayatollah Charb' appeared in Fluide Glacial. Several collections of his work have appeared, such as 'Je Suis Très Tolérant', 'Police Partout', '50 Salades', and many more.
In 1993, a former French military officer, Pierre Chanal, was put to trial for kidnapping, raping and murdering various male hitchhikers. On the cover of Charlie Hebdo issue #54 (7 July 1993), designed by Charb, Chanal was portrayed raping the Unknown Soldier. Various French military veterans were outraged by this image and asked for the issue to be banned.
Cover illustrations for Charlie Hebdo issue #952 (15 September 2010) and issue #950 (1 September 2010). The first cover refers to the marriage of French Minister of Immigration Éric Besson, who "married in white", nodding at the Ku Klux Klan. The second cover portrays President Nicolas Sarkozy and Minister of Immigration Brice Hortefeux. At the time, Sarkozy was accused of having embezzled millions from Libyan President Gaddafi to finance his presidential campaign, a case for which Hortefeux was also questioned in court. The cover ponders whether Sarkozy and Hortefeux will retreat? Sarkozy asks for "a charter to Romania", referencing Hortefeux' immigration policies targeting Roma people. In 2021, and permanently in 2024, Sarkozy became the first French president to be sentenced for corruption.
Charb was the editor of Charlie Hebdo from 2009 until his death in 2015. He had a weekly section called 'Charb n'aime pas les gens' ('Charb does not like people').During his tenure, the magazine was attacked and threatened on several occasions for its provoking and often controversial content. He received police protection after the offices were attacked with a firebomb in November 2011, shortly before the publication of a satirical special issue on the Prophet of Islam Muhammad. On the cover of Charlie Hebdo issue #1057 (19 September 2012), Charb announced a sequel to 'The Untouchables', with a Jew pushing a Muslim in a wheelchair, who say in unison: "Faut pas se moquer!" ("You cannot poke fun at us!"). Inside the issue, the Prophet Muhammed was portrayed nude, spoofing the film 'Le Mépris' starring Brigitte Bardot. Again the cover sparked outrage among certain Muslim organisations.
Stéphane Charbonnier was placed on Al-Quaeda's most-wanted list in 2013, and was killed during a gun attack at the editorial offices in January 2015. Cartoonists Wolinski, Cabu and Tignous were also killed during the attack.
He made a graphic contribution to the book 'Françaises, Français, Belges, Belges, Lecteur Chéri, Mon Amour' (Jungle!, 2005), in which comic artists illustrated short stories by comedian Pierre Desproges.
Charb was an influence on Marec. Algerian cartoonist Zafer Aknar also liked Charb, whom he personally met. He recalled that Charb was very interested in Algeria and asked him what it was like being a cartoonist there. Aknar also recounted that, because of Ramadan, he didn't eat, while Charb had just ordered dinner. Feeling embarrassed, Charb wanted to put his food away, so he wouldn't be eating in front of the fasting Muslim. Aknar didn't mind, but felt touched by this generosity.
Cartoon by Charb.Translation: "The youth hates the police." - "But why? Snif! You have to talk. I have had enough of anti-police racism. I've had enough of being treated as a dirty policeman. You're lucky to (simply) be a dirty black."