Arthur Piroton

Born near Liège, Arthur Piroton wanted to become an artist since his early childhood. His parents insisted that he pursued a more "serious" career, so he became a furniture designer. On the side, he drew his first comic, 'Le Crime de Tolumont' in Le Cité from 1950. He got counsels in comics art from Hergé, and joined the Dupuis art studios in 1956. He started out doing illustration work for Risque-Tout, Bonnes Soirées and Télé-Moustique, as well as some 'Belles Histoires de l'Oncle Paul' and mini-books for Spirou.

The year 1962 marked the launch of Piroton's first series, 'Michel et Thierry', created in cooperation with writer Charles Jadoul. This series, about model aviation, consists of 11 long stories. Piroton teamed up with Paul Deliège in 1968, to create the mysterious little creatures 'Les Crostons' under the collective pseudonym Max Ariane. After the first episode, Deliège continued the series on his own. Piroton and Jadoul's next project, 'Martin Lebart', was cut short due to Jadoul's departure from the company.

Piroton then associated himself with Maurice Tillieux, with whom he created his most famous series, the detective 'Jess Long' in 1969. With its good documentation and exciting scenarios, the series soon became very popular. After the death of Tillieux in 1978, Piroton continued the series on his own or in cooperation with scenarists like Jean-Claude Smit-le-Bénédicte, Dom Domi, Dorao or Raes. In 1979, Piroton created 'Les Casseurs de Bois' in cooperation with fellow artist Francis Carin and writer Mittéï. Piroton eventually spent all his time on 'Jess Long'. He was on the verge of starting a comical series about courtrooms with Raoul Cauvin ('Les Maîtres du Barreau'), when he died prematurely in 1996.