Raymond Reding

Raymond Reding was born in 1920 in Louviers, France. The son of a Belgian father and a French mother, he grew up in Belgium. He started his career in 1944 as a writer/artist for Bravo. In 1947, he created his first hero, Monsieur Crù, a detective, for La Derniëre Heure. After a short period at L'Aiglon (1949), Reding joined the editorial team of Tintin in 1950. There, he created his 'Jari & Jimmy Torrent' series about the adventures of a tennis pro and his young ward. The series started in 1957, and the first album came out in 1960.

In 1963, Reding's first soccer hero appeared: Vincent Larcher, a center forward playing at AC Milan, who experienced all sorts of adventures together with his friend, Olympio. In 1971, Reding created 'Section R', about two former top athletes operating as research journalists and crime solvers. In 1979, Reding left Tintin and took 'Section R' and his female hero 'Sophie Ravenne' to the football magazine Footy.

In the same year, 'Eric Castel', who had already been introduced to the readers as 'Max Falk' (in 1974) was created by Reding and his colleague Françoise Hughes, and appeared first in the German magazine Zack at Koralle Verlag under the name 'Kai Falke'. Eric Castel, one of the best-known drawn soccer heroes, played at Barcelona (with a short step aside to Paris Saint Germain) and was accompanied by a young kid 'Pablito' and his friends (the Pablitos). 'Eric Castel', an astonishing detailed comic with amazing decors and accurate scenaries, appeared in fifteen albums. Raymond passed away on April 26, 1999.