Leoncio Rojas Cruzat, better known as simply Leo, was one of Chile's most famous comic artists in the 1940s-1960s period, mainly for the 'Macabeo' strip he drew for the newspaper Las Últimas Noticias. Leo had been active as an illustrator for the newspaper since 1937. 'Macabeo' first appeared in October 1940, and was already adapted into a radio play in 1943. In addition to his work for the newspaper, Leo made cover illustrations for El Mercurio.
After a visit by Walt Disney to Chile in 1941, Leo and several other artists founded the Chilean Alliance of Artists, and honored Disney as their member of honor. Disney even offered him to work at the Latin American offices of Walt Disney Productions in Caracas, Venezuela, but Leo declined. During the 1940s, Leo was also drawing for magazines, like 'Teorodo' for Almanaque Zig Zag, 'Pepe Alcino' for Chile Aéreo and 'Sapin y el Chunchito' in Aladino.
From 1954, Leo was also present in Barrabases, a magazine edited by his friend Guido Vallejos. He contributed strips like 'Castañita', 'Hurgando el Deporte' and 'Pasionario'. Years later, he is also present in El Pingüino with the 'Contrafuegos' strip and with 'Solterina'. He was director for magazines like El Pingüino and Cine Amor, and was on the board of the National Telecommunication Company (Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones) for 15 years. Leoncio Rojas Cruzat retired in 1973.
