Born in San Benedetto del Tronto, Andrea Pazienza made his debut in 1977, at the age of twenty. He published his first work, the series 'Le Straordinarie Avventure di Penthotal', in Alter Alter, a supplement of the monthly magazine Linus. The events of this series were set in Bologna, and reflect the mood and unease of a generation which led to the youth protests of the 1977 Movement. During these years, Pazienza worked for magazines such as Cannibale, for which he created a parody of Disney's Goofy, and Frigidaire, a monthly publication using cartoons to accompany the stories and photographic reports.
In 1980, he created 'Zanardi', a series revolving around three young students - Colasanti, Petrilli and, of course, Zanardi - opportunists, cynical and violent, symbolizing the crisis of values and the emptiness which afflict the younger generation in the 1980s. He also contributed to the reviews Corto Maltese and Comic Art, where he started to publish 'La storia di Astarte'. Andrea Pazienza unfortunately died at age 32 from a heroin overdose before he could finish this series.
