Fethry and his nephew Biquinho (B 810253).
Irineu Soares Rodrigues is a Brazilian comic artist. Between 1972 and 1990, he was an artist for the Brazilian production of Disney comics by Editora Abril, and is mainly known for illustrating stories with 'Fethry Duck', as well as his superhero counterpart 'Morcego Vermelho' and his distant Tarzan-like relative 'Pena Das Selvas'. Irineu's brothers Moacir Rodrigues Soares and Verci Rodrigues de Mello were also artists of Disney comics. Since the 1990s, the three brothers have worked together on commercial art assignments through their own studio MW Editora e Ilustrações.
'Pena das Selvas' (B 800004).
Early life
Irineu Soares Rodrigues was born in 1956 in Bilac, São Paulo. When he was three years old, the Rodrigues family moved to Japurá in the state of Paraná. During his childhood, Irineu and his two brothers avidly read the Disney comic books published by Editora Abril. Like his brother Moacir, he took a correspondence course in graphic design and commercial art from the Instituto Universal Brasileiro, but he was largely self-taught.
Disney comics
In 1972, Irineu Soares Rodrigues was hired by Abril through mediation of his brother Moacir, who had begun working there a couple of months earlier. The two brothers quickly established themselves as two of the leading artists of Brazilian Disney comics, and in 1978 they were joined by their younger brother Verci.
'Morcego Vermelho' (B 780006).
While his brother Moacir was mostly assigned to draw stories in the 'Mickey Mouse' universe, Irineu became a productive artist of stories with 'Donald Duck' and his family. Donald's goofy nephew Fethry especially made frequent appearances in Irineu's stories, often written by Ivan Saidenberg, Júlio de Andrade or Gérson L. B. Teixeira. Irineu also drew stories with Fethry's nephew Biquinho, whom he co-created in 1981 with writer Teixeira. Between 1976 and 1989, he drew many stories about Fethry's secret superhero activities as 'Morcego Vermelho' ('Red Bat'). He was also the first artist to draw Fethry's jungle hero look-alike 'Pena das Selvas' (1978).
'Os Adolescentes' (B 870048).
Non-Duck Disney characters
Between 1977 and 1989, Irineu Soares additionally provided the artwork for several stories starring the otherwise obscure Disney character Hard Haid Moe, a hillbilly created by the Disney Studios for their story production for international licensees, but which gained remarkable popularity in the Brazilian comic books under the name Urtigão. In 1987, Abril even gave the character his own comic book as a replacement for Mauricio De Sousa's 'Chico Bento'. Both Irineu and his brother Verci drew several stories for this title.
Another prominent character in Brazilian Disney characters was the witch 'Mad Madam Mim' from the 1963 movie 'The Sword in the Stone', who was drawn many times by Soares throughout his tenure as a Disney artist. Irineu Soares finally also drew nineteen stories with 'José Carioca', the parrot from Rio who was especially popular in Brazil (for the obvious reasons).
Os Adolescentes
In the late 1980s, Irineu Soares Rodrigues was a regular artist for stories set in the 'Disney Teens' universe ('Os Adolescentes'). The series starred Glittering Goldie's teenage granddaughter Dickie Duck (Pata Lee in Brazilian, originally created in Italy by Romano Scarpa as Paperetta Yè-Yè) and her high school friends Parceiro, Folião (the "Aracuan bird" from 'The Three Caballeros'), Olimpia and Netunia.
Later illustration work
When around 1990 Abril's production of Disney comics slowed down, Irineu Soares' association with the publishing house came to an end. After working for a couple of agencies, the artist eventually joined his brothers Moacir and Verci in the production house MW Editora e Ilustrações in 1993. Since then, the family team has focused on commercial illustration and design projects, including character design, logo design, animations and illustrations for educational material and children's publications. Later on, Irineu's nephew, and Moacir's son, Moacir Rodrigues Soares Jr (born in 1973) also joined the company.
'Beagle Boys' comics on collectable cards as premiums with chocolate bars.