Κόμικς και αθλητισμός: Η απόλυτη σύνδεση!

Ένα εξαιρετικό άρθρο του φίλου Νίκου Νικολαϊδη στο blog του http://athlometro.blogspot.com

Αν επιχειρήσουμε ένα συσχετισμό των κόμικς με την αθλητική λογοτεχνία και παραλογοτεχνία, στο μυαλό μας ίσως έλθει ο «Γκρέκο», ο άσσος των γηπέδων, το Ελληνόπουλο που αγωνιζόταν στα στάδια του κόσμου να δοξάσει τη χώρα μας. Πρόκειται για το ανάγνωσμα του Στέλιου Ανεμοδουρά (1959) με λίγα σκίτσα του «Byron» Βύρωνα Απτόσογλου, μια πρωτόγονη μάλλον απόπειρα να δημιουργηθεί και στην Ελλάδα η σχετική παράδοση. Η προσπάθεια έμεινε όμως ημιτελής, αφού μόλις πολύ πρόσφατα είχαμε την εμφάνιση του Θεσσαλονικιού δημιουργού Βασίλη Γκογκτζιλά, που μας ξάφνιασε ευχάριστα με τον «Δυναμίτη» του, ο οποίος κυκλοφόρησε σε 4-5 άλμπουμ σε πλήρη εικονογράφηση.

Craig Bellamy can be Cardiff City’s ‘Roy of the Rovers’

HIS move to Cardiff has been likened to a storyline from classic football comic Roy of the Rovers.

And now Craig Bellamy’s similarity to the fictional striker has been given an official stamp of approval – from the co-author of a book dedicated to the comic strip’s 50-year history.

Icons of England : Roy of the Rovers

When teenage football prodigy Roy Race made his debut in the Tiger comic in 1954, he was scoring his swansong goal in his last youth team appearance. Signed by talent scout Alf Leeds to Melchester Rovers, Roy rapidly progressed from the juniors to first-team action, scoring twice on his debut against Elbury Wanderers in a 3-3 draw. In the dazzling red-and-yellow strip of Rovers, he became the hot-shot hero of hundreds of cartoon stories. Such was his following that he eventually formed the centrepiece of a comic named after him, although his skills remained on loan to the Tiger.

In the latter stages of his career, Roy became manager of the Italian team AC Monza, and then achieved the ultimate accolade of managing the England national team. Although his weekly comic passed into history in 1993, Roy’s story continued to be documented in other publications for some years. He was last seen in 2001 in the BBC’s Match of the Day magazine. Some feel that not only Roy’s playing and managerial skills, but his even-tempered dedication to pure sportsmanship are sorely missing from the 21st-century game.

Roy of the Rovers World Cup Special

Product Description

This title includes stories from four different decades as Roy Race strives to help England to relive the past glories of the 1966 World Cup. Whether it's leading the British B team, or taking part in qualifiers. Roy was always at the forefront. This collection of World Cup related stories proves that when it comes down to sheer pluck, courage and skill, no one can touch Roy Race.

About the Author

Joe Colquhoun worked on a large volume of titles in his 30 year career in the UK comics industry, including Lion, Champion, Buster and Battle. He is probably best remembered for work on Battle, including Johnny Red and Charley's War.

You can buy the book on Amazon

Goals, Games and Glory! Roy of the Rovers returns for World Cup special

London, June 2010 – Egmont, the UK’s specialist children’s publisher, today announced the launch of a one-off souvenir special edition of the much-loved Roy of the Rovers comic. The comic will be hitting newsagents and supermarkets across the UK during the World Cup in South Africa.

The World Cup special issue will be a fantastic 52-page colour comic, with 5 classic strips from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s era. The comic gives old and new football fans a chance to relive football’s golden age and follow Roy Race through three of his most memorable matches.

Melchester Rover’s star player Roy Race, a childhood idol to thousands of England supporters, will appear in this issue alongside luminaries from the 1970s such as Trevor Francis and Malcolm “Supermac” Macdonald. Roy’s off-field adventures include being kidnapped in South America, and following how the famous star will cope when his Racey’s Rocket shots start missing the mark.

Along with covering the many adventures of Roy Race, the comic will also follow the thrills of 1990s era football, with the 16 year old Playmaker Andy Steel and the infamous rapping goalie as he plays against Italy’s finest in Goalmouth.

“Roy of the Rovers is a comic strip loved by millions across the UK and we are delighted to announce this special edition in celebration of the World Cup in South Africa,” comments Debbie Cook, Director of Egmont Magazines. “This issue is a celebration of an event that will bring the nation together, much like Roy Race did, and continues to do, for football fans across the country.”

The new Roy of the Rovers World Cup special issue will go on sale the 16th June 2010 at Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Co-op, WHS High Street and WHS Travel along with all good newsagents - priced at £3.99.

The Match of the Day Years - February 1998

Πατήστε στις εικόνες για πλήρη προβολή

The Match of the Day Years - January 1998

Πατήστε στις εικόνες για πλήρη προβολή

Roy of the Rovers Makes a Triumphant Return to Form

A Missing Piece of Cultural History, says Simon Callow

"Great...Leaves you wanting more melchester magic!" Richard Luck, film4.com

Roy Race: Star striker, former England Captain, husband, father and - now - film star! After fifteen long years on the bench, a new documentary by acclaimed filmmakers Luke Dormehl and Tom Atkinson is about to reintroduce everyone to the world's most famous sporting comic hero!

Roy of the Rovers' career began in 1954, created by Frank S. Pepper to join the ranks of popular boy's football comic characters. Since then Roy has led his team Melchester Rovers to multiple FA Cup wins, played alongside Martin Kemp and Steve Norman of Spandau Ballet, and survived a helicopter crash, assassination attempts and marriage problems... all the while retaining his famously clean-cut and cheerful image.

Director Luke Dormehl said "I've always been a massive fan of Roy of the Rovers. He's one of this country's most recognisable comic characters and really represents everything that's good about British football."

The timing of the new film could not be better. After a lengthy period out of print, 2008 has seen some of Roy's classic comic strips reprinted for the first time - much to the delight of an entire generation of fans.

Producer Tom Atkinson said "Right now, Interest in the character is huge! After keeping a low profile in the Nineties, more and more fans are saying they'd love to see him make a return. The time was definitely right to make this film!"

The short documentary is due to be shown throughout the next year in film festivals. In a rare move in keeping with the modern era of free album downloads, the whole film is viewable for free online at:

www.egmont.co.uk/roy

Director Luke Dormehl added "We had such a great time working on "Roy" that we'd love to expand it into a feature length film. Roy Race is really a national treasure and if the interest's out there, we'd certainly be game!"

http://hubpages.com/hub/Roy-of-the-Rovers-Makes-a-Triumphant-Return-to-Form

The Match of the Day Years - December 1997

Profiles Of The Great And Good: Roy Race, Its Real Roy of the Rovers Stuff Here...

Roy of the Rovers was by far the most popular football comic ever.

Running from 1954 to 2001, stories covered various issues—Roy as a teen trying to break into the famed "Melchester Rovers" team, winning every trophy imaginable, representing his country in the World Cup, playing with pop stars and even relegation.

He even had an unstoppable shot called the "Racy Rocket"....ah, those were the days.

Οι παιδικοί μας χάρτινοι φίλοι

"...Παρομοίως και το Αγόρι (αρχικά Δυναμικό Αγόρι), σημαντική παρουσία στον χώρο των νεανικών εκδόσεων, πρωτοεμφανίστηκε το 1975 και κυκλοφόρησε για σχεδόν μία εικοσαετία. Οι ιστορίες του περιλάμβαναν τις περιπέτειες του «Ελ Ζαμπάτο», του «Δικαστή Ντρεντ» και του «Roy of the Rovers», ενώ συνοδευόταν και αυτό από αφίσες και σιδερότυπα..."

Ένα πόλύ καλό άρθρο για τα Ελληνικά κόμικς μπορείτε να διαβάσετε εδώ

Roy of the Rovers fans from all over the world

Nowadays the comics are vastly different and I for one prefer the older style. I wish they would recommence the stories or else reprint the old ones again. I went onto the website, Impressive. It would be nice to have photo's of the issue or else I would like to know a bit more about the contents within the issue - Nipper transfers to Melchester, Roy plays for England, Last ever Jack and Jimmy story type of thing. Thank you for the work in putting it together.

Ρόυ Ρέης

Το άρθρο που ακολουθεί το βρήκα στο site Comics and More (www.gkosk.wordpress.com) κι έχω την εντύπωση ότι το έχει γράψει ο φίλος μου Νίκος Νικολαΐδης. Αξίζει τον κόπο να το διαβάστε:

Ρου Ρέης, ο θρυλικός αρχηγός της Μέλτσεστερ Ρόβερς. Ενας από τους πιο σημαντικούς ήρωες των παιδικών μου χρόνων. Τον πρωτογνόρισα το 1971 όταν για κάθε εβδομάδα και για 2 χρόνια αποτελούσε μέρος του αγαπημένου μας περιοδικού Ζαγκόρ΄από το τεύχος 53. Τον ξαναβρίσκω το 1975 στο Δυναμικό Αγόρι όπου παρουσιάζει τα χρόνια του σαν έφηβος στο σχολείο. Συνεχίζει στο Αγόρι το 1976 με τίτλο “Ο Ρου Ξαναγυρίζει” μέχρι το 1982. Αφού για τρία χρόνια χάνονται τα ίχνη του επιστρέφει στο Αγόρι το 1985 μέχρι το 1991 που κλείνει το περιοδικό. Δυστυχώς οι περιπέτειες που διαβάσαμε δεν είχαν συνέχεια πάντα. Στο Ζαγκόρ ήταν από το 1965 ως το 1971 και στο Αγόρι απο τη δεκαετία του 70 μέχρι και αυτές τις δεκαετίες του 80.

The Rover's return: Roy signs up for yet another season in the top flight

He briefly managed the England side, was shot by a television actor and survived a bombing of his team coach, an earthquake on the pitch and a helicopter crash that robbed him of a leg. And through it all, his trusty left foot kept dispatching goals, usually when the score was 0-0 with only minutes to go.

With staying power like that, it was inevitable that Roy of the Rovers, a blond centre-forward who remained at the top of his game between 1954 and 2001, should make a comeback - and yesterday he did. A North-east publisher has reached an agreement with the company that holds the rights to the character which will allow him to return to life.

Most middle-aged football obsessives remember Roy Race of Melchester Rovers, inseparable from his teammate Blackie Gray and married to Penny, his former secretary. He has now been tempted out of retirement by Players Inc, a stylish football fanzine which covers all North-east football clubs.

The fanzine plans to republish past adventures and create new ones. "It's a feelgood factor for us because Roy's such a huge name to bring on board. As far as I'm concerned, it's the biggest transfer in the January transfer window," said the editor, Steve Wraith, who has been dreaming of this day since the Seventies.

The deal revives a character who first appeared in the Amalgamated Press's new sports and adventure comicTiger in September 1954. Roy was playing for Milton Youth in a cup tie, in the first issue, when he pounced on a loose ball and pushed it past a lunging defender, before firing a shot that flew past the visitors' goalkeeper. Soon, every football fan knew that shot as "Racey's Rocket". Race's Melchester teammates - Lofty Peak, Vernon Eliot and others - became the stuff of boyhood legend as the weekly Roy of the Rovers comic secured an estimated one million readers at the height of its popularity in the late Seventies and early Eighties. It was comfortably the most popular of the football-themed stories that had been a staple of British comics since the Fifties.

Until the Seventies, most storylines focused on Melchester's battles on the pitch, with no more drama off it than the issue of whether they would make it to a stadium in time for a match. But, by the early Eighties, as the comic moved past its zenith, soap opera storylines appeared, including the "Who Shot JR?" style whodunnit which left Roy in a coma. Needless to say, his teammates were so inspired by his return to consciousness during a game, that they won 14-0 - a British record.

None of this could stop the comic strip going monthly, in 1993. Eventually, Roy transferred to Match of the Day magazine which took him down with it when it ceased publication in 2001.

There has been no lack of razzmatazz for his return, with a special front cover of Players Inc to mark the occasion. "We're going to run the 1975 season as it appeared at the time and we are currently in negotiations about creating a new strip and some new stories," said Mr Wraith.

Egmont, which holds the rights to Roy, is frequently approached about endorsements. Unlike representatives of some modern strikers, the company turns down many in the interest of preserving the integrity of the character. A car company which asked if it could make him "Roy of the Motors" and an online gambling site which wanted Race to endorse its services have been rejected in the past year.

Roy of the Rovers profile: All you need to know about the classic football comic

Football fans who grew up reading classic comic strip Roy of the Rovers are in for a nostalgic treat when Roy Race and his Melchester United chums return to the newsstand next week.

UK publishers Egmont and WH Smith have teamed up to bring back Roy of the Rovers in the form of a special collector's edition that hits the shelves on April 1.

For those unfamiliar with Roy Race and for those who may have forgotten what all the fuss was about here's a quick recap on the classic cartoon.