RIP Alfredo Castelli

 

Alfredo Castelli, creator of Martin Mystère and giant of Italian comics, has died

His very long career has generated several characters, sagas and specialized magazines

WIRED

By Paolo Armelli

2/7/2024

 

Alfredo Castelli, journalist, screenwriter, historian of comics and popular literature, animator of several magazines in the sector, died on February 7, at the age of 76. In particular, he is known as the creator of the mythical Martin Mystère, although several other characters were born from his pen. Born on June 26, 1947, in Milan, Castelli began his professional career in the mid-1960s, creating a series of satirical strips entitled Skeleton, published as an appendix to Diabolik. He collaborated with publications such as Cucciolo, Tiramolla, Topolino, and then in 1969 co-founded Horror, a magazine dedicated to horror themes, and then Tilt, whose editorial staff then merged into the Corriere dei Ragazzi (where one of his most famous creations was Gli Aristocratici).

His most creative period came thanks to the collaboration with Sergio Bonelli Editore, where he began to write for Zagor, Ken Parker and Mister No. In 1982 he launched Martin Mystère, who later became his most emblematic character: the series, published to this day, focuses on the so-called "Detective of the impossible", an archaeologist writer who investigates the mysteries of the past and the paranormal, including Atlantis, UFOs, archaeology, etc. "The artistic and intellectual legacy of Alfredo Castelli is enormous, and for this reason naturally very heavy", Sergio Bonelli now writes: "If those who were lucky enough to be close to him remember his storytelling verve and his perennial good humor, the many readers who knew him only thanks to the printed pages are left with many comic stories and countless essays and articles. And these will remain with us forever."

Over the course of his career, he published several articles and essays dedicated to comics and pop culture, although his approach was always one of absolute modesty: "Neither my first seventeen years of personal life, nor the fifty years that followed, possess characteristics worthy of being handed down to posterity," he wrote in Castelli 50: The Prequel**, a sort of aesthetic-cultural biography in which the books, newspapers, television personalities, gadgets and context that have shaped their taste and pen emerge. His very long artistic and professional career was recently celebrated by the Castelli & Friends exhibition inaugurated at Lucca Comics & Games 2022, before landing in Milan and Pordenone. Curious, omnivorous, with a whimsical and welcoming nature, Castelli leaves a very strong memory not only among comic book fans but also among those who knew him in general.

CASTELLI, Alfredo (Alfredo Giuseppe Castelli)

Born: 6/26/1947, Milan, Lombardy, Italy

Died: 2/7/2024, Italy

 

Alfredo Castelli’s western – comic book artist, writer:

Tex - 1971

Ken Parker – 1974, 1980