In French, — bande dessin ⁇ e (or briefly — «BD»), in Italian — fumetti, in German — bilderbogen, in Serbian — strip, in Japanese — manga, in Chinese — lianhuanghua, in English — comic book (or comics), in Russian — comic. Today is the day when it’s time to talk about comics in the — genre of hand-drawn literature, which has long become part of book culture and a profitable industry in a number of countries.
On this day, comic book stores urge you not to throw away purchased comics, because even the simplest comic book, they believe, in a few years can become a rarity and decorate any solid collection.
Interestingly, America is not the birthplace of comics. Comic — invention of Europeans. Although, in fairness, it is worth saying that drawings with short captions — graphic stories — have been known since the time of rock art. It is also worth noting that the concept of «comic» (Comic Book) is common only in the English-American vocabulary. And in Russia. In Russia, because in the Soviet Union a national definition of this art form has not been formed.
So, experts call several outstanding artists the founders of comics. In the 18th century, the English painter and graphic artist William Hogarth (1697—1764) put dramatic storytelling in drawing. The German poet and graphic artist Wilhelm Busch (1832—1908) supplied his poems with a series of drawings, thereby reflecting the storyline of the poetic narrative. The stories he created about the adventures of Max and Moritz in the mid-19th century are still popular today. The first example of real graphic prose is considered to be the series about the adventures of Doctor Syntax — « The journey of Doctor Syntax in search of the picturesque » — of the English cartoonist and painter Thomas Rowlandson (1756—1827).
During the heyday of comics, the immortal heroes of the stories «Duckling Donald», «Mickey Mouse» were created. In the mid-50s of the 20th century, the «Golden Age of comics» gave way to the «silver», and then, in the early 70s, the «bronze» century. The themes of modern comics cover literally the entire spectrum of human life: from love to hatred, from war to peace.
It is worth noting that in the United States there is another day dedicated to — comics; on the first Saturday of May, Free Comic Book Day is held. In other words, this is a — commercial promotion designed to attract new comic book fans.