Asterix co-creator Albert Uderzo dies at 92 of heart attack unrelated to coronavirus

Italian-born artist, illustrator, and Asterix co-founder Albert Uderzo has died at the age of 92, his family informed earlier on 24 March. [caption id=“attachment_8184751” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Albert Uderzo. Photo credit: Facebook @Fans-d’Albert-Uderzo[/caption] “Albert Uderzo died in his sleep at his home in Neuilly, after a heart attack that was not linked to the coronavirus. He had been extremely tired for the past several weeks,” his son-in-law Bernard de Choisy told AFP. Uderzo created the comic series Asterix in 1959 with writer Rene Goscinny, and first published it in the French-Belgian comics magazine Pilote. Set in 50 BC, it follows the Gaulish warrior Asterix and his friend Obelix as they try to keep their village safe from Roman occupation.The series was a massive hit with translations in several languages. After Goscinny’s death in 1977, Uderzo continued writing and illustrating the series alone, till he retired in 2011. Today, the series has extended to 38 books, the most recent being 2019’s Asterix and the Chieftain’s Daughter; and 14 films, most recently 2018’s Asterix: The Secret of the Magic Potion. Both Uderzo and Goscinny are considered founding fathers of modern comics and graphic novels.