Wondering who those familiar comic characters are? That’s Boule et Bill – Bollie en Billie Statue. The statue immortalizes the famous Belgian comic strip about a boy and his cocker spaniel.
Boule et Bill were created in 1959 by Jean Roba. He collaborated with Maurice Rosy. The series centers around a typical family. There is a man, his wife, their young son Boule, and Bill the cocker spaniel.
The Boule et Bill comic first appeared in the Belgian magazine Spirou. It was December 24, 1959. Roba’s ambition was to create a European version of Peanuts. He had mainly done illustrations before. He assisted other authors like Andr\u00e9 Franquin.
For 25 years, Boule et Bill was a popular series in Spirou magazine. It often appeared on the back cover. From 1961 to 1965, the strip was renamed It’s A Dog’s Life in the British comic Valiant. Boule became Pete. Bill became Larry.
The series relates the adventures of seven-year-old Boule and his dog Bill. It also features Boule’s parents and Caroline the turtle. Bill acts like a normal dog but is slightly anthropomorphized. The series places comical adventures in a normal family setting. Gags often happen around the house. Yearly holidays at the beach are common.
Boule is always in blue overalls and a yellow T-shirt. He is an ordinary boy who goes to school and plays with friends. Bill can’t speak. He uses tricks to communicate. He communicates with other animals, like Caroline. Bill is resourceful. He likes sleeping on sofas. He dislikes bathing.
Boule’s mother stays home and does domestic tasks. She tries to keep the house clean. She wants to prevent disasters from Boule and Bill’s ideas.
Boule’s father educates his son. He likes gardening and sleeping on the sofa. Bill also likes the sofa. This leads to recurring gags.
Caroline is a green tortoise. She lives in the garden. Bill first feared she would eat his bones. Then, he learned she only eats lettuce. Caroline is insomniac.
The Boule et Bill series was reedited in 1999. Albums had 48 strips. The original albums had 64, 56, or 48 pages.
The series has been translated into about 15 languages. Boule and Bill are renamed Billy and Buddy in English.
Boule et Bill is a best-selling French-language comic. The new album by Verron sold 300,000 copies in 2009.
A Belgian-French-Luxembourgish film was released in 2013. It was based on the comics. It starred Franck Dubosc and Marina Fo\u00efs. A sequel, Boule et Bill 2, was released in 2017.
Four animated television series have been based on Boule and Bill. A Nintendo DS video game was launched in 2008.
The Belgian Comic Strip Center in Brussels honors Jean Roba. The Rue au Beurre/Boterstraat has a plaque named Rue Boule et Bill / Bollie en Billie straat.
A wall painting representing Boule and Bill is in the Rue du Chevreuil in Brussels. It was designed by G. Oregopoulos and D. Vandegeerde.
Tom Frantzen sculpted the Boule et Bill statue in Jette, Belgium in 2000. In 2014, the statue was vandalized.
In 2002, France’s post office issued two postage stamps of Boule and Bill.
The roundabout where the statue stands is named after the characters. So, here stands the Boule et Bill – Bollie en Billie Statue. A tribute to a timeless comic. A celebration of childhood, friendship, and simple joys.