Aurelio Galleppini

Aurelio Galleppini, who worked almost exclusively under the pen name Galep, was born on 28 August 1917 in Italy and died on 10 March 1994. He built one of the most enduring careers in Italian comics history, with credits as artist, colorist, and inker spanning from 1947 well into later decades across more than six hundred issues.

Galleppini is remembered above all as the visual architect of Tex Willer, the rugged Western hero he brought to life in 1948. That single creation proved remarkably durable, anchoring a publishing franchise that expanded across multiple series — including Tex Gigante, Tex Tre Stelle, and Rodeo — and reached international audiences through publications such as the Scandinavian Seriemagasinet. His linework gave the Western genre an immediately recognizable Italian sensibility: clean, confident draftsmanship with a strong narrative economy that kept readers oriented through complex action sequences.

Tex Willer went on to become one of the best-selling comics characters in European history, and Galleppini's foundational visual design remained the template against which later artists on the title were measured. His long association with the character meant that for many readers his name and Tex's were effectively inseparable. That bond between a single artist and a single iconic creation stands as the defining feature of his legacy in the medium.