Jicka

Jacques Kalaydjian, who worked under the name Jicka, was born on 1 January 1926 in Le Raincy, Paris, France, and died on 15 May 2005. A French artist and cartoonist of Armenian heritage, he is best known for his work on the long-running comic series *Les Pieds Nickelés*, which he wrote and drew from 1984 to 1988. His career in comics spanned from the mid-1950s into the 2020s, with credited contributions as artist, colorist, inker, letterer, and writer on 39 issues. Beyond *Les Pieds Nickelés*, his most frequent titles include the collections *Les Pieds Nickelés, la collection* and *Les Pieds Nickelés - La collection*, as well as *Trio* and *French Postcards*. Jicka’s style was rooted in the classic French bande dessinée tradition, with clean linework and expressive, often mischievous character designs that suited the anarchic humor of his signature series. While specific collaborators and awards are not recorded in available sources, his sustained output and role in shepherding a beloved franchise through the 1980s cemented his place in French comics history. His legacy endures through the continued reprinting of his *Pieds Nickelés* work, which remains a touchstone for readers of classic European humor comics.