by Mike Hansen
As some of you may be aware, most of the works of the late comics genius Jean “Moebius” Giraud are out of print in the English language. The Facebook page for the petition to bring Moebius back to the USA has a big update today that I wanted to share:
My dear fellow Mœbius USA Petitioners,
This is the FINAL and MOST IMPORTANT post this page has ever made.
My name is Tony and I’m nobody but a comics fan and the administrator of this facebook initiative. In the last few days I have managed to directly contact, in private, Mme. Isabelle Giraud, the honorable widow of Jean Giraud ‘Mœbius’ and sole legitimate representative of all her late husband’s businesses and affairs.
I have nothing but good things to say about my dialogue with this articulate and elegant lady who represents the illustrious legacy of her husband with aplomb and dignity. She has been so kind as to attend to my questions and respond to my inquiry in a thoughtful and courteous way, despite not having the slightest obligation to do so.
At this point, I come here to conclude that there is only one thing we all need to know, one simple message that we all have been waiting to hear.
She is aware of the issue.
She knows about our Petition and everything our plea stands for.
Therefore, this implies that the solution to this situation will only come by way of two simple concepts: TIME and PATIENCE.
It will not happen tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow. We have to keep patiently waiting for a longer and arduous period of time, but eventually, in due course, the issue will be seriously addressed and a solution will come to fruition.
Now, you may think that we didn’t need all this Petitioning business to arrive at that conclusion.
All I can say is that at least now we know that our message has been received and acknowledged by the addressee. And we have a sure confirmation, straight from the source, that this is the way things stand, and that she is the first person interested in seeing a satisfactory eventual conclusion to this situation.
This assurance puts a definitive end to every existing or potential speculation about any alleged ulterior motives on the part of the Jean Giraud estate. Not that we had any reasons to doubt her in the first place, but now we can carry on with the absolute certainty that Mme. Giraud is a responsible caretaker who will do everything in her power to administer dutifully her husband’s legacy in the English-speaking world. Sooner or later, she will be able to sort out any obstacles on the way of a happy resolution, in the most effective and satisfying manner.
And as far as I’m concerned, all of that is a positive outcome in and on itself, it’s the only thing we could reasonably expect to achieve at this point, it’s definitely an improvement over what we had before this Petition, and allows me to end this initiative on a high note.
For obvious reasons, I can’t go into further detail about my conversation with Mme. Giraud, but rest assured she is a busy agent of her late husband’s affairs, and she is currently immersed in the legalities of administering the inheritance process.
Since I am aware of the delicacy of such matters, and attending to her express request, I hereby announce that this Petition has run its course and it’s coming to a close with the present message. Doing otherwise would be only counterproductive to our cause, consequently here and now we have unequivocally reached the finish line.
I’d like to take this opportunity to give special thanks to the three people without whom this would have not been possible:
Phillipe Caza, the legendary artist and illustrator, for providing me with the means to get in touch with Mme. Giraud.
Craig Fischer, my pal and accomplice, for helping me for a good part of this time before his personal workload forced him to step down from his co-admin duties.
Edward Gauvin, translator extraordinaire, whose invaluable assistance allowed me to communicate with Mme. Giraud in her own language.
Finally, a heartfelt thanks to each and every one of the present and future supporters of this initiative. This page ceases all activity whatsoever, but will remain open… so anyone arriving here for the first time is cordially invited to sign up by hitting the like button. We are over thirteen hundred at this moment of closure but there is plenty of room for anyone else who wishes to express their everlasting love for Jean Giraud.
This is the last testimony of a modest initiative that at least achieved its primary objective of being heard by its intended recipient.
The seed is planted…
The petition organizers have now started a second petition to European comics publishers as well: check it out.
All Day Comics 