Born today Roy D’Ami

Rinaldo Dami (29 September 1923 – 15 February 1979, Italy) who was also known under the anglicized version of his name, Roy d’Ami, was a versatile creator of comics and the head of one of Italy’s most prestigious art agencies of the 1950s and 1960s. Born in Crimson del Grappa, Rinaldo Dami was taken prisoner by the British in North Africa in March 1943. He was sent to a camp in Algeria, and then to the island of Malta. Upon his return in Milan in 1947, Dami started working in the advertising and animation field.

He drew his first comics in 1948, when he found work at the publishing company Cremona Nuova. There, he illustrated series like ‘Blek e Gionni’, ‘Dixy Scott’ and ‘Il Piccolo Sergente’, in a style influenced by Milton Caniff. During the early 1950s, he drew a great many western comics for Audace, including ‘Mani in Alto’, ‘Gordon Jim’, ‘Il Sergente York’, ‘Cherry Brandy’, ‘La Pattuglia dei Bufalli’, ‘Il Ritorno dei Tre Bill’, the Bonelli scripted ‘Rio Kid’ and ‘Pecos Bill’, scripted by Guido Martina. Later on, he created several strips for Corriere dei Piccoli, such as the humorous ‘Scuterino’ and ‘Indianetto’, as well as several scenarios for other artists, such as Carlo Porciani (‘Davy Crockett’, ‘Haywatha’), Leone Cimpellin (‘Nerofumo’), Paolo Piffarerio (‘Apollo il Pollo’) and Ferdinando Tacconi (‘Moby Dick’). Also, he created ‘Piccolo Bisonte’ in Corrierino.

cont. lambiek