El Be Negre
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''El Be Negre'', meaning "The Black Sheep" in Catalan, was an illustrated
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...
weekly magazine. Published in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
between 1931 and 1936, its life and destiny were closely linked to those of the ill-fated
Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII. ...
. Josep Maria Planes i Martí, director of the magazine, was assassinated by a group of
anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...
s in the turbulent times that swept over the city of Barcelona at the beginning of the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
.


History and profile

''El Be Negre'' took its name from the Catalan colloquial expression ''"...i un be negre!"'' (meaning "and a
black sheep In the English language, black sheep is an idiom that describes a member of a group who is different from the rest, especially a family member who does not fit in. The term stems from sheep whose fleece is colored black rather than the more comm ...
!"), an exclamation of rotund denial, skepticism or disbelief. The magazine originated in the ' literature, art and politics weekly and was inspired by the
French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...
magazine '' Le Canard enchaîné'', as well as in previous Catalan publications such as ', '' La Campana de Gràcia'' and ''
L'Esquella de la Torratxa ''L'Esquella de la Torratxa'' was an illustrated satirical weekly magazine, written in Catalan language, Catalan. Published in Barcelona between 1872 and 1939, it was well known for its republicanism, pro-republican and Anti-clericalism, anti-cle ...
''. Its humor was more discreet and thought-provoking though, for it was witty, sharp and made liberal use of
irony Irony, in its broadest sense, is the juxtaposition of what, on the surface, appears to be the case with what is actually or expected to be the case. Originally a rhetorical device and literary technique, in modernity, modern times irony has a ...
and ridicule. ''El Be Negre'' was first published on 23 June 1931, only two months after the foundation of the Second Spanish Republic. Its founder was Amadeu Hurtado from the '' La Publicitat'' newspaper, together with Josep Maria Planes, Rossent Llates and Just Cabot. The director of the magazine was Josep Maria Planes. Other notable members of the team were Josep Maria de Segarra, Valentí Castanys i Borràs, Francesc Fontanals ("Soka"), Avel·lí Artís-Gener "Tisner", Manuel Amat, Ernest Guasp, Josep Maria Xicota, Andreu Avellí Artís, Carles Sinfeu, Enric Fernàndez Gual, Joan Cortès i Vidal, Joaquim Muntanyola, Salvador Mestres, Feliu Elíes ("Apa") and Romà Bonet ("Bon"). The headquarters of the magazines was in Barcelona. In the same manner as '' ¡Cu-Cut!'' magazine had done two decades previously, ''El Be Negre'' steadfastly opposed Lerrouxism in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
,
Radical Republican Party The Radical Republican Party (), sometimes shortened to the Radical Party, was a Spanish Radical party in existence between 1908 and 1936. Beginning as a splinter from earlier Radical parties, it initially played a minor role in Spanish parlia ...
leader Alejandro Lerroux becoming one of the favorite targets of its sharp and humorous criticism. Although its director Josep Maria Planes belonged to
Acció Catalana Catalan Action (, AC) was a Centre-left politics, centre-left Centre-left politics, Catalanist political movement active in Catalonia during the early 20th century. History AC was created in 1922 around the Catalan National Conference, which brou ...
, even that political group was not spared from the magazine's critical view. The magazine was also well known for its steadfast
anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...
stance and among the foreign leaders criticized by the magazine's humor were
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
and
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
. ''El Be Negre'' published its last issue on 15 July 1936, right before the pro-fascist coup that would lead to the Spanish Civil War, after having published a total of 245 issues. The magazine's director Josep Maria Planes would be assassinated following a series of articles on the street violence in Barcelona and its direct relationship with the activity of the Iberian Anarchist Federation ''(FAI)''.Lluís Solà i Dachs, ''Un segle d´humor català'', Barcelona, Editorial Bruguera, 1972


See also

* List of magazines in Spain * '' Cu-Cut!'' * Alejandro Lerroux *''
L'Esquella de la Torratxa ''L'Esquella de la Torratxa'' was an illustrated satirical weekly magazine, written in Catalan language, Catalan. Published in Barcelona between 1872 and 1939, it was well known for its republicanism, pro-republican and Anti-clericalism, anti-cle ...
''


References


External links

*
Humor a l'art - ''El Be Negre''Francesc Mestre: Ilustradores Ilustres
{{DEFAULTSORT:Be Negre, El 1931 establishments in Spain 1936 disestablishments in Spain Catalan-language magazines Magazines published in Catalonia Defunct magazines published in Spain Satirical magazines published in Spain Magazines established in 1931 Magazines disestablished in 1936 Magazines published in Barcelona Second Spanish Republic Defunct Spanish-language magazines Weekly magazines published in Spain