The caco Bonifacio

El caco Bonifacio is a series of humorous comic strips created by cartoonist Enrich for Tío Vivo magazine in 1957.

Editorial trajectory

Enrich had published a background of this character in the magazine "Chicolino" (1951) by Editorial Símbolo, with the title El caco delito. Six years later, the caco Bonifacio was born as a joke with a single cartoon on the back cover of the magazine Tío Vivo, published by the independent publisher D.E.R. (Spanish Cartoonists Reunited). Later, the initial joke was transformed into a complete one-page comic. When the weekly Tío Vivo was acquired by Editorial Bruguera, El caco Bonifacio continued to be published, and remained in its pages for two decades.

Plot and characters

The protagonist of the series is the homonymous character, Bonifacio, a thief by profession but paradoxically honest, good-natured and even candid. Tall and conspicuously big-headed, he wears his "trade" uniform: cap, mask and scarf tied around his neck. His activities frequently land him in jail, or, even worse, he ends up being tricked by his alleged victims.

Another character in the series is the thief Pancracio, who acts as a counterpoint to Bonifacio. He is a short man who only cares about stealing from others, unlike Bonifacio himself. He often cajoles the aforementioned Bonifacio into helping him steal.

Importance of character

The character gained great importance during the time that TioVivo was bought by Bruguera. His fame is such that some watches were made with the faces of various Bruguerian characters, including the thief Bonifacio (obviously they were for children).

When publication stopped, the character was forgotten. Compilations of the character were never made, because the Olés arrived a few years after the disappearance of the series. With RBA's collection of humor classics, the pages of the character were compiled and they once again had some fame.

Such was the importance of this compilation for some that the fanzinero "Bonifacio" he put on that pseudonym paying homage to the character (he still bears that stage name).