1960

Quino marries Alicia Colombo. They have no children. Their honeymoon to Brazil is Quino’s first trip across the Argentinean borders. In Rio de Janeiro he meets with foreign colleagues and publishing companies for the first time

1962

Quino’s first exhibition at a library in Buenos Aires. He designs the drawings for this express purpose

Argentina: President Arturo Frodinzi is deposed.

1963

Quino’s first humor book comes out. “Mundo Quino” (The World of Quino) is a compilation of humorous graphic drawings, without text, which includes a prologue written by Miguel Brascó. It was Brasco himself who presented Quino’s book to ‘Agens Publicidad’, an advertising agency, when they were looking for an artist to create a strip “which would combine Blondie and Peanuts” in order to advertise the launch of a line of electrical household appliances called “Mansfield”. This is the reason why some of the characters’ names began with the letter “m”, hence Mafalda’s case. Finally, ‘Agens’ did not run this campaign, but Quino kept some of the drawings.

Argentina: Peronism is proscribed. Arturo Ilia is elected President.
International: In the US, Kennedy is assassinated. USSR-China relations are broken.

1964

After ten years of publishing humorous drawings, which Quino continues to create on a regular basis until nowadays, Mafalda appears, for the first time, in “Gregorio”, a humor extra of “Leoplán” magazine that issued three comic strips. Since September 29, the Buenos Aires weekly paper “Primera Plana” (Front Page) picked up the Mafalda strip and kept publishing it on a regularly issues

International: Military coups in Brazil and Bolivia. US military intervention in Vietnam begins.

1965

On March 9, Quino ends his relationship with “Primera Plana” and Mafalda moves to the daily “El Mundo”.

International: The US invades Santo Domingo.

1966

Jorge Álvarez Editor (publisher) prints the first Mafalda book which assembled the first strips in order in which they were originally published. This would be the format of future Mafalda books as well. It is released in time for Christmas and all 5,000 copies are sold in just two days.

Argentina: President Ilia is overthrown. Political party activity is prohibited. General Onganía takes power. Repressive measures are taken against universities and cultural media.

1967

On December 22, the newspaper “El Mundo” is closed down, thus interrupting the distribution of Mafalda’s strip. Jorge Alvarez Editor publishes the second Mafalda book under the title “Así es la cosa, Mafalda” (That’s how things are, Mafalda). .

International: The Che Guevara dies. Military coup in Greece. The “six day war” between Israel and Egypt takes place. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is founded.

1968

On June 2, the circulation of the strip is resumed in “Siete días” (Seven days). “Mafalda 3” and “Mafalda 4” come out. Thirty strips are translated into Italian and are included in an anthology of literary texts and humorous drawings called “Libro dei Bambini Terribili per adulti masochisti” (The book of the terrible children for masochist adults). Quino travels to Europe for the first time in order to visit Paris, London and Madrid only.

International: Year of worldwide ideological and political commotions. ‘French May’ (Mayo Francés), whose slogan was “to bring imagination to power”. First ETA (Basque Autonomous Group) terrorist attacks in Spain. In the US, Martin Luther King is assassinated. Military coup in Peru.

1969

“Mafalda 5” appears in Argentina, the last of these books to be published by Jorge Álvarez Editor. Mafalda is printed for the first time ever outside of Argentina: it is in Italy that the book “Mafalda la contestataria” (Mafalda, the nonconformist) is printed and presented by Umberto Eco, who is the collection director.

Argentina: Popular uprising in Córdoba on May 29 (‘el cordobazo’).
International: On June 21, the entire world watches on TV how the first man ever, the American Neil Armstrong, sets foot on the moon.