J. Carlos

Carlos was born and died in Rio de Janeiro. His first work, a drawing of a newcomer, was published in 1902 in the magazine Tagarela. He soon became a regular contributor to the magazine and within less than a year, designed a cover. He collaborated in design and illustration in all the major publications of Brazil from the 1900s until the late 1940s, including O Malho, O Tico-Tico, Fon-Fon, Careta, A Cigarra, Vida Moderna, Para Todos, Eu Sei Tudo, Revista da Semana, and O Cruzeiro. His oeuvre is estimated to be more than 100,000 illustrations, with a varied range of fictionalized personages and Brazilian popular figures of the time. In the 1930s, J. Carlos was the first Brazilian to draw Mickey Mouse; he drew the character in covers and advertisements in the magazine O Tico Tico. In 1941, Walt Disney visited Brazil. Disney was impressed with the style of J. Carlos and asked him to work in Hollywood.