Italian television director and SuperGulp creator Guido De Maria dies at 93
Italian television director, cartoonist, and advertising author Guido De Maria, who created the television format Gulp! and co-created the detective character Nick Carter, died in Bologna on 31 August 2026 at the age of 93.
Early life and beginnings in satire
Guido De Maria was born on 20 December 1932 in Lama Mocogno, a small town in the Apennines of Modena, to a veterinarian father. He attended a classical high school, where he developed a dedication to drawing, before enrolling in the faculty of mathematics and physics. Through family connections, he entered the newsroom of the magazine Epoca under the direction of Enzo Biagi, who hired him as a satirical cartoonist. De Maria also contributed cartoons to the publication Il Candido, establishing himself within the Italian satirical and humor scene before shifting his focus toward commercial advertising.
Bringing comics to television
In the early 1970s, Rai special programs executive Giancarlo Governi sought a method to adapt comic books for television screens. Governi enlisted De Maria and comic book artist Franco Bonvicini, known professionally as Bonvi. In 1971, De Maria founded the production company Playvision. Together with Bonvi, he created the comedic detective character Nick Carter alongside sidekicks Patsy and Ten, who frequently confronted the master of disguise Stanislao Moulinsky. On 14 September 1972 at 21:15, the program Gulp! Fumetti in tv premiered on Rai's Secondo Canale, introduced by the comedy duo Cochi Ponzoni and Renato Pozzetto.
They are drawings that do not move: it is based on the principle of the train, people sit still and the trees pass by the window.
The show retained the structure of print comic strips by panning and zooming cameras over static panels while voice actors read the dialogue inside speech balloons. The voice cast included Carlo Romano as Nick Carter, alongside Oreste Lionello, Sandra Milo, Simona Izzo, Gigi Reder, and Giorgio Ariani. Despite running for only fifteen minutes per weekly episode, the broadcast reached an audience approval rating of 83%, surpassing the quiz show Rischiatutto hosted by Mike Bongiorno on Rai's main channel.
Expansion to SuperGulp! and advertising work
In 1977, the program expanded with the arrival of colour television into SuperGulp!, which aired until 1981. This edition incorporated full animation and introduced viewers to characters including Corto Maltese, Lupo Alberto, Tex, Sturmtruppen, Tintin, Alan Ford, the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and De Maria's own creation, Giumbolo. De Maria received the television directing award for youth programming for his work on the series, with sources recording the honor in 1978 and 1979.
- Guido De Maria is born in Lama Mocogno
- De Maria founds the television and production company Playvision
- Gulp! Fumetti in tv premieres on Rai's Secondo Canale
- Rai launches SuperGulp! in colour with animated adaptations
- SuperGulp! concludes its broadcast run on Rai
- Guido De Maria dies in Bologna at age 93
Parallel to his television broadcasts, De Maria worked as a director and creative in Italian advertising during the Carosello era. He created campaigns such as Salomone il pirata pacioccone for Amarena Fabbri, commercials featuring I Brutos and the duo Franco Franchi and Ciccio Ingrassia for Cera Grey, the animated dwarfs for Loacker, and the shirt advertising campaign featuring Maurizio Costanzo.
Collaborations and later years
De Maria was a central figure in the cultural network spanning Modena and Bologna, working across cabaret, music, and publishing. He maintained a close personal and professional bond with singer-songwriter Francesco Guccini, with whom he collaborated in the cabaret group Archibusti. Following the death of Bonvi in 1995, De Maria continued working across media, co-directing the humor weekly Comix in the 1990s alongside Beppe Cottafavi.
I was the author of Nick Carter together with Bonvi... in the 1970s I directed Gulp! and SuperGulp! for Rai.
De Maria died in Bologna on the morning of 31 August 2026 at the age of 93, shortly after the death of Guccini at age 86.