La Diligence (comics)

For other uses, see Diligence (disambiguation).

Lucky Luke #32 La Diligence--The Stagecoach
File:LuckyLukeDiligence.jpg Cover of the French edition
Date	1968
Series	Lucky Luke
Publisher	Dargaud
Creative team
Writers	Goscinny Morris
Artists	Morris
Original publication
Date of publication	1968
Language	French
Chronology
Preceded by	Tortillas pour les Dalton (1967)
Followed by	Le Pied-tendre, (1968)

La Diligence ("The Stagecoach") is a Lucky Luke adventure written by Goscinny and illustrated by Morris. It is the 28th book in the series and was originally published in French in 1968.

Plot

Due to an increasing rate of stagecoach holdups, Wells Fargo & Co. decides to organize and conduct a special trip with a load of gold from Denver to San Francisco, with Lucky Luke participating as an escort, to reboost the company's failing public image. As expected, the stagecoach becomes the target for various hold-up attempts, in addition to an Indian attack, an encounter with the bandit poet Black Bart, various on-board gambling sessions, and (as prescribed by the company) a continuous diet of potatoes and lard (bacon and beans in some translations). In the end the gold not only arrives safely in San Francisco, but also the passengers have gained some new personal insights from that trip.

Notes

• The story was inspired by John Ford's 1939 film, Stagecoach.
• The character of Hank Bully, the coach driver, is a caricature of actor Wallace Beery. This character resurfaces in volume 54, La Fiancée de Lucky Luke.
• Movie director Alfred Hitchcock has a small cameo as a saloon bartender.

External links

• Lucky Luke official site album index Template:Fr icon
• Goscinny website on Lucky LukeTemplate:Fr icon