Noël Godin

Noël Godin
Godin, 2003
Godin, 2003
Born (1945-09-13) 13 September 1945 (age 79)
Liège, Belgium
Occupationwriter, critic, actor, anarchist
NationalityBelgian

Noël Godin (born 13 September 1945) is a Belgian writer, critic, actor and notorious pie thrower or entarteur.[1] Godin gained global attention in 1998 when his group ambushed Microsoft CEO Bill Gates in Brussels, pelting the software magnate with pies.[2][3] After bombarding Gates, Godin allegedly said, "My work here is done."[4] He has been described as "the French-speaking world’s best-known prankster."[1]

Philosophy

Godin insists he is non-violent and is careful to use only soft pies made of cream and sponge cake that will not physically hurt his victims, which he purchases from local bakeries.[3][5][6] He says his humor can be traced back to Bugs Bunny, Wile E. Coyote, the Marx Brothers, Norman Wisdom, and the radical "yippies" of the Youth International Party.[1][3][6][7]

A supporter of anarchist causes,[3][4] Godin targets figures representing elites whom the public has turned against.[1] One of his favorite targets is the French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy, who has been pied by Godin or one of his accomplices on at least seven occasions.[5][8]

Selected victims

Since 1969, Godin has thrown pies at more than 25 people in the fields of culture, politics, and beyond.[3][6] The list of public figures Godin and his accomplices have targeted with pies includes:

Books

  • Anthologie de la subversion carabinée, L'âge d'homme, 1989, ISBN 2-8251-0715-8 (philosophical study of political freedom), réédition revue et augmentée, 2008
  • Zig zig boum boum, Le Veilleur, Toulouse, 1994
  • Crème et châtiment : mémoire d'un entarteur, Albin Michel, 1995
  • Godin par Godin, Yellow Now, 2001, ISBN 2-87340-151-6
  • Armons-nous les uns les autres! (novel), Flammarion, 2003, ISBN 978-2-08-068385-4
  • Entartons, entartons les pompeux cornichons!, Flammarion, 2005, ISBN 2-08-068546-5 (The story of all his pieings).

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Dahlburg, John-Thor (8 December 1997). "He Plasters Paris' Elite With Cream Pies". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "In Brussels, Gates Takes a Pie in the Face (Published 1998)". 5 February 1998. Archived from the original on 17 December 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Valauskas, Edward J. (1 June 1998). "FM Interviews: Noel Godin". First Monday. 3 (6). doi:10.5210/fm.v3i6.602. ISSN 1396-0466.
  4. ^ a b Vitale, Alfred (2010), "Godin, Noël (b. 1945)", The International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, p. 1, doi:10.1002/9781405198073.wbierp1690, ISBN 978-1-4051-9807-3, retrieved 30 December 2024
  5. ^ a b c d Gallix, Andrew (20 July 2011). "From Jonnie Marbles to the Yippies: a history of pie activism". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d "Brussels Journal; The Philosopher With a Pie, and a Glint in the Eye (Published 1998)". 20 April 1998. Archived from the original on 22 November 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  7. ^ a b Stoddard, Katy (19 July 2011). "Custard pie as political art form: 1998 profile of Noel Godin". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Henri-Levy hit with cream pie… again". The Times of Israel. 6 June 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Notas sobre a abertura do festival". Folha Online (in Portuguese). 7 May 1997. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  10. ^ "« Le meilleur reste à venir » : on est déjà content avec ça !". Brussels Life (in French). Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  11. ^ Le Point (in French). May 1994.
  12. ^ Kynaston, Nic (1998). The Guinness Book of Records 1999. Guinness. ISBN 978-0-85112-070-6.
  13. ^ "Des manifestants perturbent une messe à Nantes". Le Monde (in French). 10 September 1996. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  14. ^ "Cream and punishment". The Globe and Mail. 18 April 2000. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  15. ^ Robert-Diard, Pascale (22 September 2002). "Jean-Pierre Chevènement retrouve son « entarteur » devant le tribunal" (in French). pp. Le Monde. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  16. ^ "Mario Dumont et Jean Charest entartés". Radio-Canada (in Canadian French). 13 April 2003. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  17. ^ Leroy, Guillaume (11 July 2007). "Exclusif : Noël Godin revient sur l'entartage de Doc Gynéco". Télé 2 semaines (in French). Retrieved 30 December 2024.