Raymond Macherot was born in Verviers, Belgium in 1924. He wanted to become a journalist or a painter but, for financial reasons, he became an illustrator and comics artist. Following the end of World War II, Macherot began his career producing a few cartoons in the style of Virgil Partch for the satirical weekly "Pan", under the pseudonym "Zara". In 1953, he joined the Franco-Belgian comics magazine "Tintin", where he wrote a scenario for Fred Funcken's "Le chevalier blanc" and made numerous illustrations and magazine covers.