Tintin anniversary marked by new book

9 January 2004

BARCELONA – Spanish fans of cartoon hero Tintin marked his 75th anniversary Friday with a new book which teaches  children how to draw like his creator. Tintin, the cub reporter, was created by Herge, real name Georges Remi.

The Belgian cartoonist drew the first Tintin strip in 1929 for Le XXme Siecle newspaper.

Since then, over 200 million stories of his adventures have been sold worldwide.

A new book published in Spain called ‘Workshop of the Comic’ teaches children how to design and write stories in the same way as Herge.

Edited by  Zerdrera Zariquiy, the ‘Tintin Library’,  is a visual approach to the creation and development of a comic story and draws on the methods used by Herge.

Readers learn about the drawings and design and how to colour the comic figures.

They are also taught how to develop the storylines.

Documents and some unpublished pictures, drawings, illustrations and photos of Herge himself, are used to help readers learn how to design and tell stories.

Rudi Dumortier, an  expert in animation workshop and comic design, has adapted the teaching  contents for  children aged from 8 to 12 years old.

The book is made for a wide readership, from Tintin fans to people who are simply interested in learning how to create comics.

In Herge’s native Belgium, two newspapers will fill Saturday editions with Tintin strips, while France’s Le Figaro is printing a special 114-page Tintin issue.

Tintin’s first adventure saw him tackle the Communist regime in the USSR in Tintin in the Land of the Soviets.

Subsequent stories saw him battle drug dealers, travel to the moon and discover a lost Inca tribe.

But the brave reporter also had to battle criticism – his portrayal of Africans was deemed racist by some, and the fact Herge continued printing during the Nazi occupation of Belgium raised accusations of collaboration.

The comics were translated into 55 languages. His last completed adventure was published in 1976.

An exhibition of Tintin art is to take be held in Brussels, while other shows will take place in Spain, the Netherlands and Britain.

The Brussels celebrations will also include a tour to some of the scenery that inspired the adventures.

On Thursday, a 10-euro commemorative coin featuring Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy was unveiled.

“The comic books of Herge have conferred the highest nobility on Belgian art,” Belgium’s Finance Minister Didier Reynders said at the unveiling.

Hollywood director Steven Spielberg said in 2002 he planned to make a trilogy of films based on the cub reporter’s adventures.

[Copyright EFE with Expatica]

Subject: Spanish news