When the Belgian cartoonist known as Herge died in March 1983, not even Fanny, his widow, thought the extraordinary success of The Adventures of Tintin would live on.
She was wrong. The intrepid cub reporter and his faithful canine companion keep attracting new readers. Today comic-strip lovers around the world will mark the centennial of Herge, nom de plume of Georges Remi (the French pronunciation of his reversed initials is "Herge"), a native of Brussels.
Herge's ligne claire style of drawing, French for "clear line," has influenced generations of cartoonists. And people of all ages are devoted fans of Herge's bequiffed boy hero Tintin, his clever white terrier Snowy (Milou in French), curse-happy Captain Haddock ("ten thousand thundering typhoons!"), the half-deaf Professor Calculus and bumbling detectives Thomson and Thompson. The booklets, translated into 70 languages, sell about 3 million copies each year. More than 120 million copies have been sold to date.
Even Hollywood has taken an interest in Tintin and Snowy. The administrators of Herge's estate announced recently that director Steven Spielberg would shoot a series of Tintin movies.
The first, presumably Destination Moon, is scheduled for release by 2010. Whether it will be animated is unclear.
British author Michael Farr, an ex-reporter and well-known "Tintinologist," attributes Tintin's timeless popularity to Herge's simple, inimitable drawing style as well as to his stories' humor and multiple layers of appeal.
Children are excited by the adventures, Farr has noted, while adults appreciate the political satire and wordplays.
"Readers can easily identify with Tintin no matter where they're from and which language they speak," Farr said.
Tintin is not sharply defined, in contrast with characters like Captain Haddock. His precise age, his family, and whether he has a girlfriend are mysteries.
"Tintin, that's me!" Herge once declared.
"Herge would have liked to have been a journalist -- he was fascinated by news," said Farr, who said Herge had written his stories based on international events.
From the Japanese invasion of China in The Blue Lotus (1936) to Tintin's flight to the moon in Destination Moon (1953) -- 16 years before the US landing -- "the comic books chronicle the 20th century, which makes them interesting to more mature readers too," Farr said.
The Adventures of Tintin elevated the comic book to an art form. Herge's admirers have included Andy Warhol and the Dalai Lama, who honored the cartoonist last year for Tintin in Tibet. Herge seems to have "arrived" in the world of high art just in time for his centennial.
The current exhibition of Herge's work at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris is its most successful exhibition ever, Farr said, adding that the museum had even decided to include several pieces in its permanent collection.
"Herge has long been seen as a father figure in the comics world. If he's now recognized as a modern artist, that's very important," Farr said.
Tintin first appeared on January 10, 1929, in Le Petit Vingtieme ("The Little Twentieth"), the youth supplement to the Brussels newspaper Le Vingtieme Siecle ("The Twentieth Century"). His earliest adventures took him to the Soviet Union and Belgian Congo. Both stories were full of anti-Communist and racist prejudices that Herge later called "youthful folly" and partially revised. During the course of his career, Herge's obsession with accuracy and detailed research grew.
"He was a perfectionist," said Farr, who interviewed Herge in the late 1970s in Brussels.
The cartoonist's modesty and curiosity turned the tables on Farr. Instead of letting himself be interviewed during their three-hour lunch, Herge peppered the Briton with questions about Pink Floyd, the Beatles and art.
"Herge was a charming person who sparkled with humor, but he didn't like talking about himself," Farr said.
An elderly mother and her daughter were found dead in Kaohsiung after having not been seen for several days, discovered only when a foul odor began to spread and drew neighbors’ attention. There have been many similar cases, but it is particularly troubling that some of the victims were excluded from the social welfare safety net because they did not meet eligibility criteria. According to media reports, the middle-aged daughter had sought help from the local borough warden. Although the warden did step in, many services were unavailable without out-of-pocket payments due to issues with eligibility, leaving the warden’s hands
When former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) first took office in 2016, she set ambitious goals for remaking the energy mix in Taiwan. At the core of this effort was a significant expansion of the percentage of renewable energy generated to keep pace with growing domestic and global demands to reduce emissions. This effort met with broad bipartisan support as all three major parties placed expanding renewable energy at the center of their energy platforms. However, over the past several years partisanship has become a major headwind in realizing a set of energy goals that all three parties profess to want. Tsai
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday announced that she would dissolve parliament on Friday. Although the snap election on Feb. 8 might appear to be a domestic affair, it would have real implications for Taiwan and regional security. Whether the Takaichi-led coalition can advance a stronger security policy lies in not just gaining enough seats in parliament to pass legislation, but also in a public mandate to push forward reforms to upgrade the Japanese military. As one of Taiwan’s closest neighbors, a boost in Japan’s defense capabilities would serve as a strong deterrent to China in acting unilaterally in the
Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Randhir Jaiswal told a news conference on Jan. 9, in response to China’s latest round of live-fire exercises in the Taiwan Strait: “India has an abiding interest in peace and stability in the region, in view of our trade, economic, people-to-people and maritime interests. We urge all parties to exercise restraint, avoid unilateral actions and resolve issues peacefully without threat or use of force.” The statement set a firm tone at the beginning of the year for India-Taiwan relations, and reflects New Delhi’s recognition of shared interests and the strategic importance of regional stability. While India
RSS