Hergé

=Herge=

Herg é was an extremely influential and talented Belgian artist and comic writer who is still most commonly known today for his popular comic, “The Adventures of Tintin”. Hergé was born George Prosper Remi, but signed all of his works until his pen-name. He was born in Etterbeek, Brussels in the year 1907 and grew up following the Christian faith. During his childhood, George spent a lot of time being actively involved in Boy Scouts. The very first comics and illustrations that Hergé ever wrote were published in the local Boy Scout magazine. From there, he got his first job with a Catholic newspaper named Le XXe Siecle at the age of 18. It was through this company that Hergé published his first issue of “The Adventures of Tintin” four years later on January 10th, 1929.

Even Hergé’s very first comics were huge hits in Belgium. The idea behind the comic was easy to follow and yet was different from anything else that had been published before. Hergé specific style of illustration, known as clear cut, was very different from other styles of art at the time. This style set him apart and influenced many other comic artists. In “The Adventures of Tintin” the main character, Tintin, and his trusty dog travel the world and uncover and solve mysteries behind different cultures. The original comics were racist towards other ethnicities and followed many controversial stereotypes. But within five years of his first comic, Hergé started to invest time into making the comics culturally and historically accurate. The comic became so popular that people were hired in order to act as Tintin in real life and visit countries to visit fans. Plays, books, and magazines were all published that were based off of the popular comic as well.

What started off as a simple idea and some rough sketches resulted in one of the most popular comic series in Europe ever. Even after the death of Hergé in the year 1983, the legacy and character of Tintin lives on.