Tintin (character)
Encyclopedia
Tintin is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin
, the series of classic Belgian
comic books written and illustrated by Hergé
. Tintin is the protagonist of the series, a reporter and adventurer who travels around the world with his dog Snowy
.
named Totor
. The comics starring Totor, Les aventures de Totor, chef de patrouille des Hannetons (The Adventures of Totor, Leader of the Cockchafer
Patrol), appeared in the magazine Le Boy-Scout Belge between 1926 and 1929.
In the later comic book series, Tintin is a young reporter who is drawn to dangerous international intrigues in which his quick thinking, bravery and chronic good luck save the day. Almost every adventure features Tintin sent off to investigate an assignment, but rarely does he actually turn in a story without first getting caught up in an adventure. Although the strip was Belgian, Hergé was inconsistent or vague about assigning Tintin a nationality, depicting him instead as broadly European. In some of the early books, like Tintin in the Congo
or The Black Island
, a Belgian identity is fairly explicit. In The Secret of the Unicorn
, the reader can unmistakably recognise the streets of Brussels
at the beginning of the story. In the television series
, Tintin states that he and Snowy
are from Brussels in the episode of The Crab with the Golden Claws
. Brussels is also explicitly mentioned as Tintin's home address in Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
. In later adventures, as with other aspects of his character's history and family, Tintin's nationality is usually not directly stated, although some of the street scenes in The Red Sea Sharks
have been identified as happening in Brussels.
noting that it "allows readers to mask themselves in a character and safely enter a sensually stimulating world."
Tintin is an intelligent and imaginative character with good powers of deduction. However, while in deep thought, he tends to be absent-minded and fails to notice things around him. He seems to know multiple foreign languages and reads extensively on a variety of subjects. He is skilled at driving automobile
s (including a tank
), riding horses or motorcycle
s, and flying aeroplanes and helicopter
s. Despite his generally delicate and unassuming appearance, Tintin is quite athletic and possesses great physical strength, often getting into fights where he is able to knock out enemies much larger than himself with a single blow. Although he is small as opposed to the other characters, he is an excellent swimmer, has been shown to be a skilled mountaineer
, has been shown to do yoga
, and can survive falls that would normally cause serious injuries.
Tintin's age is never accurately revealed. Other characters treat him as a worldly young adult, as shown by the absence of concerns like parents or school, as well as by his wide solo travels all over the globe. He's old enough to enter a pub and drink a beer (The Black Island) and old enough to live alone with his dog in his own apartment. However, he is still referred to as a "young boy", and a "puppy" in The Crab with the Golden Claws. A 1979 television interview with Hergé settled the matter, when Hergé stated that when he first thought about Tintin he was 14 or 15 years old, "but now, let's say that he is 17." In one shot in the television series episode The Secret of the Unicorn, Tintin's passport states his birth year as 1929 (the year of his print debut).
Tintin has no family members: any mention of a mother, father or siblings is noticeably absent. He makes no mention of his family throughout the series. Nowhere is it implied that he is an orphan; it could be argued that he meets his family between adventures. Tintin's lack of relatives is irrelevant to his adventuring; it is the adopted family of friends he makes through his exploits that makes up his family unit.
Unlike other characters such as Captain Haddock
or Professor Calculus
, Tintin has no discernible past prior to the beginning of the series. Whereas Haddock can recall a particularly fierce storm at sea or Calculus can boast of his athletic past, Tintin's roots prior to Land of the Soviets are never discussed. His companions encounter old friends like Captain Chester or Hercule Tarragon, yet Tintin only meets friends or enemies whom he met in previous adventures.
Even the name "Tintin" remains a mystery. Whether it is a first name or a surname is unknown. A possibility is that it is not actually the reporter's real name, but rather a pseudonym
that the character uses to protect his identity while writing columns for his newspaper: Le Petit Vingtième
. At the time when the stories first came out, journalists' usage of pseudonyms was commonplace. The possibility that it may not be his real name is also hinted in Cigars of the Pharaoh
when Tintin is accused of poisoning one of a notable sheik's servants. Having been captured and brought to his tent, the enraged sheik demands Tintin's name. Tintin's characteristically placid answer is: "My name? It won't mean a thing to you... but at home they call me Tintin." A simpler theory for his name is the fact that Franco-Belgian comics at the time generally had heroes with eccentric, memorable single names that could pass off as first names or surnames. Many people tend to think of "Tintin" as a surname, but it is likely that Hergé meant to keep it a mystery. Hergé was a great admirer of Benjamin Rabier
and may have derived the name (and hairstyle) from Rabier's Tintin lutin (1897). There also have been theories that Tintin is a nickname for Martin or Augustin. One last theory holds that the name "Tintin" signifies nothing, pointing to the character's cryptic nature. As Paul LaFarge
writes,
Throughout much of the series, Tintin's attitude is characterised by inquisitive tendencies and a noble, forgiving nature. While his idealism earns him the admiration of many people he meets, it also places him in danger on occasion and serves as a foil to the more sceptical demeanour of other characters such as Captain Haddock. And unlike nearly every other character he meets, Tintin can be relied upon to remain calm and cool-headed, even in the worst of circumstances. Only on very rare occasions, such as after Haddock's drunken antics threatened his friend's lives (Explorers on the Moon
), could Tintin actually lose his temper.
Tintin's political views are generally ambiguous in many of the books and specific expression of his opinions are rare. While in earlier books such as Tintin in the Land of the Soviets and Tintin in the Congo Tintin is characterised as a proud Belgian Catholic, later books avoid specific mention of his views (see Ideology of Tintin
). His opinions appear to change over time, though in many situations he can be classified as a pacifist, reflecting a dislike of war. At the beginning of Tintin and the Picaros
, he is seen wearing a motorcycle helmet with a Peace symbol
on it.
Readers of Tintin books have speculated about his sexuality. Marcel Wilmet, spokesperson of Studios Hergé
, has confirmed that Tintin is not gay and, while he has many male friends, they are not boyfriends. However, many still question his ambiguous sexuality.
Towards the end of the series, Tintin's character changes to a degree. In later stories, Tintin no longer actively seeks out adventure but is rather forced into a situation by events beyond his control (such as being kidnapped or motivated to rescue a friend). This is especially evident in Flight 714 and Tintin and the Picaros, where Tintin's loss of enthusiasm for adventure is apparent, and his youthful idealism appears to have been replaced by a somewhat more cynical outlook. There has been much debate among readers and critics about this shift in characterisation, as these final adventures have received varying and sometimes negative responses. Critics argue that these books represent either a late period of eccentricity, or puzzling disappointments, while others claim that Tintin's shift represents a more complex depiction of his character. Hergé commented upon this change, noting that in the late phases of his career, "Tintin has lost control, he is not on top of events anymore, he is subjected to them." However, in the unfinished album Tintin and Alph-Art
, Tintin regained much of his old adventurous personality, actively investigating suspicious events and murder threats.
look. Hergé subsequently used Paul's appearance as a model for the villainous Colonel Sponsz in The Calculus Affair
. Tintin and Sponsz, although physically very different, have actually quite similar hair spikes.
Hergé may have also been inspired by a Danish boy scout and later actor Palle Huld
who was 15 years old when he travelled around the world and wrote Around the World in 44 days by Palle. In the book he describes his tour to Soviet, America, China, Africa etc. and about his dramatic adventures. It was translated into 11 languages and it was read by Hergé. Palle Huld died in 2010 at the age of 98.
However, the inspiration for the clothing Hergé dressed Tintin in lay elsewhere. A fellow student of Hergé's from St Boniface, named Charles, had adopted a similar style of plus fours
and argyle
socks, which caused him to be the subject of no little ridicule. Harry Thompson notes the inspiration may be tinged slightly, suggesting that if "Hergé had been one of the laughers, an element of guilt was involved."
The first 3 adventures of Tintin visit places visited by photographer-reporter Robert Sexé, recorded in the Belgian press from the mid to late 1920s. Sexé was born in 1890 in La Roche-sur-Yon
in Vendée
in Western France. Janpol Schulz wrote a biography of Robert Sexé titled "Sexé au pays des Soviets" (Sexé in the Land of the Soviets) to mimic the name of the first Tintin Adventure. This was published in 1996.
Robert Sexé has been noted to have a similar appearance to Tintin, and the Hergé Foundation in Belgium has admitted that it is not too hard to imagine how Hergé could have been influenced by the exploits of Sexé. At that time Sexé had been round the world on a motorcycle made by Gillet of Herstal
. René Milhoux was a Grand-Prix champion and motorcycle record holder of the era, and in 1928, while Sexé was in Herstal speaking with Léon Gillet about his future projects, Mr. Gillet put him in contact with his new champion, Milhoux, who had just left Ready motorcycles for Gillet of Herstal. The two men quickly struck up a friendship, and spent hours talking about motorcycles and voyages, Sexé explaining his needs and Milhoux giving his knowledge on mechanics and motorbikes pushed beyond their limits.
Thanks to this union of knowledge and experience, Robert Sexé would head off on numerous trips throughout the world, writing countless press accounts. The General Secretary of the Hergé Foundation in Belgium has admitted that it is not too hard to imagine how a young George Rémi, better known as Hergé, could have been inspired by the well-publicized exploits of these two friends, Sexé with his trips and documentaries and Milhoux with his triumphs and records, to create the characters of Tintin the famous travelling reporter, and his faithful companion Milou (Snowy).
Hergé himself has noted that Tintin existed as his personal expression, and although he recorded in 1947 that he knew "Tintin is no longer me, that, if he is to go on living, it will be by a sort of artificial respiration that I will have to practice constantly and which exhausts me, and will exhaust me more and more", he was also fond of stating "Tintin, c'est moi!" ("Tintin, that's me!").
Shortly before his death, former Belgian Nazi collaborator Léon Degrelle
created controversy by stating that the Tintin character was originally based on himself. Degrelle had indeed known Hergé during his early career as a journalist, but this allegation is generally considered a fabrication of the notorious self-booster Degrelle.
The first time "Tintin" appeared "live" was in a publicity stunt held towards the end of the publication of the first adventure, Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
in Le Petit Vingtième
. It was announced that "Tintin" would be at the Gare du Nord station in Brussels
on 8 May 1930. 15-year-old boy scout
Lucien Pepermans was chosen by his scout leader
to play the part. Pepermans dressed as a mujik
and he and Hergé travelled to the station by train. They were expecting only a handful of readers but instead found themselves mobbed by a whole horde of fans. Some seventy years later, in 2000, Pepermans, now living in an old folks home, was guest of honour at a meeting of the Amis d'Hergé ("Friends of Hergé"), hosted by Jean-Pierre Talbot
.
On 9 July 1931, another scout, 14-year-old Henri Dendoncker, dressed in African safari gear and played the part for Tintin's return from the Congo
. He and a fox terrier, representing Snowy, were accompanied by Hergé, ten Congo
lese and other boys dressed as Quick & Flupke
. During World War II
, Dendoncker served with Britain's SOE
. Captured by the Germans
, he survived the concentration camps
, was decorated by the Queen
and became a British citizen under the name "Dark".
René Boey played the part to mark the return of Tintin from America
on 13 November 1932. The last such publicity stunt was done in October 1935 with Charles Stie "returning" from Shanghai and The Blue Lotus
.
Actress Jane Rubens was the first to play Tintin on stage in April 1941. The plays, written by Jacques Van Melkebeke
, included Tintin in India – the Mystery of the Blue Diamond and Mr Boullock's Disappearance. She was later replaced by 11-year-old Roland Ravez, who also lent his voice to recordings of the Cigars of the Pharaoh
and The Blue Lotus
. Another voice actor was Maurice Sarfati.
Jean-Pierre Talbot
played Tintin in two live-action movie adaptations: Tintin and the Golden Fleece
in 1961 and Tintin and the Blue Oranges
in 1964.
English actor Russell Tovey
played the role at the London Barbican Theatre during the 2005–6 season of a Young Vic adaptation of Tintin in Tibet
.
Canadian actor Colin O'Meara
voiced Tintin on an animated adaption of the stories
, which originally aired on HBO and subsequently Nickelodeon
.
Tintin is to be portrayed by Jamie Bell
in the upcoming motion-capture film The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn which merges plots from several books. He will be played by Adam Howden
in the video game based on the film.
, author of His Dark Materials
, commented that Tintin was one of his favourite characters due to "his blankness" and "lack of depth" as it makes him "an empty page on which adventures can be drawn".
The Adventures of Tintin
The Adventures of Tintin is a series of classic comic books created by Belgian artist , who wrote under the pen name of Hergé...
, the series of classic Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
comic books written and illustrated by Hergé
Hergé
Georges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
. Tintin is the protagonist of the series, a reporter and adventurer who travels around the world with his dog Snowy
Snowy (character)
Snowy is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé. He is a white Wire Fox Terrier and Tintin's four-legged companion who travels everywhere with him...
.
Background
Tintin debuted in Le Petit Vingtième on 10 January 1929. Tintin was largely based on an earlier character created by Hergé, a chubby boy-scoutScouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
named Totor
Totor
Totor, Chief Scout of the Cockchafers is the first comic strip series written by Hergé who later wrote The Adventures of Tintin. Le Boy Scout Belge published it monthly from July 1926 to summer 1929 and tells of a Boy Scout called Totor on his adventures...
. The comics starring Totor, Les aventures de Totor, chef de patrouille des Hannetons (The Adventures of Totor, Leader of the Cockchafer
Cockchafer
The cockchafer is a European beetle of the genus Melolontha, in the family Scarabaeidae....
Patrol), appeared in the magazine Le Boy-Scout Belge between 1926 and 1929.
In the later comic book series, Tintin is a young reporter who is drawn to dangerous international intrigues in which his quick thinking, bravery and chronic good luck save the day. Almost every adventure features Tintin sent off to investigate an assignment, but rarely does he actually turn in a story without first getting caught up in an adventure. Although the strip was Belgian, Hergé was inconsistent or vague about assigning Tintin a nationality, depicting him instead as broadly European. In some of the early books, like Tintin in the Congo
Tintin in the Congo
Tintin in the Congo is the second title in the comicbook series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Originally serialised in the Belgian children's newspaper supplement, Le Petit Vingtième between June 1930 and July 1931, it was first published in book form...
or The Black Island
The Black Island
The Black Island is the seventh of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as the hero. It was first published in the newspaper supplement Le Petit Vingtième in the late 1930s...
, a Belgian identity is fairly explicit. In The Secret of the Unicorn
The Secret of the Unicorn
The Secret of the Unicorn is the eleventh title in the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and illustrated by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Designed to be the first volume in a two-part story, the plot of The Secret of the Unicorn was continued in the twelfth Tintin adventure, Red...
, the reader can unmistakably recognise the streets of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
at the beginning of the story. In the television series
The Adventures of Tintin (TV series)
The Adventures of Tintin is an animated television series based on The Adventures of Tintin, a series of books by Hergé. It debuted in 1991, and 39 half-hour episodes were produced over the course of three seasons...
, Tintin states that he and Snowy
Snowy (character)
Snowy is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé. He is a white Wire Fox Terrier and Tintin's four-legged companion who travels everywhere with him...
are from Brussels in the episode of The Crab with the Golden Claws
The Crab with the Golden Claws
The Crab with the Golden Claws is the ninth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
. Brussels is also explicitly mentioned as Tintin's home address in Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets is the first title in the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé...
. In later adventures, as with other aspects of his character's history and family, Tintin's nationality is usually not directly stated, although some of the street scenes in The Red Sea Sharks
The Red Sea Sharks
The Red Sea Sharks is the nineteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums written and illustrated by Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
have been identified as happening in Brussels.
Character
Readers and critics have described Tintin as a well-rounded yet open-ended character, noting that his rather neutral personality—sometimes labelled as bland—permits a balanced reflection of the evil, folly and foolhardiness which surrounds him. His boy-scout ideals, which represent Hergé's own, are never compromised by the character, and his status allows the reader to assume his position within the story, rather than merely following the adventures of a strong protagonist. Tintin's iconic representation enhances this aspect, with Scott McCloudScott McCloud
Scott McCloud is an American cartoonist and theorist on comics as a distinct literary and artistic medium...
noting that it "allows readers to mask themselves in a character and safely enter a sensually stimulating world."
Tintin is an intelligent and imaginative character with good powers of deduction. However, while in deep thought, he tends to be absent-minded and fails to notice things around him. He seems to know multiple foreign languages and reads extensively on a variety of subjects. He is skilled at driving automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
s (including a tank
Main battle tank
A main battle tank , also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the heavy direct fire role of many modern armies. They were originally conceived to replace the light, medium, heavy and super-heavy tanks. Development was spurred onwards in the Cold War with the development...
), riding horses or motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
s, and flying aeroplanes and helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
s. Despite his generally delicate and unassuming appearance, Tintin is quite athletic and possesses great physical strength, often getting into fights where he is able to knock out enemies much larger than himself with a single blow. Although he is small as opposed to the other characters, he is an excellent swimmer, has been shown to be a skilled mountaineer
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
, has been shown to do yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...
, and can survive falls that would normally cause serious injuries.
Tintin's age is never accurately revealed. Other characters treat him as a worldly young adult, as shown by the absence of concerns like parents or school, as well as by his wide solo travels all over the globe. He's old enough to enter a pub and drink a beer (The Black Island) and old enough to live alone with his dog in his own apartment. However, he is still referred to as a "young boy", and a "puppy" in The Crab with the Golden Claws. A 1979 television interview with Hergé settled the matter, when Hergé stated that when he first thought about Tintin he was 14 or 15 years old, "but now, let's say that he is 17." In one shot in the television series episode The Secret of the Unicorn, Tintin's passport states his birth year as 1929 (the year of his print debut).
Tintin has no family members: any mention of a mother, father or siblings is noticeably absent. He makes no mention of his family throughout the series. Nowhere is it implied that he is an orphan; it could be argued that he meets his family between adventures. Tintin's lack of relatives is irrelevant to his adventuring; it is the adopted family of friends he makes through his exploits that makes up his family unit.
Unlike other characters such as Captain Haddock
Captain Haddock
Captain Archibald Haddock is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé...
or Professor Calculus
Professor Calculus
Professor Cuthbert Calculus is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé...
, Tintin has no discernible past prior to the beginning of the series. Whereas Haddock can recall a particularly fierce storm at sea or Calculus can boast of his athletic past, Tintin's roots prior to Land of the Soviets are never discussed. His companions encounter old friends like Captain Chester or Hercule Tarragon, yet Tintin only meets friends or enemies whom he met in previous adventures.
Even the name "Tintin" remains a mystery. Whether it is a first name or a surname is unknown. A possibility is that it is not actually the reporter's real name, but rather a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
that the character uses to protect his identity while writing columns for his newspaper: Le Petit Vingtième
Le Petit Vingtième
Le Petit Vingtième was the weekly youth supplement to the Belgian newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle from 1928 to 1940. The comics series The Adventures of Tintin first appeared in its pages.-History:...
. At the time when the stories first came out, journalists' usage of pseudonyms was commonplace. The possibility that it may not be his real name is also hinted in Cigars of the Pharaoh
Cigars of the Pharaoh
Cigars of the Pharaoh is one of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
when Tintin is accused of poisoning one of a notable sheik's servants. Having been captured and brought to his tent, the enraged sheik demands Tintin's name. Tintin's characteristically placid answer is: "My name? It won't mean a thing to you... but at home they call me Tintin." A simpler theory for his name is the fact that Franco-Belgian comics at the time generally had heroes with eccentric, memorable single names that could pass off as first names or surnames. Many people tend to think of "Tintin" as a surname, but it is likely that Hergé meant to keep it a mystery. Hergé was a great admirer of Benjamin Rabier
Benjamin Rabier
Benjamin Rabier is a French illustrator, comic book artist and animator. He became famous for creating La vache qui rit, and is one of the precursors of animal comics...
and may have derived the name (and hairstyle) from Rabier's Tintin lutin (1897). There also have been theories that Tintin is a nickname for Martin or Augustin. One last theory holds that the name "Tintin" signifies nothing, pointing to the character's cryptic nature. As Paul LaFarge
Paul LaFarge
Paul La Farge is an American novelist, essayist and academic whose three books, The Artist of the Missing , Haussmann, or the Distinction and The Facts of Winter received generally favorable critical notices, with Haussmann, in particular, singled out as the work of a unique and original...
writes,
Throughout much of the series, Tintin's attitude is characterised by inquisitive tendencies and a noble, forgiving nature. While his idealism earns him the admiration of many people he meets, it also places him in danger on occasion and serves as a foil to the more sceptical demeanour of other characters such as Captain Haddock. And unlike nearly every other character he meets, Tintin can be relied upon to remain calm and cool-headed, even in the worst of circumstances. Only on very rare occasions, such as after Haddock's drunken antics threatened his friend's lives (Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon
Explorers on the Moon, published in 1954, is the seventeenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is On a marché sur la Lune...
), could Tintin actually lose his temper.
Tintin's political views are generally ambiguous in many of the books and specific expression of his opinions are rare. While in earlier books such as Tintin in the Land of the Soviets and Tintin in the Congo Tintin is characterised as a proud Belgian Catholic, later books avoid specific mention of his views (see Ideology of Tintin
Ideology of Tintin
Hergé started drawing his comics series The Adventures of Tintin in 1929 for Le Petit Vingtième, the children's section of the Belgian newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle, run by the Abbé Norbert Wallez, an avid supporter of social Catholicism, a right-wing movement...
). His opinions appear to change over time, though in many situations he can be classified as a pacifist, reflecting a dislike of war. At the beginning of Tintin and the Picaros
Tintin and the Picaros
Tintin and the Picaros is one of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip graphic novels, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero....
, he is seen wearing a motorcycle helmet with a Peace symbol
Peace symbol
A number of peace symbols have been used in various cultures and contexts, one of the most ancient being the olive branch. The dove and olive branch was used by early Christians and was later adopted as a secular symbol. It was popularised by Pablo Picasso in 1949 and became widely used in the...
on it.
Readers of Tintin books have speculated about his sexuality. Marcel Wilmet, spokesperson of Studios Hergé
Studios Hergé
The Studios Hergé were, between 1950 and 1986, a SARL grouping comics author Hergé and his collaborators, who assisted him with the creation of The Adventures of Tintin and derived products...
, has confirmed that Tintin is not gay and, while he has many male friends, they are not boyfriends. However, many still question his ambiguous sexuality.
Towards the end of the series, Tintin's character changes to a degree. In later stories, Tintin no longer actively seeks out adventure but is rather forced into a situation by events beyond his control (such as being kidnapped or motivated to rescue a friend). This is especially evident in Flight 714 and Tintin and the Picaros, where Tintin's loss of enthusiasm for adventure is apparent, and his youthful idealism appears to have been replaced by a somewhat more cynical outlook. There has been much debate among readers and critics about this shift in characterisation, as these final adventures have received varying and sometimes negative responses. Critics argue that these books represent either a late period of eccentricity, or puzzling disappointments, while others claim that Tintin's shift represents a more complex depiction of his character. Hergé commented upon this change, noting that in the late phases of his career, "Tintin has lost control, he is not on top of events anymore, he is subjected to them." However, in the unfinished album Tintin and Alph-Art
Tintin and Alph-Art
Tintin and Alph-Art was the intended twenty-fourth and final book in the Tintin series, created by Belgian comics artist Hergé. It is a striking departure from the earlier books in tone and subject, as well as in some parts of the style; rather than being set in a usual exotic and action-packed...
, Tintin regained much of his old adventurous personality, actively investigating suspicious events and murder threats.
Inspiration
The earlier version of Tintin was apparently inspired, at least in part, by Hergé's younger brother, Paul Remi, a career soldier. Tired of being referred to as "Major Tintin" by his colleagues, Paul later shaved his hair and adopted a more Erich von StroheimErich von Stroheim
Erich von Stroheim was an Austrian-born film star of the silent era, subsequently noted as an auteur for his directorial work.-Background:...
look. Hergé subsequently used Paul's appearance as a model for the villainous Colonel Sponsz in The Calculus Affair
The Calculus Affair
The Calculus Affair is the eighteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero....
. Tintin and Sponsz, although physically very different, have actually quite similar hair spikes.
Hergé may have also been inspired by a Danish boy scout and later actor Palle Huld
Palle Huld
Palle Huld was a Danish film actor and writer. He appeared in 40 films between 1933 and 2000.He was born in Hellerup in Denmark. His journey around the world at the age of 15 in 1928 reportedly inspired Hergé to create Tintin.The Danish newspaper Politiken held a competition in honour of Jules...
who was 15 years old when he travelled around the world and wrote Around the World in 44 days by Palle. In the book he describes his tour to Soviet, America, China, Africa etc. and about his dramatic adventures. It was translated into 11 languages and it was read by Hergé. Palle Huld died in 2010 at the age of 98.
However, the inspiration for the clothing Hergé dressed Tintin in lay elsewhere. A fellow student of Hergé's from St Boniface, named Charles, had adopted a similar style of plus fours
Plus fours
Plus fours are breeches or trousers that extend 4 inches below the knee...
and argyle
Argyle (pattern)
The argyle pattern is made of diamonds or lozenges. The word is sometimes used to refer to an individual diamond in the design but more commonly refers to the overall pattern. Most argyle layouts contain layers of overlapping motifs, adding a sense of three-dimensionality, movement, and texture...
socks, which caused him to be the subject of no little ridicule. Harry Thompson notes the inspiration may be tinged slightly, suggesting that if "Hergé had been one of the laughers, an element of guilt was involved."
The first 3 adventures of Tintin visit places visited by photographer-reporter Robert Sexé, recorded in the Belgian press from the mid to late 1920s. Sexé was born in 1890 in La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France.It is the capital of the department. Its inhabitants are called Yonnais.-History:...
in Vendée
Vendée
The Vendée is a department in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vendée is taken from the Vendée river which runs through the south-eastern part of the department.-History:...
in Western France. Janpol Schulz wrote a biography of Robert Sexé titled "Sexé au pays des Soviets" (Sexé in the Land of the Soviets) to mimic the name of the first Tintin Adventure. This was published in 1996.
Robert Sexé has been noted to have a similar appearance to Tintin, and the Hergé Foundation in Belgium has admitted that it is not too hard to imagine how Hergé could have been influenced by the exploits of Sexé. At that time Sexé had been round the world on a motorcycle made by Gillet of Herstal
Herstal
Herstal, formerly known as Heristal, or Héristal, is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege along the Meuse river. Herstal is included in the "Greater Liège" agglomeration, which counts about 600,000 inhabitants...
. René Milhoux was a Grand-Prix champion and motorcycle record holder of the era, and in 1928, while Sexé was in Herstal speaking with Léon Gillet about his future projects, Mr. Gillet put him in contact with his new champion, Milhoux, who had just left Ready motorcycles for Gillet of Herstal. The two men quickly struck up a friendship, and spent hours talking about motorcycles and voyages, Sexé explaining his needs and Milhoux giving his knowledge on mechanics and motorbikes pushed beyond their limits.
Thanks to this union of knowledge and experience, Robert Sexé would head off on numerous trips throughout the world, writing countless press accounts. The General Secretary of the Hergé Foundation in Belgium has admitted that it is not too hard to imagine how a young George Rémi, better known as Hergé, could have been inspired by the well-publicized exploits of these two friends, Sexé with his trips and documentaries and Milhoux with his triumphs and records, to create the characters of Tintin the famous travelling reporter, and his faithful companion Milou (Snowy).
Hergé himself has noted that Tintin existed as his personal expression, and although he recorded in 1947 that he knew "Tintin is no longer me, that, if he is to go on living, it will be by a sort of artificial respiration that I will have to practice constantly and which exhausts me, and will exhaust me more and more", he was also fond of stating "Tintin, c'est moi!" ("Tintin, that's me!").
Shortly before his death, former Belgian Nazi collaborator Léon Degrelle
Léon Degrelle
Léon Joseph Marie Ignace Degrelle was a Walloon Belgian politician, who founded Rexism and later joined the Waffen SS which were front-line troops in the fight against the Soviet Union...
created controversy by stating that the Tintin character was originally based on himself. Degrelle had indeed known Hergé during his early career as a journalist, but this allegation is generally considered a fabrication of the notorious self-booster Degrelle.
Tintin actors and publicity stunts
Young people have often played the part of Tintin in real-life events staged by the publishers as well as in plays and movies.The first time "Tintin" appeared "live" was in a publicity stunt held towards the end of the publication of the first adventure, Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets is the first title in the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé...
in Le Petit Vingtième
Le Petit Vingtième
Le Petit Vingtième was the weekly youth supplement to the Belgian newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle from 1928 to 1940. The comics series The Adventures of Tintin first appeared in its pages.-History:...
. It was announced that "Tintin" would be at the Gare du Nord station in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
on 8 May 1930. 15-year-old boy scout
Boy Scout
A Scout is a boy or a girl, usually 11 to 18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split this age group into a junior and a senior section...
Lucien Pepermans was chosen by his scout leader
Scout Leader
A Scout Leader or Scouter generally refers to the trained adult leader of a Scout unit. The terms used vary from country to country, over time, and with the type of unit.-Roles:...
to play the part. Pepermans dressed as a mujik
Mujik
Muzhik or mujik refers to a Russian peasant, usually from pre-1917 Imperial Russia. The term connotes a certain degree of poverty, as most muzhiks were serfs before the 1861 agricultural reforms. After that date, serfs were given parcels of land to work and became free peasants...
and he and Hergé travelled to the station by train. They were expecting only a handful of readers but instead found themselves mobbed by a whole horde of fans. Some seventy years later, in 2000, Pepermans, now living in an old folks home, was guest of honour at a meeting of the Amis d'Hergé ("Friends of Hergé"), hosted by Jean-Pierre Talbot
Jean-Pierre Talbot
Jean-Pierre Talbot is a former Belgian actor.A teacher by profession, Talbot was first noted for his physical resemblance to that of Tintin while sports instructor on a beach in Ostend. He was introduced to Hergé who sympathized with him immediately...
.
On 9 July 1931, another scout, 14-year-old Henri Dendoncker, dressed in African safari gear and played the part for Tintin's return from the Congo
Tintin in the Congo
Tintin in the Congo is the second title in the comicbook series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Originally serialised in the Belgian children's newspaper supplement, Le Petit Vingtième between June 1930 and July 1931, it was first published in book form...
. He and a fox terrier, representing Snowy, were accompanied by Hergé, ten Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
lese and other boys dressed as Quick & Flupke
Quick & Flupke
Quick & Flupke is a comic book series by Hergé about two street urchins in Brussels named Quick and Flupke...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Dendoncker served with Britain's SOE
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
. Captured by the Germans
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, he survived the concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
, was decorated by the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
and became a British citizen under the name "Dark".
René Boey played the part to mark the return of Tintin from America
Tintin in America
Tintin in America is the third title in the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé...
on 13 November 1932. The last such publicity stunt was done in October 1935 with Charles Stie "returning" from Shanghai and The Blue Lotus
The Blue Lotus
The Blue Lotus , first published in 1936, is one of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums written and illustrated by Hergé featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. It is a sequel to Cigars of the Pharaoh, with Tintin continuing his struggle against a major gang of drug...
.
Actress Jane Rubens was the first to play Tintin on stage in April 1941. The plays, written by Jacques Van Melkebeke
Jacques Van Melkebeke
Jacques Van Melkebeke was a Belgian painter, journalist, writer, comic strips writer.Friend of Hergé, he took part in a semi-official way in the development of some of the storylines of The Adventures of Tintin, adding a number of cultural references. He is also supposed to have contributed to...
, included Tintin in India – the Mystery of the Blue Diamond and Mr Boullock's Disappearance. She was later replaced by 11-year-old Roland Ravez, who also lent his voice to recordings of the Cigars of the Pharaoh
Cigars of the Pharaoh
Cigars of the Pharaoh is one of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
and The Blue Lotus
The Blue Lotus
The Blue Lotus , first published in 1936, is one of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums written and illustrated by Hergé featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. It is a sequel to Cigars of the Pharaoh, with Tintin continuing his struggle against a major gang of drug...
. Another voice actor was Maurice Sarfati.
Jean-Pierre Talbot
Jean-Pierre Talbot
Jean-Pierre Talbot is a former Belgian actor.A teacher by profession, Talbot was first noted for his physical resemblance to that of Tintin while sports instructor on a beach in Ostend. He was introduced to Hergé who sympathized with him immediately...
played Tintin in two live-action movie adaptations: Tintin and the Golden Fleece
Tintin and the Golden Fleece
Tintin and the Golden Fleece is a film first released in France on December 6, 1961...
in 1961 and Tintin and the Blue Oranges
Tintin and the Blue Oranges
Tintin and the Blue Oranges is a 1964 French film directed by Philippe Condroyer and starring Jean-Pierre Talbot as Tintin. It was the second live-action movie, with an original story based on characters from the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by the Belgian artist...
in 1964.
English actor Russell Tovey
Russell Tovey
Russell George Tovey is an English actor with numerous television, film and stage credits. Tovey is best known for playing the role of werewolf George Sands in the BBC's supernatural drama Being Human which started in 2008...
played the role at the London Barbican Theatre during the 2005–6 season of a Young Vic adaptation of Tintin in Tibet
Tintin in Tibet
Tintin in Tibet is the twentieth title in the comic book series The Adventures of Tintin, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Originally serialised from September 1958 in the French language magazine named after his creation, Le Journal de Tintin, it was then first published in book...
.
Canadian actor Colin O'Meara
Colin O'Meara
Colin O'Meara is a voice actor who provided the voice of the Tintin character from The Adventures of Tintin television series. Other roles include Sailor Moon, Little Bear, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and one episode of Police Academy as well as voicing Wrench in the animated TV show Cadillacs and...
voiced Tintin on an animated adaption of the stories
The Adventures of Tintin (TV series)
The Adventures of Tintin is an animated television series based on The Adventures of Tintin, a series of books by Hergé. It debuted in 1991, and 39 half-hour episodes were produced over the course of three seasons...
, which originally aired on HBO and subsequently Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
.
Tintin is to be portrayed by Jamie Bell
Jamie Bell
Andrew James Matfin "Jamie" Bell is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in the films Billy Elliot , King Kong , Hallam Foe , Jumper , Defiance , The Eagle and The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn .- Early life :Bell was born in Billingham, in the Borough of...
in the upcoming motion-capture film The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn which merges plots from several books. He will be played by Adam Howden
Adam Howden
A British video game actor who also appeared in several live action shows.Adam Howden was relatively unknown until 2011, when he landed his breakout role as Anders in Dragon Age 2. In May, he announced via his Twitter that he would be playing Shulk, the protagonist of the Wii RPG, Xenoblade...
in the video game based on the film.
Tintin 75th anniversary silver coin
Tintin and his dog Snowy were the topic of a silver collectors coin: the 10 euro 75 years of Tintin Anniversary commemorative coin. A portrait of Tintin and Snowy can be seen in the obverse side of the coin.Reception
Philip PullmanPhilip Pullman
Philip Pullman CBE, FRSL is an English writer from Norwich. He is the best-selling author of several books, most notably his trilogy of fantasy novels, His Dark Materials, and his fictionalised biography of Jesus, The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ...
, author of His Dark Materials
His Dark Materials
His Dark Materials is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman comprising Northern Lights , The Subtle Knife , and The Amber Spyglass...
, commented that Tintin was one of his favourite characters due to "his blankness" and "lack of depth" as it makes him "an empty page on which adventures can be drawn".
Further reading
- Lane, Anthony. "A Boy's World: the Tintin Century". The New Yorker, 28 May 2007, pp. 46–53.
External links
- The official Tintin site
- Tintinologist.org – long-established English-language fan site.
- Tintin Books
- Spielberg's Tintin – Comics2Film
- Tintin in different languages
- Fictional flags in the Tintin stories
- BBC news story about translation of Tintin into Hindi
- BBC news story about the history of Tintin
- The Economist, "A very European hero"
- Serial Creative Director – tintin