Jacques Van Melkebeke
Encyclopedia
Jacques Van Melkebeke was a Belgian
painter
, journalist
, writer, comic strip
s 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 certain numbers of Blake and Mortimer
, although Edgar P. Jacobs disputes this fact.
He also wrote a fake letter to Hergé demanding that an insult Haddock uses "Pneumothorax" be removed. It was allegedly from a father whose boy was a great fan of Tintin and also a heavy tuberculosis sufferer who had experienced a collapsed lung. According to the letter, the boy was devastated that his favourite comic made fun of his own condition. Hergé wrote an apology and removed the word from the comic.
He wrote two Tintin plays which were staged from 1941 to 1942: Tintin in India - the Mystery of the Blue Diamond and Mr Boullock's Disappearance.
During the occupation of Belgium by Nazi Germany
, Van Melkebeke was responsible for main articles in Le Soir Jeunesse, a supplement of the daily newspaper Le Soir
. This resulted in a judgment of collaboration and of incitement of racial hatred in 1945 (although he primarily published cultural articles). For this same reason, Van Melkebeke could not continue in his functions as editor of the Tintin magazine, that Hergé had wanted to entrust to him: this suspicion of "incivism" prevented him from continuing a regular career in journalism.
His personality was one of the main sources of inspiration for the Blake and Mortimer
character Philip Angus Mortimer.
Jacques Van Melkebeke is regarded by many as the "Third man" of the Franco-Belgian comic strip, as ignored as his influence was great at a certain time.
as one of the reporters seeing Tintin off; on page 59, panel 6 of King Ottokar's Sceptre
when Tintin is about to be knighted; and on page 2, panel 14 of The Secret of the Unicorn
, where he is examining a painting as a man calls out that his briefcase is being stolen.
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...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, writer, comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
s writer.
Friend of 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...
, he took part in a semi-official way in the development of some of the storylines of The Adventures of Tintin
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...
, adding a number of cultural references. He is also supposed to have contributed to certain numbers of Blake and Mortimer
Blake and Mortimer
Blake and Mortimer is a Belgian comics series created by the Belgian writer and comics artist Edgar P. Jacobs. It was one of the first series to appear in the Belgian comics magazine Tintin in 1946, and was subsequently published in book form by Les Editions du Lombard.The main protagonists of the...
, although Edgar P. Jacobs disputes this fact.
He also wrote a fake letter to Hergé demanding that an insult Haddock uses "Pneumothorax" be removed. It was allegedly from a father whose boy was a great fan of Tintin and also a heavy tuberculosis sufferer who had experienced a collapsed lung. According to the letter, the boy was devastated that his favourite comic made fun of his own condition. Hergé wrote an apology and removed the word from the comic.
He wrote two Tintin plays which were staged from 1941 to 1942: Tintin in India - the Mystery of the Blue Diamond and Mr Boullock's Disappearance.
During the occupation of Belgium by Nazi Germany
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...
, Van Melkebeke was responsible for main articles in Le Soir Jeunesse, a supplement of the daily newspaper Le Soir
Le Soir
Le Soir is a Berliner Format Belgian newspaper. Le Soir was founded in 1887 by Emile Rossel. It is the most popular Francophone newspaper in Belgium, and considered a newspaper of record.-Editorial stance:...
. This resulted in a judgment of collaboration and of incitement of racial hatred in 1945 (although he primarily published cultural articles). For this same reason, Van Melkebeke could not continue in his functions as editor of the Tintin magazine, that Hergé had wanted to entrust to him: this suspicion of "incivism" prevented him from continuing a regular career in journalism.
His personality was one of the main sources of inspiration for the Blake and Mortimer
Blake and Mortimer
Blake and Mortimer is a Belgian comics series created by the Belgian writer and comics artist Edgar P. Jacobs. It was one of the first series to appear in the Belgian comics magazine Tintin in 1946, and was subsequently published in book form by Les Editions du Lombard.The main protagonists of the...
character Philip Angus Mortimer.
Jacques Van Melkebeke is regarded by many as the "Third man" of the Franco-Belgian comic strip, as ignored as his influence was great at a certain time.
Appearances in Tintin
Like Hergé and Jacobs, Van Melkebeke makes a few cameo appearances in the Tintin stories: on page 1, panel 1 of the colour version of Tintin in the CongoTintin 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...
as one of the reporters seeing Tintin off; on page 59, panel 6 of King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre
King Ottokar's Sceptre is the eighth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums, written and illustrated by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring the young reporter Tintin. It was first serialized as a black-and-white comic strip in Le Petit Vingtième on 4 August...
when Tintin is about to be knighted; and on page 2, panel 14 of 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...
, where he is examining a painting as a man calls out that his briefcase is being stolen.