Studios Hergé
Encyclopedia
The Studios Hergé were, between 1950 and 1986, a SARL
Société à responsabilité limitée
A Société à responsabilité limitée, also known by the acronym SARL , is a private limited liability corporate entity that exists in France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Macau, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Lebanon and has commerce as its purpose.A SARL is a company whose liability is limited to the...

 grouping comics author 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...

 and his collaborators, who assisted him with the creation 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...

 and derived products. Over the years, the studios had between 12 and 50 employees, including some prestigious artists like Jacques Martin, Bob de Moor
Bob de Moor
Bob de Moor is the pen name of Robert Frans Marie De Moor , a Belgian comics creator. Chiefly noted as an artist, he is considered an early master of the Ligne claire style. He wrote and drew several comics series on his own, but also collaborated with Hergé on several volumes of The Adventures of...

 and Roger Leloup
Roger Leloup
Roger Leloup is a Belgian comic strip artist, novelist, and a former collaborator of Hergé. He is most famous for the Yoko Tsuno comic series.- Biography :...

.

Every creation produced by the studios was attributed to Hergé only, except for three albums of Quick & Flupke
Quick & Flupke
Quick & Flupke is a comic book series by Hergé about two street urchins in Brussels named Quick and Flupke...

 created after his death which are attributed to the Studios on the cover.

After 1986, the Studios were disbanded and transformed into the Hergé Foundation
Hergé Foundation
The Hergé Foundation, often known as Moulinsart is the official organization that looks after the world of the famous comic creator Hergé, and his famous creation The Adventures of Tintin, along with his other comics like Quick and Flupke and Jo, Zette and Jocko. They run Hergé's estate, and the...

.

History

The Studios Hergé were created by Hergé in 1950 to assist him with the creation 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...

. They permitted him to focus on the creation of new stories by handing over some aspects of the creation, particularly the colouring, which Hergé had never really mastered and which was in the 1940s done by Edgar Pierre Jacobs
Edgar Pierre Jacobs
Edgard Félix Pierre Jacobs, , better known under his pen name Edgar P. Jacobs, was a Belgian comic book creator , born in Brussels, Belgium...

, and the drawing of decors. Technical elements required a lot of documentation and a specific drawing technique, making such assistance worthwhile. The Studios were created when Hergé worked on Destination Moon
Destination Moon (Tintin)
Destination Moon is the sixteenth 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...

, an adventure where technology was omnipresent.

The influence of some studio members on the stories is also present. E.g. Jacques Martin claims to have introduced a number of burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...

 gags which don't correspond to Hergés style of humour.

The story of the "gag page"

An anecdote well known among tintinophiles is indicative of the atmosphere in the Studios in those years. When Hergé was on a holiday in December 1965, the two main collaborators Bob de Moor and Jacques Martin created a fake page of Tintin, completely in the style of the master, which they sent to the Swiss weekly magazine L'Illustré. It was published there as an extract from the next Tintin adventure.

Jacques Martin: "I first invented a short story, and then composed the page and placed the characters. Next, Bob de Moor completed the backgrounds which I had sketched, and we both inked the page: he did the backgrounds, I did the characters.

Apparently, Hergé didn't react immediately upon discovering this, but probably preferred lettings things stand as they were with this joke which, according to some, was a real indication of the state of mind of the collaborators who wanted to be more involved in the creation of the adventures of Tintin.

The page, which describes an airport scene comparable to some sequences in Destination Moon and 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....

, actually closely resembles a page by Hergé, with only some tintinophiles able to spot some typical style elements of De Moor and Martin. The page can be seen at Tintin est Vivant !.

The Studios after Hergé

After the death of Hergé in 1983, his widow Fanny Rémi
Fanny Rodwell
Fanny Rodwell is the second wife of well-known comic creator Hergé. She founded the Hergé Foundation in 1987 and is the copyright owner of Hergé's works after his death. She received an award on behalf of the foundation from the Dalai Lama in 2006.She financed the building of the Hergé Museum in...

, who started working with the studios as a colorist in 1956, inherited the rights to the works of the author (but not the rights to the derived works, which belonged to Alain Baran, friend of Hergé, with the company Tintin Licensing, later sold to the group Canal+
Canal+
Canal+ is a French premium pay television channel launched in 1984. It is 80% owned by the Canal+ Group, which in turn is owned by Vivendi SA. The channel broadcasts several kinds of programming, mostly encrypted...

).

Fanny followed the wishes of Hergé who didn't want The Adventures of Tintin to be continued after his death. Some doubt exists though about 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...

, left unfinished by Hergé and at first handed over to the Studios to be finished by Bob De Moor
Bob de Moor
Bob de Moor is the pen name of Robert Frans Marie De Moor , a Belgian comics creator. Chiefly noted as an artist, he is considered an early master of the Ligne claire style. He wrote and drew several comics series on his own, but also collaborated with Hergé on several volumes of The Adventures of...

. Fanny Rémi then changed her mind and decided to publish just the sketches by Hergé, to the disappointment of Bob De Moor.

There is also some hesitation about Quick & Flupke. Less popular than Tintin, Hergé has not left any clear instructions about a continuation of the series. Perhaps more to keep the Studios running than for a truly artistic reason, Fanny accepted the project of Johan De Moor, son of Bob and recent arrival in the Studios, to restart the series. He realized an album of new gags while the Studios modernized a number of old gags never before published in colours. Three albums appeared in 1985, the only ones to officially credit the Studios Hergé on the cover and inside. Fanny then announced that the series would end there and that the Studios were going to be closed.

The activities of the Studios ceased soon after, not before finishing some projects of derived products and publicity work. In 1986, the Studios Hergé were replaced by the Hergé Foundation
Hergé Foundation
The Hergé Foundation, often known as Moulinsart is the official organization that looks after the world of the famous comic creator Hergé, and his famous creation The Adventures of Tintin, along with his other comics like Quick and Flupke and Jo, Zette and Jocko. They run Hergé's estate, and the...

, solely occupied with the rights of the series.

In 1988, the giant fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...

 in Stockel/Stokkel metro station
Stockel/Stokkel metro station
Stockel metro station is the eastern terminus of line 1 on the Brussels Metro. The station opened on 31 August 1988 and is located in the municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre.-Art in the station:...

 was inaugurated, based on sketches by Hergé which were finished by the Studios.

Artists

  • Bob de Moor
    Bob de Moor
    Bob de Moor is the pen name of Robert Frans Marie De Moor , a Belgian comics creator. Chiefly noted as an artist, he is considered an early master of the Ligne claire style. He wrote and drew several comics series on his own, but also collaborated with Hergé on several volumes of The Adventures of...

     (1950–1983)
    He enters the Studios Hergé on 5 April 1950, and soon becomes the first assistant, a position held by Edgar P. Jacobs in the previous decade. Reputed for his perfect imitation of the style of Hergé, he supervises the totality of the album production together with Hergé. He is also charged with the creation of all derived products featuring the heads of Tintin or Snowy.
  • Jacques Martin (1947?-1972)
    Creator of Alix, close to Hergé, he joins the Studios mainly as an assistant to the stories, starting with The Calculus Affair. He works with Hergé until 1972, notably on 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...

     and 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...

  • Roger Leloup
    Roger Leloup
    Roger Leloup is a Belgian comic strip artist, novelist, and a former collaborator of Hergé. He is most famous for the Yoko Tsuno comic series.- Biography :...

     (1953–1969)
    Assistant of Jacques Martin for the colours and backgrounds in Alix, he enters the Studios Hergé on 15 February 1953. His main work are the mechanical elements in the drawings, like automobiles. He is the cerator of the futuristic jet of Laszlo Carreidas in Flight 714
    Flight 714
    Flight 714, first published in 1968, is the 22nd and penultimate complete volume of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums by the Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is Vol 714 pour Sydney...

    . He is also responsible for the public relations of Hergé. He leaves the Studios on 31 December 1969 to work exclusivley on his own series Yoko Tsuno
    Yoko Tsuno
    Yoko Tsuno is a comic book series created by the Belgian writer Roger Leloup published by Dupuis and in Spirou since its debut in 1970. Through twenty-five volumes, the series tell the adventures of Yoko Tsuno, a female electrical engineer of Japanese origin surrounded by her close friends, Vic...

    .
  • Michel Demarets (1953–1986)
  • Jo-El Azara (1954–1961)
  • Guy Dessicy (1950–1953), creator of the Publiart company
  • Johan De Moor
    The son of Bob De Moor arrived at the Studios only a short while before the death of Hergé, and was mainly active afterwards, with the new version of Quick & Flupke.

Colorists

  • Josette Baujot
    Josette Baujot
    Josette Baujot was a Belgian artist and colorist. She is most commonly associated with fellow Belgian comics writer Hergé and his Adventures of Tintin series.- Early life :...

    Main colorist. Her rather stormy character was caricaturized in Tinti nand Alph-Art with the character Josette Laijot.
  • Monique Laurent
  • France Ferrari
  • Nicole Thenen
  • Fanny Vlamynck
    Became the second wife of Hergé and inherited the rights to his oeuvre after his death. Presides the Hergé Foundation since 1986. Remarried later with Nick Rodwell.

Works of the Studios

All works realised under the name of Hergé since 1950 can be considered as works of the Studios. This is a non-exhaustive list of those works where the Studios played a major role, either by colouring, drawing of backgrounds, or by completely replacing Hergé. However, it is difficult to correctly judge the role of the contributors, as Hergé and, later, his rights-holders minimized their work. There is debate over a number of albums, mainly 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....

 and the third version of 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...

, where some believe that Bob De Moor completely drew the whole book. With the Jo, Zette and Jocko
Jo, Zette and Jocko
The Adventures of Jo, Zette and Jocko is a comic book series created by Hergé, the Belgian writer-artist who was best known for The Adventures of Tintin...

 adventure The Valley of the Cobras, Jacques Martin is sometimes said to have drawn the whole of the album.

The Adventures of Tintin

  1. Destination Moon
    Destination Moon (Tintin)
    Destination Moon is the sixteenth 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...

     (1953)
  2. 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...

     (1954)
  3. 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....

     (1956)
  4. 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...

     (1958)
  5. 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...

     (1960)
  6. The Castafiore Emerald
    The Castafiore Emerald
    The Castafiore Emerald is an album in the classic comic-strip series The Adventures of Tintin by Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero....

     (1963)
  7. Flight 714
    Flight 714
    Flight 714, first published in 1968, is the 22nd and penultimate complete volume of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums by the Belgian writer and illustrator Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero. Its original French title is Vol 714 pour Sydney...

     (1968)
  8. 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....

     (1976)

Reformatting and colouring of old albums
  • 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...

     (1955)
  • 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...

     (1966)
    This is the third version of this album, asked for by the British publisher of Tintin who wanted a more realistic representation of the country. Bob De Moor visited the country extensively and redrew most of the book.
  • Land of Black Gold
    Land of Black Gold
    Land of Black Gold is the fifteenth 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....

     (1971)
    Some scenes rewritten by Hergé and redrawn by Bob De Moor.

Additional publications
  • Six pop-up books Pop-Hop published by Hallmark
    Hallmark
    A hallmark is an official mark or series of marks struck on items made of precious metals — platinum, gold, silver and in some nations, palladium...

     between 1969 and 1971.
    Realised by Michel Demarets, based on existing stories.
  • Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
    Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
    Tintin and the Lake of Sharks is a Tintin animated film, directed by Raymond Leblanc . It was not written by Hergé, who supervised, but by the Belgian comics creator Greg , a friend of Hergé...

     (1972), adaptation of the animated movie.
    Two versions were created, one with images from the movie, the other one as a redrawn comic strip. The first was published as a book by Casterman
    Casterman
    Casterman is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics, specializing in comic books and children's literature. The company is based in Tournai, Belgium.Founded in 1780, Casterman was originally a printing company and publishing house...

    , the second was published in a number of Belgian and French newspapers.
  • Two books Jouons avec Tintin (1974).
    Also realised by Michel Demarets based on the albums by Hergé.

Short stories
  • Les Gorilles de la Vedette (Tintin) (1985)
    2 pages drawn by Bob de Moor, published in Super Tintin n°28, with the Thompson Twins as stars.
  • The 60th and last page of Récit Spatio-Temporel by the artists of the weekly magazine Tintin
    Tintin (magazine)
    Le journal de Tintin or Kuifje , was a weekly Belgian comics magazine of the second half of the 20th century...

    , as usual by Bob de Moor, in the Tintin magazine n°23 of 1986
  • Les Magiciens d'Eau (1987)
    1 page drawn by Bob de Moor for the Fondation Balavoine
    Daniel Balavoine
    Daniel Balavoine was a French singer and songwriter. He was hugely popular in the French-speaking world, and inspired many singers in the 1980s, such as Jean-Jacques Goldman, and Michel Berger, his closest friend...

    , published in the book with the same title
  • Les Aventures de la 2 CV
    Citroën 2CV
    The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...

     et de l'Homme des Neiges (engl.: The adventures of the Citroën 2CV6
    Citroën 2CV
    The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...

     and The Arctic Snowman, 1987)
    8 pages, publicity for Citroën
    Citroën
    Citroën is a major French automobile manufacturer, part of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group.Founded in 1919 by French industrialist André-Gustave Citroën , Citroën was the first mass-production car company outside the USA and pioneered the modern concept of creating a sales and services network that...

    .
  • Les Aventures de la 2 CV
    Citroën 2CV
    The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...

     et de la Grotte Hantée (1988)
    8 pages, publicity for Citroën
    Citroën
    Citroën is a major French automobile manufacturer, part of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group.Founded in 1919 by French industrialist André-Gustave Citroën , Citroën was the first mass-production car company outside the USA and pioneered the modern concept of creating a sales and services network that...

    .

New gags created after the death of Hergé
  • Haute tension (1985)
    Johan De Moor with ideas by Roger Ferrari

Pages by Bob de Moor featuring Hergé

  • Un bienfait ne reste jamais impuni, 1 page, (À Suivre...), Hors Série Spécial Hergé, April 1983
  • De la Planche aux planches, 1 page, Tintin magazine n°43, 1986 (Barelli
    Barelli
    Barelli is a comics series featuring an eponymous character, created by Bob de Moor, which first appeared in the comics magazine Tintin on July 27, 1950...

     meets Hergé)

Animated movies

  • Tintin and the Temple of the Sun
    Tintin and the Temple of the Sun
    Tintin and the Temple of the Sun is a film made after the success of the Belvision cartoon series. The subject was to be The Seven Crystal Balls and Prisoners of the Sun...

     (1969) by Eddie Lateste. Animated movie by Belvision.
  • Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
    Tintin and the Lake of Sharks
    Tintin and the Lake of Sharks is a Tintin animated film, directed by Raymond Leblanc . It was not written by Hergé, who supervised, but by the Belgian comics creator Greg , a friend of Hergé...

     (1972) by Raymond Leblanc
    Raymond Leblanc
    Raymond Leblanc was a Belgian comic book producer and publisher, best known for publishing The Adventures of Tintin, by Hergé and the magazine Tintin...

    . Animated movie by Belvision, story by Greg.
  • Quick & Flupke
    Quick & Flupke
    Quick & Flupke is a comic book series by Hergé about two street urchins in Brussels named Quick and Flupke...

     (1985). Series of short animations by Johan De Moor.
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