Dutch comics
Encyclopedia
Dutch comics are comics
made in the Netherlands. In Dutch the most common designation for the whole art form is "strip", while the word "comic" is used for the (usually) soft cover American style comic book
format, usually containing translated US superhero
material. This use of the English
word for that format could cause confusion in English language texts.
The sharing of a language with part of Belgium
has played a part in the importance Franco-Belgian comics
acquired on the Dutch market. There could be a point in considering the Flemish and Dutch comics as one group, as they share a lot, but differences are rather easy to identify.
Of course "strip" has a frivolous meaning too, which has been used more than once in promotion material, but it has nothing of a meaning to suggest it is not serious, like "comics" does in English.
's "Monsieur Cryptogame" by J.J.A. Gouverneur in 1858, with Töpffer's pictures with little funny poems describing what happened under it.
The black &white text-under-pictures format would dominate the form of the comics produced in the Netherlands well into the second half of the 20th century.
In humoristic and satirical magazines (of which there were about 20 around 1890) illustrations developed to illustrated stories and even stories entirely told in illustrations, with which the art form was already present in the country before the end of the century, but it remained confined to one-shots.
The series started in the newspapers, with in 1919 the (reputedly) first Dutch newspaper comic: Yorbje en Achmed. The first success was "Jopie Slim en Dikkie Bigmans"(originally "Billy Bimbo and Peter Porker") in De Telegraaf
in 1921, originally published by the London Evening News. As a reaction many papers got their own comics produced either in the Netherlands, or imported. Rupert Bear
is an example of such an import becoming a sort of icon for a paper.
In 1922 the first Dutch popular stars appeared: "Bulletje en Boonestaak" their socialist engaged series was published into 1937 (as seen in them going to the London Evening News to beat up (rightwing) Jopie Slim and Dikkie Bigmans). Their series was the first Dutch series to be translated into German (1924) and French (1926).
Later that year the first Dutch comics magazine came on the market. They didn't last long, but weren't the last ones either. Others followed, with both home products and (Anglo)-American imports. The use of imported characters in comics produced in the Netherlands was not very unusual.
The German occupation
in 1940 prevented further Anglo-American imports and led initially to a greater production of native material. Of course Nazi censorship and paper shortage worked to the detriment of the comics field, but it was the time to give birth to Dick Bos and the "Beeldroman".
After liberation the publication of comics boomed, initially mostly so in picture novel format, which was followed in the late 40's by the anti-comics furor, which did hardly or not include the newspaper comic strip
s.
The 50's saw the truly Dutch comics and the arrival of Donald Duck
on the Dutch scene.
The 60's were the time of the magazines and the first US-superheroes.
The mid 70's were the start of the decline of the comics magazines, which continued through the 80's and 90's.
Nowadays the market is fragmented: there are always imports, the small press circuit
, the reprints, the online comics and Donald Duck
and whatsoever is the latest rage for kids, the great names still active, but as it always has been the art form is alive and kicking, with kicking to be understood as being engaged in politics and society in a rather outspoken way.
, Tom Puss
, Oliver B. Bumble
(not limited to this format, and published on a large scale with the pics very small), Kapitein Rob, Eric de Noorman and Pa Pinkelman(republished even completely without any pictures!), as well as Rechter Tie (Judge Dee
). The series appeared usually in newspapers first, after which usually collected editions were published (oblong). Later many stories were republished in books or albums, some of them are republished still.
as well.
), for Dutch comics came into being when the picture novels disappeared as a result of the craze against them. It lasted for some time, but disappeared.
" artists like Peter de Smet
to the wild style of Hein de Kort. There is no real "Dutch" drawing style, there are just the styles of individual Dutch artists.
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
made in the Netherlands. In Dutch the most common designation for the whole art form is "strip", while the word "comic" is used for the (usually) soft cover American style comic book
American comic book
An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...
format, usually containing translated US superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
material. This use of the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
word for that format could cause confusion in English language texts.
The sharing of a language with part of Belgium
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...
has played a part in the importance Franco-Belgian comics
Franco-Belgian comics
Franco-Belgian comics are comics that are created in Belgium and France. These countries have a long tradition in comics and comic books, where they are known as BDs, an abbreviation of bande dessinée in French and stripverhalen in Dutch...
acquired on the Dutch market. There could be a point in considering the Flemish and Dutch comics as one group, as they share a lot, but differences are rather easy to identify.
Of course "strip" has a frivolous meaning too, which has been used more than once in promotion material, but it has nothing of a meaning to suggest it is not serious, like "comics" does in English.
History
For the start of the history of Dutch comics the Dutch Comic history of Lambiek goes all the way back to 1493, but the oldest work that is still really part of the public mind in the Netherlands is Mijnheer Prikkebeen, an adaptation of Rodolphe TöpfferRodolphe Töpffer
Rodolphe Töpffer was a Swiss teacher, author, painter, cartoonist, and caricature artist. He is also considered to be the first modern comic creator.- Biography :...
's "Monsieur Cryptogame" by J.J.A. Gouverneur in 1858, with Töpffer's pictures with little funny poems describing what happened under it.
The black &white text-under-pictures format would dominate the form of the comics produced in the Netherlands well into the second half of the 20th century.
In humoristic and satirical magazines (of which there were about 20 around 1890) illustrations developed to illustrated stories and even stories entirely told in illustrations, with which the art form was already present in the country before the end of the century, but it remained confined to one-shots.
The series started in the newspapers, with in 1919 the (reputedly) first Dutch newspaper comic: Yorbje en Achmed. The first success was "Jopie Slim en Dikkie Bigmans"(originally "Billy Bimbo and Peter Porker") in De Telegraaf
De Telegraaf
De Telegraaf is the largest Dutch daily morning newspaper, with a daily circulation of approximately . De Telegraaf is based in Amsterdam...
in 1921, originally published by the London Evening News. As a reaction many papers got their own comics produced either in the Netherlands, or imported. Rupert Bear
Rupert Bear
Rupert Bear is a children's comic strip character, who features in a series of books based around his adventures. The character was created by the English artist Mary Tourtel and first appeared in the Daily Express on 8 November 1920. Rupert's initial purpose was to win sales from the rival...
is an example of such an import becoming a sort of icon for a paper.
In 1922 the first Dutch popular stars appeared: "Bulletje en Boonestaak" their socialist engaged series was published into 1937 (as seen in them going to the London Evening News to beat up (rightwing) Jopie Slim and Dikkie Bigmans). Their series was the first Dutch series to be translated into German (1924) and French (1926).
Later that year the first Dutch comics magazine came on the market. They didn't last long, but weren't the last ones either. Others followed, with both home products and (Anglo)-American imports. The use of imported characters in comics produced in the Netherlands was not very unusual.
The German occupation
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...
in 1940 prevented further Anglo-American imports and led initially to a greater production of native material. Of course Nazi censorship and paper shortage worked to the detriment of the comics field, but it was the time to give birth to Dick Bos and the "Beeldroman".
After liberation the publication of comics boomed, initially mostly so in picture novel format, which was followed in the late 40's by the anti-comics furor, which did hardly or not include the newspaper 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.
The 50's saw the truly Dutch comics and the arrival of Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
on the Dutch scene.
The 60's were the time of the magazines and the first US-superheroes.
The mid 70's were the start of the decline of the comics magazines, which continued through the 80's and 90's.
Nowadays the market is fragmented: there are always imports, the small press circuit
Alternative comics
Alternative comics defines a range of American comics that have appeared since the 1980s, following the underground comix movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Alternative comics present an alternative to "mainstream" superhero comics which in the past have dominated the US comic book industry...
, the reprints, the online comics and Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
and whatsoever is the latest rage for kids, the great names still active, but as it always has been the art form is alive and kicking, with kicking to be understood as being engaged in politics and society in a rather outspoken way.
Dutch School
A format not unique to the Netherlands but so common there that it got the designation "Hollandse school". It consists of a strip of pictures (usually without any text in it) under which a block of text tells the story again, usually with so much detail that it might well be possible to enjoy the story without the pictures, but often the pictures and text complement each other. Famous series in this format are: Bulletje en BoonestaakBulletje en Boonestaak
Bulletje en Boonestaak was one of the first very successful Dutch newspaper comic strips, the first Dutch comic moralists, and the first Dutch comic translated into other languages....
, Tom Puss
Tom Puss
Tom Puss is a fictional anthropomorphic cat and one of the two main characters, the other being Oliver B. Bumble Tom Puss (Tom Poes in Dutch language) is a fictional anthropomorphic cat and one of the two main characters, the other being Oliver B. Bumble Tom Puss (Tom Poes in Dutch language) is a...
, Oliver B. Bumble
Oliver B. Bumble
Oliver B. Bumble is a fictional anthropomorphic bear and one of the , the other being Tom Puss in an originally Dutch series of comic books bearing the name of either one main characters in their name, written by Marten Toonder.-Publication history:The first Tom Puss stories were told as...
(not limited to this format, and published on a large scale with the pics very small), Kapitein Rob, Eric de Noorman and Pa Pinkelman(republished even completely without any pictures!), as well as Rechter Tie (Judge Dee
Judge Dee
Judge Dee is a semi-fictional character based on the historical figure Di Renjie , magistrate and statesman of the Tang court. The character first appeared in the 18th century Chinese detective novel Di Gong An...
). The series appeared usually in newspapers first, after which usually collected editions were published (oblong). Later many stories were republished in books or albums, some of them are republished still.
Picture Novel ("Beeldroman")
A format born out of paper scarcity in WW II. The booklets are small (about the size of a box of cigarettes) and have usually one picture on every page. The first, most famous, longest running and last series in this format is Dick Bos, which explains that "Dick Bos boekje (=booklet)" became a synnonym for the format. This format got the worst of the Dutch equivalent of the Wertham craze. The Dutch name of the format has been used as translation for graphic novelGraphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
as well.
Oblong books
Booklets in which newspaper comic strips were collected in a more or less unchanged form, giving them their characteristic shape. Heroes in these books were rather civilian, they often married in the run of their adventures, had a job like king, engineer or captain of a ship, got children, with other words mostly keeping the traditional family values unchallenged in a rather fantastic setting. As the anti-comics craze in the Netherlands did not have the newspaper comic as target, these booklets prepublished in Newspapers, were mostly accepted as OK too.Comic book
The comic book as format (akin to the US formatAmerican comic book
An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...
), for Dutch comics came into being when the picture novels disappeared as a result of the craze against them. It lasted for some time, but disappeared.
Album
Nowadays most published comics are published in albums, akin to France and Belgium. Comics albums are considered the equivalents of books, and unlike magazines, they have no cover date and are often reprinted.Comic Magazines
Dutch comics magazines use(d) to have a cover of the same paper as the rest of the magazine, they tended to be rather anthology like, with several short stories and/or episodes from long ones. Many of those stories were collected and reprinted in the album format. It is/was rather common for the magazines to contain a mix of Dutch made and imported stories.Styles
Styles vary wildly in Dutch comics, from masters of realism like Hans G. Kresse to the semi-realism of Jean Dulieu, to the more charicatural "ligne claireLigne claire
Ligne claire is a style of drawing pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian creator of The Adventures of Tintin. It uses clear strong lines of uniform importance. Artists working in it do not use hatching, while contrast is downplayed as well...
" artists like Peter de Smet
Peter de Smet
Peter de Smet was a Dutch comic-strip artist.He was the author of De Generaal . From the 1960s onwards he worked as an artist in advertising. An early version of De Generaal was sold to Tintin magazine but never published...
to the wild style of Hein de Kort. There is no real "Dutch" drawing style, there are just the styles of individual Dutch artists.
Famous Series
- Agent 372 (Martin LodewijkMartin LodewijkMartinus Spyridon Johannes Lodewijk is a Dutch comics writer and cartoonist, and advertising adviser.Martin Lodewijk was born in Rotterdam. He dropped out of high school in 1957, and started drawing cartoons, notably of spacecraft and pirates...
) - Boes (Wil Raymaker, Thijs Wilms)
- Dick Bos
- De Generaal (Peter de SmetPeter de SmetPeter de Smet was a Dutch comic-strip artist.He was the author of De Generaal . From the 1960s onwards he worked as an artist in advertising. An early version of De Generaal was sold to Tintin magazine but never published...
) - Doorzon (Gerrit de JagerGerrit de JagerGerrit de Jager is a Dutch comic-artist, creator of series like De familie Doorzon, Liefde en geluk, Zusje and Roel en zijn Beestenboel....
) - Douwe DabbertDouwe DabbertDouwe Dabbert is a Dutch comics series by artist Piet Wijn and scenarist Thom Roep.-Character:Douwe Dabbert is a small gnome-like creature. He goes through all sorts of strange adventures where he meets supernatural beings...
(Piet Wijn, scenario Thom Roep) - FrankaFrankaFranka is a popular Dutch comic book series drawn and written since the mid 1970s by the graphic artist Henk Kuijpers. The principal character is a strong female Dutch sleuth who solves mysteries in exotic locales....
(Henk Kuipers) - Kapitein Rob (Pieter Kuhn)
- Sjef van Oekel (Theo van den Boogaard)
- Sjors en SjimmieSjors en SjimmieSjors & Sjimmie is a Dutch adaptation of US-comic Perry Winkle. Difference is that Sjors forms a duo with Africa-born Sjimmie. They're raised by Sally and the Colonel who regularly finds himself on the receiving end of their pranks...
(Robert van der Kroft, Wilbert Plijnaar, Jan van Die, Patty Klein) - Jan, Jans en de kinderen (English: Jack, Jacky and the Juniors)
- Joop Klepzeiker (Eric Schreurs)
- Ketelbinkie (Wim Meuldijk)
- Pa Pinkelman (Carol Voges, scenario Godfried BomansGodfried BomansGodfried Bomans was a popular Dutch author and television personality and a prominent Dutch catholic...
) - Paulus (Jan van Oort)
- Piloot Storm (Henk Sprenger)
- SigmundSigmund (comics)Doctor Sigmund is a Dutch comics character created by Peter de Wit for daily newspaper De Volkskrant, one of the last broadsheets in the Netherlands. His name derives from Sigmund Freud....
(Peter de Wit) - StormStorm (Don Lawrence)Storm is a soft science fiction/fantasy comic book series originally drawn by Don Lawrence. The series is primarily available in Dutch, although all the books are translated in English and German, and some in French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Croatian, Serbian,...
(Don LawrenceDon LawrenceDonald Southam Lawrence was a British comic book artist and author.Lawrence is best known for his comic strips The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire in the British weeklies Ranger and Look and Learn and the Storm series, first published in the Dutch weekly Eppo...
) - Tom PoesTom PussTom Puss is a fictional anthropomorphic cat and one of the two main characters, the other being Oliver B. Bumble Tom Puss (Tom Poes in Dutch language) is a fictional anthropomorphic cat and one of the two main characters, the other being Oliver B. Bumble Tom Puss (Tom Poes in Dutch language) is a...
(Marten ToonderMarten ToonderMarten Toonder was a Dutch comic creator, born in Rotterdam. He was probably the most successful comic artist in the Netherlands and had a great influence in the Dutch language by introducing new words and expressions....
)
Famous artists
- Jean Dulieu
- Gerrit de JagerGerrit de JagerGerrit de Jager is a Dutch comic-artist, creator of series like De familie Doorzon, Liefde en geluk, Zusje and Roel en zijn Beestenboel....
- Daan JippesDaan JippesDaan Jippes is a cartoonist, who has worked with Disney and other comics. He is admired by his fans for his lively emulation of Carl Barks' drawing style, and was therefore chosen by Egmont to redraw some old Junior Woodchucks stories from the 1970s, originally written by Carl Barks and drawn by...
- Hanco Kolk
- Hein De Kort
- Hans G. Kresse
- Jan KruisJan KruisJan Kruis is a Dutch comics artist.He began creating comics as a child. Later he worked for the Dutch comics pioneer Marten Toonder....
- Henk KuijpersHenk KuijpersHenk Kuijpers is a comics artist most famous for his Franka series.-Comics:*Franka, 21 comic albums*Bars, 2 albums...
- Martin LodewijkMartin LodewijkMartinus Spyridon Johannes Lodewijk is a Dutch comics writer and cartoonist, and advertising adviser.Martin Lodewijk was born in Rotterdam. He dropped out of high school in 1957, and started drawing cartoons, notably of spacecraft and pirates...
- Dick MatenaDick MatenaDick Matena is a Dutch comics writer and cartoonist. He has also publishing under the pseudonyms A. den Dooier, John Kelly and Dick Richards.-Toonder studio's:...
- Peter Pontiac
- Mark ReteraMark ReteraMark Retera is a comic strip writer and artist.He studied cognitive science at the current Radboud University Nijmegen before turning full-time artist.He is the author of DirkJan and also draws caricatures for the Dutch weekly "Panorama".*...
- Peter de SmetPeter de SmetPeter de Smet was a Dutch comic-strip artist.He was the author of De Generaal . From the 1960s onwards he worked as an artist in advertising. An early version of De Generaal was sold to Tintin magazine but never published...
- Joost SwarteJoost SwarteJoost Swarte is a Dutch comic artist and graphic designer. He is best known for his ligne claire or clear line style of drawing, and in fact coined the term....
- Marten ToonderMarten ToonderMarten Toonder was a Dutch comic creator, born in Rotterdam. He was probably the most successful comic artist in the Netherlands and had a great influence in the Dutch language by introducing new words and expressions....
- Piet WijnPiet WijnPieter Cornelis Wijn was a prolific Dutch comics creator.Wijn was born in Hilversum. His creations include the cartoon versions of Marten Toonder's Tom Puss and Kappie, Gloria van Goes, Douwe Dabbert, and many other cartoons. He was awarded the Stripschapsprijs in 1984.-External links:* *...
- Peter de Wit
External links
- History of Dutch comics on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Dutch characters on International Catalogue of Superheroes