Edgar Pierre Jacobs
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Edgard Félix Pierre Jacobs (30 March 1904 – 20 February 1987), better known under his
pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...
Edgar P. Jacobs, was a Belgian
comic book creator developed specialized terminology. Several attempts have been made to formalize and define the terminology of comics by authors such as Will Eisner, Scott McCloud, R. C. Harvey and Dylan Horrocks. Much of the terminology in English is under di ...
(writer and artist), born in
Brussels, Belgium Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
. He was one of the founding fathers of the Franco-Belgian comics movement, through his collaborations with
Hergé Georges Prosper Remi (; 22 May 1907 – 3 March 1983), known by the pen name Hergé ( ; ), from the French pronunciation of his reversed initials ''RG'', was a Belgian comic strip artist. He is best known for creating ''The Adventures of T ...
and the
graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...
series that made him famous, ''
Blake and Mortimer ''The Adventures of Blake & Mortimer'' is a Belgian comics series created by writer and comics artist Edgar P. Jacobs. It was one of the first book series to appear in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''Tintin'' in 1946, and was subsequentl ...
''.


Biography

Edgar Félix Pierre Jacobs was born in
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
in 1904.De Weyer, Geert (2005). "Edgar Pierre Jacobs". In België gestript, pp. 129–131. Tielt: Lannoo. Jacobs remembered having drawn for as far back as his memory would go. His real love though was for the dramatic arts and the opera in particular. In 1919 he graduated from the commercial school where his parents had sent him, and privately swore he would never work in an office. He kept on drawing in his spare time, focusing his greatest attention on musical and dramatic training. He took on odd jobs at the opera, including decoration,
scenography Scenography is the practice of crafting stage environments or atmospheres. In the contemporary English usage, scenography can be defined as the combination of technological and material stagecrafts to represent, enact, and produce a sense of plac ...
, and painting, and sometimes got to work as an
extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...
. In 1929 he received the annual Belgian government medal for excellence in classical singing. Financial good fortune did not follow, since the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
hit the Brussels artistic community very hard. After a career as extra and
baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...
singer in
opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
productions between 1919 and 1940 in
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
and
Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
, punctuated by small drawing commissions, Jacobs turned permanently to
illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation, or visual explanation of a text, concept, or process, designed for integration in print and digitally published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vi ...
, drawing commercial illustrations and collaborating in the children's weekly comic magazine ''Bravo'' until 1946, after he was introduced there by Jacques Laudy. This review or periodical was a smashing success, hitting a circulation of 300,000 at times. When the American
comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...
''
Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' ...
'' was prohibited in Belgium by the German occupation authorities during World War II, he was asked to write an end to the comic in order to provide a
denouement A story structure, narrative structure, or dramatic structure (also known as a dramaturgical structure) is the structure of a dramatic work such as a book, play, or film. There are different kinds of narrative structures worldwide, which have bee ...
to the readers. German
censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...
banned this continuation after only a couple of weeks. Jacobs subsequently published his first comic strip in ''Bravo'', '' Le Rayon U'' (''The U Ray''), largely in the same ''Flash Gordon'' style. Around this time, he became a stage painter for a theatre adaptation for
Hergé Georges Prosper Remi (; 22 May 1907 – 3 March 1983), known by the pen name Hergé ( ; ), from the French pronunciation of his reversed initials ''RG'', was a Belgian comic strip artist. He is best known for creating ''The Adventures of T ...
's ''
Cigars of the Pharaoh ''Cigars of the Pharaoh'' () is the fourth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the series of comic albums by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper '' Le Vingtième Siècle'' for its children's supple ...
''. Although the play was only a modest success, it brought him into contact with Hergé and the two quickly become friends. As a direct result, he assisted Hergé in coloring the black and white strips of ''
The Shooting Star ''The Shooting Star'' () is the tenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised daily in , Belgium's leading francophone newspaper, from October 1941 to May 1942 amidst th ...
'' from Le Soir in preparation for book publication in 1942, and from 1944 on he helped him in the recasting of his earlier albums ''
Tintin in the Congo ''Tintin in the Congo'' (; ) is the second volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian comic strip artist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper for its children's supplement , it was serialised w ...
'', ''
Tintin in America ''Tintin in America'' () is the third volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper for its children's supplement , it was serialized weekly from Sep ...
'', ''
King Ottokar's Sceptre ''King Ottokar's Sceptre'' () is the eighth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper for its children's supplement , it was serialised weekly fr ...
'' and ''
The Blue Lotus ''The Blue Lotus'' () is the fifth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper for its children's supplement , it was serialised weekly from August ...
'' for color book publication. After the project, he continued to contribute directly in the drawing as well as the storyline for the new Tintin double-albums ''
The Seven Crystal Balls ''The Seven Crystal Balls'' () is the thirteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised daily in ', Belgium's leading francophone newspaper, from December 1943 amidst th ...
''/''
Prisoners of the Sun ''Prisoners of the Sun'' () is the fourteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised weekly in the newly established ''Tintin'' magazine from September 1946 to April 1 ...
''. Jacobs, as a fan of
opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
, decided to take Hergé with him to a concert. Hergé did not like opera, however, and for decades he would gently lampoon his friend Jacobs through the device of opera singer
Bianca Castafiore Bianca Castafiore (), nicknamed the "Milanese Nightingale" (), is a fictional character in ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. She is an opera singer who frequently pops up in adventure after adventure. ...
, a supporting character in ''
The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' ( ) is a series of 24 comic albums created by Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European comics of the 20th century. By 2007, a c ...
''. Hergé also gave him tiny cameo roles in ''Tintin'' adventures, sometimes under the name Jacobini, for example in ''
The Calculus Affair ''The Calculus Affair'' () is the eighteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by the Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was Serial (literature), serialised weekly in Belgium's ''Tintin (magazine), Tintin'' magazin ...
'' where Jacobini is the name of an opera singer advertised as starring alongside La Castafiore in
Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...
's ''
Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...
'', and as a mummified egyptologist on the cover of ''Cigars of the Pharaoh'', as well as in the rewritten version. In a 1977 interview with the BBC (excerpted in 2016 on the ''Witness'' radio program/podcast), Hergé stated that Jacobs was part of his inspiration for the major character of Captain Haddock: "He acobsis just like Captain Haddock, full of movement...bursting into...invective." In 1946, Jacobs was part of the team gathered by
Raymond Leblanc Raymond Leblanc (; 22 May 1915 – 21 March 2008) was a Belgium, Belgian comic book publisher, film director and film producer, best known for publishing works such as ''The Adventures of Tintin'' by Hergé and ''Blake and Mortimer'' by Edgar P. ...
around the new Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''
Tintin Tintin usually refers to: * ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé ** Tintin (character), the protagonist and titular character of the series Tintin or Tin Tin may also refer to: Material related to ''The A ...
'', where his story ''Le secret de l’Espadon'' ('' The Secret of the Swordfish'') was published on 26 September, the first of the ''
Blake and Mortimer ''The Adventures of Blake & Mortimer'' is a Belgian comics series created by writer and comics artist Edgar P. Jacobs. It was one of the first book series to appear in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine ''Tintin'' in 1946, and was subsequentl ...
'' series. In 1947, Jacobs asked to share the credit with Hergé on ''The Adventures of Tintin''. When Hergé refused, their collaboration suffered a bit of a setback. Hergé still remained a friend however, and as before ''Blake et Mortimer'' continued to be serialised in ''
Tintin Tintin usually refers to: * ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé ** Tintin (character), the protagonist and titular character of the series Tintin or Tin Tin may also refer to: Material related to ''The A ...
'' magazine. In 1950, Jacobs published '' The Mystery of the Great Pyramid''. Many others soon followed. Jacobs finally published in 1970 the first volume of ''The Three formulas of Professor Sato'', which was staged in Japan. In 1973 he restyled his first full-length album, ''Le Rayon U'', and wrote his autobiography under the title ''Un opéra de papier: Les mémoires de Blake et Mortimer''. He then wrote the scenario for the second episode of ''Les Trois Formules du Professeur Sato'', but the artwork remained unfinished at the time of his death.
Bob de Moor Robert Frans Marie De Moor (20 December 1925 – 26 August 1992), better known under his pen name Bob de Moor, was a Belgian comics creator. Chiefly noted as an artist, he is considered an early master of the Ligne claire style. He wrote and ...
was drafted in to complete the album, which was published in 1990. Jacobs has two stone
sphinx A sphinx ( ; , ; or sphinges ) is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of an eagle. In Culture of Greece, Greek tradition, the sphinx is a treacherous and merciless being with the head of a woman, th ...
es to commemorate him. One of them is in the ''Bois des Pauvres'' near Brussels, where his home used to stand, and the other one is over his tomb at the Lasne cemetery, also near Brussels. The cemetery sphinx has a "collar" beard, and his face looks a lot like Philip Mortimer, the protagonist of most of the Jacobs albums. Jacobs' style varies greatly from one album to another. There are however many common threads, such as the theme of subterranean descent and the consistent
Ligne claire ''Ligne claire'' (; ; both meaning "clear line") is a style of drawing created and pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian cartoonist and creator of ''The Adventures of Tintin''. It uses clear strong lines sometimes of varied width and no hatching, w ...
drawing style.


Bibliography

# '' Le Rayon U'' (''The U Ray''), in 1943 # ''Le Secret de l'Espadon'' ('' The Secret of the Swordfish''), in 1947 (3 volumes) # ''Le Mystère de la Grande Pyramide'', ('' The Mystery of the Great Pyramid''), in 1950 (2 volumes) # ''La Marque Jaune'' ('' The Yellow "M"''), in 1953 # '' L'Énigme de l'Atlantide'' ('' Atlantis Mystery''), in 1955 # ''S.O.S. Météores: Mortimer à Paris'' ('' S.O.S. Meteors''), in 1958 # ''Le Piège diabolique'' ('' The Time Trap'') in 1960 # ''L'Affaire du Collier'' ('' The Necklace Affair'') in 1965 # ''Les trois Formules du Professeur Sato: Mortimer à Tokyo'' ('' Mortimer in Tokyo'') in 1970 (vol. 1). Vol. 2 ''Mortimer contre Mortimer'' ('' Mortimer versus Mortimer'') completed by Bob De Moor, 1990


Awards

* 1971: Grand
Prix Saint-Michel The Prix Saint-Michel () is a series of comic awards presented by the city of Brussels, with a focus on Franco-Belgian comics. They were first awarded in 1971, and although often said to be the oldest European comics awards, they are actually the ...
, Belgium


Footnotes


Sources

*Guyard, Jean-Marc. ''Le Baryton du neuvième art''. Bruxelles: Éditions Blake et Mortimer, 1996. *Jacobs, Edgar P. ''Un opéra de papier: Les mémoires de Blake et Mortimer''. Paris: Gallimard, 1981. *Lenne, Gérard. ''L'Affaire Jacobs''. Paris: Megawave, 1990. *Mouchart, Benoit. ''A l'ombre de la ligne claire: Jacques Van Melkebeke, le clandestin de la B.D.'' Paris: Vertige Graphic, 2002. *Mouchart, Benoît and Rivière, François ''La Damnation d'Edgar P. Jacobs'', Seuil-Archimbaud, 2003. *Tzorken, Yann ''Le mystère Edgar P. Jacobs'', Thebookedition, 2019.
Edgar P. Jacobs publications in Belgian ''Tintin
an

BDoubliées


Further reading

* Valentinitsch, Bernhard, Ein Sich-Lösen von und Brechen mit Traditionen: der Comic-Klassiker ‚Blake und Mortimer‘, der ‚Ketzer‘-Pharao Echnaton und andere ägyptische ‚Ketzer‘. In: ''Denken und Glauben''. Nr. 201. Graz 2022, pp. 22-24.


External links


E.P. Jacobs 2004
centenary memorial site
''Blake et Mortimer'' official site
on Dargaud

on Lambiek Comiclopedia {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobs, Edgar Pierre 1904 births 1987 deaths Artists from Brussels Belgian comics artists Belgian comics writers Belgian science fiction artists Belgian science fiction writers 20th-century Belgian illustrators Comics colorists 20th-century Belgian male opera singers 20th-century Belgian painters Belgian advertising artists and illustrators The Adventures of Tintin Tintin (magazine) people