Freddy Monnickendam is a businessman and

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

of the animated television series ''

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (; ) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was created and introduced as a series of comic characters by ...

'' (1981), '' Snorks'' (1984), and '' Foofur'' (1986).

Biography

Freddy Monnickendam came into contact with comics when he negotiated the rights to ''

'' for Father Abraham. Afterwards, he became the head of ''SEPP International S.A.'' (SEPP stands for "La Société d'Edition, de Presse et de Publicité"), the company branch of

Dupuis Éditions Dupuis S.A. () is a Belgium, Belgian publisher of comic albums and magazines. Based in Marcinelle near Charleroi, Dupuis is mostly famous for its comic comics album, albums and magazines. Initially a French language publisher, it now ...

(the editor of ''

'') that was responsible for the merchandising of the comic heroes. He negotiated the contract between Dupuis,

Peyo Pierre Culliford (; 25 June 1928 – 24 December 1992) was a Belgian comics writer and artist who worked under the pseudonym Peyo (). His best-known works are the comic book series ''The Smurfs'' and '' Johan and Peewit'', in the latter of ...

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

and

Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ; formerly known as H-B Enterprises, Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. and H-B Production Co.), simply and commonly known as Hanna-Barbera, was an American animation studio and production company, which was acti ...

, for the creation of a series of Smurf cartoons, and became the first executive producer of the series. Peyo wanted the Smurf cartoons to be as faithful as possible he had created in his comics, but Monnickendam preferred to make the cartoons more accessible and mainstream. This led to the fast deterioration of relations between the two men, ending in court cases about the division of the rights and the money involved. Annoyed by these discussions and problems, he decided to start a new series of cartoons called '' Snorks'', which were created and designed by Nicolas Broca. Monnickendam later acquired all the rights, hoping to equal the success of ''The Smurfs'', but the success of the ''Snorks'' was limited and the series soon ended production. Having bypassed Dupuis, the collaboration between the publisher and Monnickendam ended, and as a result, SEPP International S.A. was disbanded. Monnickendam continued to work with Hanna-Barbera on such shows as '' Foofur'' (created by Phil Mendez), ''

The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley ''The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featuring Martin Short's fictional character Ed Grimley (with Short reprising his role as Grimley). The sh ...

'' (based on the

Martin Short Martin Hayter Short (born March 26, 1950) is a Canadian and American comedian, actor, and writer. Short is known as an energetic comedian who gained prominence for his roles in sketch comedy. He has also acted in numerous films and television ...

character), and other shows (including '' Tom and Jerry Kids''), but he was never able to replicate the success he had with ''The Smurfs''.

Filmography

* ''

'' (1981–1987) * '' Snorks'' (1984–1989) * '' Seabert'' (1985–1986) * '' Foofur'' (1986–1988) * ''

CBS Schoolbreak Special ''CBS Schoolbreak Special'' is an American anthology series for teenagers that aired on CBS from December 1978 to January 1996. The series began under the title ''CBS Afternoon Playhouse'', and was changed during the 1984–85 season A season ...

'' (1987–1988: Season 5 episode entitled "Home Sweet Homeless") * ''

'' (1988) Note: Due to the disbandment of his company SEPP International S.A., the last two seasons of ''The Smurfs'', from 1988 to 1990, were produced by

but with the new Belgian company Lafig S.A.

Notes

External links

* Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Hanna-Barbera people {{HannaBarbera-stub