Gert Tony Hubert Verhulst (born 24 January 1968 in

Berchem Berchem () is a southern district of the municipality and city of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. Berchem is located along the old ''Grote Steenweg'' (Dutch for 'Big Paved Road') that has connected Brussels to Antwerp for several centur ...

) is a Belgian presenter,

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...

autodidact Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning and self-teaching) is education without the guidance of masters (such as teachers and professors) or institutions (such as schools). Generally, autodidacts are individu ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), l ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, composer, film producer,

millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short s ...

business magnate A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

. As a prominent figure within the children's entertainment industry in the

Benelux The Benelux Union ( nl, Benelux Unie; french: Union Benelux; lb, Benelux-Unioun), also known as simply Benelux, is a Political union, politico-economic union and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighboring states in ...

, he is regarded as a

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium ...

cultural icon, known for his influence and contributions to children's entertainment in the Benelux and founder of

Studio 100 Studio 100 is a Belgian production company with four television channels, four animation studios and 8 theme parks around the world. The headquarters of the group is based in Schelle, with offices in Breda, Munich, Paris, New York, Sydney and Lo ...

Life and career

Verhulst already knew on a very early age that he wanted to become famous (own words). In 1987 he applied at the "Koninkijk Conservatorium Antwerpen" (translated: The Royal Academy of fine Arts Antwerp) where he was rejected, he would recall this as a gift from Heaven. Later that year he got his first job at the former BRTN (now VRT) as

continuity announcer In broadcasting, continuity or presentation (or station break in the U.S. and Canada) is announcements, messages and graphics played by the broadcaster between specific programmes. It typically includes programme schedules, announcement of t ...

Samson en Gert

Samson & Gert is a

children's television series produced by Eline van Noppen, centered on the talking dog Samson and his owner Gert. In its entire run, the show was originally aired on TV1 from Christmas Day 1989 until 1 December 1997, where it moved to

Ketnet Ketnet is a Dutch-language public children's television channel in Belgium owned and operated by the VRT, Flemish public broadcaster. It broadcasts a mix of locally produced and imported productions on the VRT3 channel from 6am until 8pm. On 1 D ...

and continues airing all of its episodes to this day. As a

Verhulst wanted to make the announcements before children's television programmes more appealing by having an animal puppet next to him. He got in touch with

puppeteer A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, called a puppet, to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The puppet is often shaped like a human, animal, or legendary creature. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden from ...

Danny Verbiest, who created the puppet dog Samson. Samson, an

Old English Sheepdog The Old English Sheepdog is a large breed of dog that emerged in England from early types of herding dog. Obsolete names for the breed include Shepherd's Dog and . The nickname ''Bob-tail'' (or ''Bobtail'') originates from how dogs of the bree ...

, made his screen debut on 2 September 1989. The pair's popularity grew very rapidly in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

and they were given their own television series in 1990. The show, named ''Samson'', premiered on 2 September 1990. During the show, Samson and Gert and their friends would encounter many funny and chaotic situations. The plot would be interrupted for contests, fan mail and a variety of cartoons, such as

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) 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 first created and i ...

Ovide and the Gang ''La Bande à Ovide'', a.k.a. ''Ovide and the Gang'', is a 1980s animated TV show produced by the Canadian animation studio CinéGroupe (who also produced Mega Babies, Sharky and George and The Little Flying Bears) in association with Belgium' ...

, and Mrs. Pepper Pot.

Zeg eens Euh!

Verhulst presented the language game "Zeg eens Euh!" (translated: Say Uh!) It was a game that was broadcast on Friday between 1992 and 1997 and whose concept was clearly inspired by the British radio game, '' Just a Minute''. The panelists alternately were given a theme that they had to talk about for one minute. Together with the theme they got a banned word that they could not use. In the panel were four Flemish celebrities including: "Emiel Goelen", "

Margriet Hermans Margareta Maria Josepha (Margriet) Hermans (born 1954) is a Belgian singer, former radio and TV talk show host, politician and a member of the Open VLD french: Libéraux et démocrates flamands ouverts , abbreviation = Open Vld , logo ...

", " Koen Crucke" & "Jaak Pijpen". Occasionally one of these panelists was replaced by "Mark Tijsmans", "Andrea Croonenberghs", " Walter Baele" & "Paul Ambach". During the summer months, the viewer share rose from 700,000 to 800,000 viewers. When Verhulst moved to Vtm, "Donaat Deriemaecker" took over the game but after a scandal involving one of the panel members, Emiel Goelen, the show was dismissed.

Move to VTM

In 1997 Verhulst moved to Vtm where he presented "Wat zegt u?" (translated: What do you say ?). This was followed by "Linx" and in the summer of 1998 Verhulst presented "Sterrenslag" (translated: Star battle) for several weeks because presenter 'Herbert Bruynseels' had had to withdraw due to illness. In the summer of 1999, the dialect game "Watte?" (translated What?) started with the panel members: "Walter De Donder", " Koen Crucke" and "Simonne Peeters".

Studio 100

Verhulst founded "

" in 1996 together with "Danny Verbiest", and "Hans Bourlon". They came together in 1989, when the programme " Samson en Gert" (translated "Samson and Gert") was first produced. Studio 100 started in 1996 with one program Samson en Gert. They immediately decided to create a new program to be able to advertise themselves more. They chose Kabouter Plop (translated Gnome Plop). It has been broadcast on VTM since 1997. In 1999, Studio 100 expanded significantly with four new projects, all launched in

: a musical, a film, and two new television programmes. For both the musical and the film, Vtm was asked to provide financial support. In October of '99, Studio 100 and the VMMa (Vlaamse Media Maatschappij, founded in 1987 as Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij by nine publishers each with an 11.1% share), announced that they would incorporate

Meli Park Meli Park was a theme park which was opened in 1935 in Adinkerke in the municipality of De Panne on the Belgian coast. History The bee-themed amusement park was initiated by Alberic-Joseph Florizoone, owner of a honey company. Its mascot was a ...

. Right now

features five

Amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

s in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

(" Plopsaland", Mayaland Indoor "Plopsa Indoor"

Hasselt Hasselt (, , ; la, Hasseletum, Hasselatum) is a Belgian city and municipality, and capital and largest city of the province of Limburg in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is known for its former branding as "the city of taste", as well as ...

, "Plopsa Coo" and "Plopsaqua"), one in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

("Plopsa Indoor"

Coevorden Coevorden (; nds-nl, Koevern) is a city and municipality in the province of Drenthe, Netherlands. During the 1998 municipal reorganisation in the province, Coevorden merged with Dalen, Sleen, Oosterhesselen and Zweeloo, retaining its name. In ...

) & one in (

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

) ( Holiday Park) The headquarters of Studio 100 are located in

Schelle :''Schelle is also the German name for Šaľa, Slovakia.'' Schelle () is a municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as ...

and

Londerzeel Londerzeel () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Londerzeel proper, Malderen, Steenhuffel (home of Palm Breweries) and Sint-Jozef. On 1 January 2006, Londerzeel had a to ...

. Studio 100 has access to the largest

recording studios A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large eno ...

in all of Belgium. Frequently, big events are hosted there, such as the preselections for the Eurovision Song Contest. The Dutch department of Studio 100 resides in the Mediapark in

Hilversum Hilversum () is a city and municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is the largest urban centre in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller towns. Hil ...

. and Animation studio's in Paris, Sydney &

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

, 2 TV stations. Studio 100 bought

Flying Bark Productions Flying Bark Productions Pty Ltd is an Australian animation studio. The studio acts as a full-service production facility across feature films, television and a diverse range of digital content. The studio was established by Yoram and Sandra Gr ...

, so they could create ''

Master Raindrop ''Master Raindrop'' is an animated television program produced jointly by Australian, New Zealand and Singaporean companies that first screened on the Australian Seven Network from 15 March 2008 to 14 February 2009. There are 26 episodes of 24 ...

'' and is continuously doing business with more than 160 broadcasters on average, operate on a regular base in 110 territories worldwide through selling TV, Video On Demand and Home Video Licenses. For example, Maya the Bee has been sold to broadcasters covering even more than 150 countries

Personal life

Samson_en_Gert_met_de_burgemeester,_Plopsland_2017

In 1998 he married "Valerie Calliau" with whom he had a son (Victor Verhulst, 1993) and a daughter (Marie Verhulst, 1995), before splitting up in 2003. His daughter, Marie Verhulst, is also an actress. At the time of the musical "

Sleeping Beauty ''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess ...

" there were rumours that Verhulst was having a relationship with Karen Damen from the popular

girl group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

, K3. Verhulst always denied the relationship, but in February 2005, pictures of the couple appeared in a Dutch newspaper. In April the couple broke up, after a relationship of four years. From 2008 to 2011, Verhulst had a relationship with Ellen Callebout, a restaurant owner from

Blankenberge Blankenberge (; french: Blankenberghe; vls, Blanknberge) is a city and a municipality in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the town of Blankenberge proper and the settlement of Uitkerke. On 1 December 2014, B ...

. In 2012 Verhulst had a very short relationship with

Josje Huisman Josina Cornelia "Josje" Huisman (born 16 February 1986, in Heusden) is a Dutch singer, actress, dancer, host and writer best known as the second blonde member of the girl group K3. She was the winner of the televised talent show in 2009 and was ...

, also a singer from K3, but after a few months they split up. Since then, he has gotten back together with Callebout and the couple married in 2019.

Trivia

*In 1999 Verhulst bought an institution for poor children "Villa Zonnelicht" in

Kapellen, Belgium Kapellen (, old spelling: ''Cappellen'') is a municipality in the Belgian province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. The municipality lies in the Campine in the northern part of the province. Kapellen consists only of the town of Kapellen proper. ...

(translated: villa sunlight) for BF7.100.000 or €176,000 and made it his Private home. *In 2007 he won together with "Jelle Cleymans" the second season of "Best friends" at

Eén Eén (stylized as één; en, "one") is a public Dutch-language TV station in Belgium, owned by the VRT, which also owns Ketnet, Canvas and several radio stations. Although the channel is commercial-free, short sponsorship messages are broadca ...

. *Verhulst was along with Hans Bourlon, elected Manager of the Year by the Belgian weekly Magazine " Trends" in 2008. *In 2009 Gert Verhulst bought a Motor

Yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

from 36-meter with 8 suites called "Evanna". *In 2013 Verhulst announced that Studio 100 had made a USD 50.000 (EUR 38.868) offer at the auction site of the American Federal Agency to buy a disused

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...

. The plane would have carried six US presidents between 1975 and 2005. *In 2014 he participated in TV Show/contest "De Slimste Mens ter Wereld" (translated: "The Smartest Person in the World"), after the invitation of presenter "

Erik Van Looy Erik Ludovicus Maria Van Looy () is a Belgian film director known for his thriller movies.Erik Van Looy
IMDb He was bor ...

". where he was the first time in twelve seasons that survived the eleventh participation. and finished third. *He stood at the cradle of musicals like

Snow White "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is a 19th-century German fairy tale that is today known widely across the Western world. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' and numbered as ...

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is de ...

and

. *In 2017, together with his business partner Hans Bourlon, he was awarded the Prize for Liberty by the Flemish classical-liberal think tank

Libera! Libera! is a Spanish non-profit animal rights organization. Among other actions, it carries out education and public-awareness campaigns. Libera! was founded in 2004 in Barcelona. The group's initial actions focused on Catalonia, but the gro ...

Discography

Albums

*"Samson & Gert 1" 1991 *"Samson & Gert 2" 1992 *"Samson & Gert 3" 1993 *"Samson & Gert 4" 1995 *"Samson & Gert 5" 1995 *"Samson & Gert 6" 1996 *"Samson & Gert 7" 1997 *"Samson & Gert 8" 1998 *"Samson & Gert 9" 1999 *"Samson & Gert 10 – Het beste uit 10 jaar Samson en Gert" 2000 *"Samson & Gert 11 – De wereld is mooi" 2001 *"Samson & Gert 12 – Oh la la la" 2002 *"Samson & Gert 13 – Jiepie ja hee" 2003 *"Hotel op stelten" 2008 *"20 jaar Samson & Gert" 2010

Singles

*"Samsonrock" (Samson & Gert) 1991 *"Verliefd zijn" (Samson & Gert) 1991 *"Wij gaan naar de maan" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"10 Miljoen" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"Samen delen" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"Samen op de moto" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"Wij komen naar jou" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"De snijdersbank" (Samson & Gert) 1992 *"De bel doet 't niet" (Samson & Gert) 1993 *"Repeteren" (Samson & Gert) 1993 *"Piraten-Potpourri" (Samson & Gert) 1993 *"Samson toch!" (Samson & Gert) 1994 *"Wat ben ik blij" (Samson & Gert) 1994 *"Wij zijn bij de brandweer" (Samson & Gert) 1994 *"Als je heel erg veel verliefd bent" 1994 (Samson & Gert) *"Bij Heidi in Tirol" (Samson & Gert) 1995 *"In de disco" (Samson & Gert) 1995 *"Druk" (Samson & Gert) 1995 *"Wereldberoemd" (Samson & Gert) 1995 *"Wie gaat er mee?" (Samson & Gert) 1996 *"Aap in Huis" (Samson & Gert) 1996 *"De mooiste dag" (Samson & Gert) 1996 *"Wij weten wat liefde is" (Samson & Gert) 1996 *"Het spook van de opera" (Samson & Gert) 1997 *"Jimmy de cowboy" (Samson & Gert) 1997 *"Mannetjes van Mars" (Samson & Gert) 1998 *"Wakker worden" (Samson & Gert) 1998 *"Wij willen voetballen" (Samson & Gert) 1998 *"Roeien" (Samson & Gert) 1998 *"S.O.S." (Samson & Gert) 1998 *"Piloot" (Samson & Gert) 1999 *"Storm op zee" (Samson & Gert) 1999 *"Bim bam bom" (Samson & Gert) 2000 *"De mooiste dromen" (Samson & Gert) 2000 *"Vooruit" (Samson & Gert) 2000 *"Yeah yeah yeah" (Samson & Gert) 2001 *"De wereld is mooi!" (Samson & Gert) 2001 *"We zijn op elkaar" (Samson & Gert) 2001 *"Oh la la la!" (Samson & Gert en de 6 Teens) 2002 *"Olé pistolé" (Samson & Gert en de 6 Teens) 2002 *"Radio" (Samson & Gert) 2003 *"Lieve Samson" (Samson & Gert) 2006 *"Naar zee" (Samson & Gert) 2007 *"Heet" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Vrede op aarde" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Vrienden voor het leven" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Vrolijk liedje" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Ik ben verliefd" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Alles is op" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Oh lalala" (Samson & Gert) 2008 *"Sinterklaas en Zwarte Piet" (Samson & Gert) 2009 *"Springen in de zee" (Samson & Gert) 2009 *"Kerstmis Kerstmis" (Samson & Gert) 2013 *"Wij gaan vliegen" (Samson & Gert) 2013 *"Tingelingeling" (Samson & Gert) 2014 *"Zwaaien" (Samson & Gert) 2014 *"Hiep hiep hiep hoera!" (Samson & Gert) 2015

Filmography

Filmography (Producer)

Filmography (Director)

All Credits here :*

References

External links

Gert Verhulst at Studio 100 Website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Verhulst, Gert Belgian film producers 1968 births Living people Belgian cinematographers Belgian screenwriters Belgian film directors Belgian chief executives People from Berchem Entertainers from Antwerp Belgian company founders Belgian singer-songwriters 20th-century Belgian male singers 20th-century Belgian male actors Dutch-language singers of Belgium Male composers Musicians from Antwerp Belgian pop singers 21st-century Belgian male singers Royal Warrant holders Belgian male film actors 20th-century Belgian businesspeople 21st-century Belgian businesspeople Businesspeople from Antwerp Belgian television presenters Flemish television presenters Belgian television talk show hosts