Professor Barabas
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Professor Barabas (English: Professor Barnabas) is a Flemish comic book character from the ''
Suske en Wiske ''Spike and Suzy'' (British title), ''Willy and Wanda'' (American title) or ''Luke and Lucy'' (in a 2009 film and video game) (, ) is a Belgian comics series created by the comic book creator, comics author Willy Vandersteen. It was first publis ...
'' series by
Willy Vandersteen Willebrord Jan Frans Maria "Willy" Vandersteen (15 February 1913 – 28 August 1990) was a Belgian creator of comic books. In a career spanning 50 years, he created a large studio and published more than 1,000 comic albums in over 25 series, sel ...
. He is the
absent-minded professor The absent-minded professor is a stock character of popular fiction, usually portrayed as a talented academic whose academic brilliance is accompanied by below-par functioning in other areas, leading to forgetfulness and mistakes. One explanati ...
/scientist archetype in the franchise.


History

In the first unofficial ''
Suske en Wiske ''Spike and Suzy'' (British title), ''Willy and Wanda'' (American title) or ''Luke and Lucy'' (in a 2009 film and video game) (, ) is a Belgian comics series created by the comic book creator, comics author Willy Vandersteen. It was first publis ...
'' story, ''Rikki en Wiske in Chocowakije'' (1945),
Wiske Wiske (English: Wanda, Suzy, Bobette, Lucy) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. She is the girl of the duo. Together with Lambik she is one of the most popular characters in t ...
, Rikki and
Tante Sidonia Tante Sidonia is a Flemish comics character from the Belgian comics series ''Suske en Wiske''. In the franchise she is the aunt of Wiske and the adoptive aunt of Suske, of whom she both takes care. In the original Flemish publications her name wa ...
are aided by an absent-minded engineer called Ingenieur Wargaren. Vandersteen never used the character again, but he can be seen as a
prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototype ...
of Barabas. Professor Barabas made his debut in the next and first official ''Suske en Wiske'' story, ''Het Eiland Amoras'' ("The Isle of Amoras") (1945).
Wiske Wiske (English: Wanda, Suzy, Bobette, Lucy) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. She is the girl of the duo. Together with Lambik she is one of the most popular characters in t ...
and
Tante Sidonia Tante Sidonia is a Flemish comics character from the Belgian comics series ''Suske en Wiske''. In the franchise she is the aunt of Wiske and the adoptive aunt of Suske, of whom she both takes care. In the original Flemish publications her name wa ...
meet him at the beach, after Wiske accidentally hit his head with a
vase A vase ( or ) is an open container. It can be made from a number of materials, such as ceramics, glass, non- rusting metals, such as aluminium, brass, bronze, or stainless steel. Even wood has been used to make vases, either by using tree specie ...
. Barabas turns out to be a professor who invented a large helicopter named the ''Gyronef'', which allows them to travel to the isle of Amoras to solve a mystery. The earliest version of Barabas differed a lot from later appearances. In "Het Eiland Amoras" he is very obese and has a
stutter Stuttering, also known as stammering, is a speech disorder characterized externally by involuntary repetitions and prolongations of sounds, syllables, words, or phrases as well as involuntary silent pauses called blocks in which the person who ...
. After complaints from parents that their children imitated Barabas' stuttering, his stutter was 'healed'.


Character

Barabas is a good friend of the protagonists. They frequently ask for his help whenever they have a complicated problem that only his scientific knowledge can solve. Barabas' many inventions often drive the plot forward, despite the fact that he doesn't always play a huge role in the stories. In many cases he stays at home, especially when the characters time travel with his "teletijdmachine" ("tele
time machine A time machine is a fictional or hypothetical device that allows time travel. Concept A time machine is a device that makes time travel possible. The ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' distinguishes between two different types of time ma ...
"), because he has to control the machine. Only in a few stories does he play a central role. In "De Gouden Cirkel" ("The Golden Circle") (1960) Barabas gets contaminated with
radiation In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or a material medium. This includes: * ''electromagnetic radiation'' consisting of photons, such as radio waves, microwaves, infr ...
, causing his friends to travel across the entire globe to get him proper medicine. In "Beminde Barabas" ("Beloved Barabas") (1974) Barabas searches for a girl he loved when he was younger, but later lost contact with. Barabas is generally a good-natured, if somewhat absent-minded person. He enjoys playing pranks on his friends now and then by keeping his inventions a secret until their curiosity gets the better of them or by disguising himself. Only when the others bother him while he is busy does Barabas get angry. He can also get quite furious when his inventions are vandalized or misused. Barabas is also aware of his huge responsibility as a scientist. In "De Sprietatoom" ("The Tiny Atom") (1947) he destroys his entire laboratory out of fear it will be misused by foreign military powers and becomes a poet. In "Barabas de Balorige" (2013) he destroys everything again, but travels to the past instead, "when times were more simple.". In "De Snorrende Snor" ("The Purring Moustache") (1957) Barabas creates a huge scheme involving robots who threaten to destroy the world, only to bring the world a message of love instead. Barabas' name is obviously inspired by the biblical character
Barabbas According to the New Testament, Barabbas () was a Jewish bandit and rabble-rouser who was imprisoned by the Judaea (Roman province), Roman occupation in Jerusalem, only to be chosen over Jesus by a crowd to be pardoned by Roman governor Pontius ...
.


Family background

In "De Zeven Schaken" (1995) we see Barabas during his youth. He is raised by his stern, rich father who wants him to speak French and study. According to "De Hellegathonden" ("The Hellhounds") (1986) Barabas' great-grandfather was a crook who was preoccupied with
occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...
magic. He felt remorse, however, and changed his life for the better. Another 19th-century forefather of Barabas was Geronimous Jabbertalk, who was a scientist in London. In "De Beminde Barabas" (1974) we learn that, as a young student, Barabas fell in love with a female tailor. Despite being an innovative scientist Barabas was so poor in "Het Zingende Nijlpaard" (1950) ("The Singing Hippo"). that he was forced to sell his inventions. By "De Glanzende Gletsjer" ("The Gleaming Glacier") (1986) his reputation is such that he is elected "Inventor of the Year".


Inventions

Barabas has invented many machines and vehicles, which often come to good use to
Suske Suske (English: Willy, Luke, Bob, Spike) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. He is the boy of the duo. History When Willy Vandersteen created his first adventure story with t ...
,
Wiske Wiske (English: Wanda, Suzy, Bobette, Lucy) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. She is the girl of the duo. Together with Lambik she is one of the most popular characters in t ...
,
Lambik Lambik is a Flemish comic book character from the Belgian comic strip series ''Spike and Suzy'' by Willy Vandersteen. In the English translations he is known as ''Orville'' or ''Ambrose''. Lambik is the breakout character of the franchise and one ...
,
Tante Sidonia Tante Sidonia is a Flemish comics character from the Belgian comics series ''Suske en Wiske''. In the franchise she is the aunt of Wiske and the adoptive aunt of Suske, of whom she both takes care. In the original Flemish publications her name wa ...
and
Jerom Jerom is a Flemish comic book character and one of the main cast members in the Belgian comic strip, ''Spike and Suzy, Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. He is the series' strongman (strength athlete), strongman and well known for his physical ...
. Among the most recurring are: * De teletijdmachine ("The tele
time machine A time machine is a fictional or hypothetical device that allows time travel. Concept A time machine is a device that makes time travel possible. The ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' distinguishes between two different types of time ma ...
"). Barabas' most famous invention. It was introduced in "Het Eiland Amoras", but only to view images from the past on a screen. From "De Tuf-Tuf-Club" (1952) the device is built into a huge machine which is able to teleport people to previous centuries or bring them to the present. Whenever the cast has to travel to a previous time period they use the tele
time machine A time machine is a fictional or hypothetical device that allows time travel. Concept A time machine is a device that makes time travel possible. The ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' distinguishes between two different types of time ma ...
. In "De Duistere Diamant" ("The Dark Diamond") (1958) Barabas creates a
bracelet A bracelet is an article of jewellery that is worn around the wrist. Bracelets may serve different uses, such as being worn as an ornament. When worn as ornaments, bracelets may have a supportive function to hold other items of decoration, ...
with the same function. In "De Zeven Snaren" ("The Seven Strings") (1967), "Lambik Baba" (1991) and "Het Verdronken Land" ("The Drowned Country") (1999) a portable version of the machine is introduced. * The Gyronef. A huge helicopter, introduced in "Het Eiland Amoras" ("The Isle of Amoras") (1945). * The Terranef. A vehicle able to travel underground, introduced in "De Knokkersburcht" ("The Batterer's Castle") (1953) * Vitamitje. A small
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to ...
car, suitable for
Suske Suske (English: Willy, Luke, Bob, Spike) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. He is the boy of the duo. History When Willy Vandersteen created his first adventure story with t ...
and
Wiske Wiske (English: Wanda, Suzy, Bobette, Lucy) is one of the main characters in the popular Belgian comic strip ''Suske en Wiske'' by Willy Vandersteen. She is the girl of the duo. Together with Lambik she is one of the most popular characters in t ...
to drive with. It was introduced in "De Sprietatoom" ("The Tiny Atom") (1946). * De Klankentapper ("The Noises Transmitter"). A machine which enables people to listen and communicate with plants and objects.


In popular culture

In the 1976 puppet TV series Cees van Oyen provided the voice of Barabas' puppet. In the 1994 musical ''"De Stralende Sterren"'' Alex Wilequet played the part of Barabas. In the 2004 live-action film ' Tuur De Weert played the part.
Pierre Bokma Pierre Henri Martin Bokma (born 20 December 1955 in Paris) is a Dutch stage, television and film actor. Bokma received his professional training at the Maastricht Academy of Dramatic Arts. In November 2007 he won an International Emmy Award f ...
provided the voice of the same character in the animated adaptation '' Luke and Lucy: The Texas Rangers'' (2009). In the
Belgian Comic Strip Center The Belgian Comic Strip Center (; ) is a museum in central Brussels, Belgium, dedicated to Belgian comics. It is located at 20, /, in an Art Nouveau building designed by Victor Horta, and can be accessed from Brussels-Congress railway station ...
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 ...
the permanent exhibition brings homage to the pioneers of
Belgian comics Belgian comics are a distinct subgroup in the comics history, and played a major role in the development of European comics, alongside France with whom they share a long common history. While the comics in the two major language groups and r ...
, among them Willy Vandersteen. In the room dedicated to his work a replica of Professor Barabas' teletijdmachine ("tele time machine") can be seen.


Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barabas, Professor Spike and Suzy Belgian comics characters Fictional characters from Flanders Comics characters introduced in 1945 Fictional academics Fictional inventors in comics Fictional scientists in comics Fictional stutterers Male characters in comics