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Snowy (french: Milou ) is a fictional character in ''
The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (french: Les Aventures de Tintin ) is a series of 24 ''bande dessinée'' albums created by Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European com ...
'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist
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 cartoonist. He is best known for creating '' The Adventures of Tintin'', ...
. Snowy is a white Wire Fox Terrier who is a companion to Tintin, the series' protagonist. Snowy debuted on 10 January 1929 in the first installment of ''
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets ''Tintin in the Land of the Soviets'' (french: link=no, Tintin au pays des Soviets) is the first volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper as ant ...
'', which was serialised in ''
Le Petit Vingtième ''Le Petit Vingtième'' (, ''The Little Twentieth'') was the weekly youth supplement to the Belgian newspaper ''Le Vingtième Siècle'' ("The Twentieth Century") from 1928 to 1940. The comics series ''The Adventures of Tintin'' first appeared in ...
'' until May 1930. Snowy is modeled in part on a
Fox Terrier Fox Terriers are two different breeds of the terrier dog type: the Smooth Fox Terrier and the Wire Fox Terrier. Both of these breeds originated in the 19th century from a handful of dogs who are descended from earlier varieties of British ter ...
at a café that Hergé used to frequent. Milou, Snowy's original French name, was the nickname of Hergé's first girlfriend.Farr (2007): 24 In the first eight Tintin adventures, Snowy regularly addresses his
internal monologue Intrapersonal communication is the process by which an individual communicates within themselves, acting as both sender and receiver of messages, and encompasses the use of unspoken words to consciously engage in self-talk and inner speech. Intr ...
to the reader. Hergé diminished Snowy's speaking role after the introduction of
Captain Haddock Captain Archibald Haddock (french: Capitaine Archibald Haddock, link=no, ) is a fictional character in '' The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. He is one of Tintin's best friends, a seafaring pipe-smoki ...
in the ninth story, ''
The Crab with the Golden Claws ''The Crab with the Golden Claws'' (french: link=no, Le Crabe aux pinces d'or) is the ninth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised weekly in , the children's supplement ...
''.Farr (2007): 31


Inspiration and design

Hergé never had a dog in his family until his last years; however, in 1929 he was a regular at a café where the proprietor had a terrier. This dog was a major source of inspiration for Snowy. Snowy's original French name ''Milou''—an abbreviation of Marie-Louise—is borrowed from the nickname of Hergé's first girlfriend, Marie-Louise Van Cutsem. Marie-Louise's father disapproved of Hergé's low
social standing Social stratification refers to a society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, race, education, ethnicity, gender, occupation, social status, or derived power (social and political). As ...
, and the young couple's relationship consequently deteriorated. Nevertheless, Hergé remained fond of Marie-Louise, and made her the namesake of Tintin's most trusted friend. The name ''Snowy'' was chosen for English-language translations not only because of the dog's colour, but also because it is a five-letter word that fits in the
speech balloon Speech balloons (also speech bubbles, dialogue balloons, or word balloons) are a graphic convention used most commonly in comic books, comics, and cartoons to allow words (and much less often, pictures) to be understood as representing a char ...
s.: 309-10


Character

Throughout the series, Snowy is Tintin's
sidekick A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...
and companion on journeys. Along with Tintin he is the only character to appear in all of the comic albums.Farr (2007): 23 In the debut album ''Tintin in the Land of the Soviets'', Snowy is a source of
comic relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic epis ...
.Farr (2007): 25 Throughout the first eight stories Snowy is the series' co-star; he is able to understand human language, and communicates with speech bubbles. His verbal responses to various situations include jokes, expressions of fright, and pleas to Tintin to exercise caution. In the early albums he takes an interest in mechanics and geography; in '' Tintin in the Congo'', he makes biblical references.Farr (2007): 30 As a dog, he also sniffs, tracks, chases, and bites. The character of Snowy evolved through the course of the Tintin series. In early works he exchanges dialog with other characters, including animals, and provides a running commentary on the situation. His character then became affected by the introduction of Captain Haddock in ''
The Crab with the Golden Claws ''The Crab with the Golden Claws'' (french: link=no, Le Crabe aux pinces d'or) is the ninth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The story was serialised weekly in , the children's supplement ...
''. Before Haddock's appearance, Snowy was the source of dry and cynical side-commentary, which balanced out Tintin's constantly positive, optimistic perspective. When Haddock entered the series, the Captain took over the role of the cynic, and Snowy gradually shifted into a more light-hearted role, having dialog only with Tintin. Snowy is portrayed as brave and is often fearless against much larger creatures when Tintin is threatened. He repeatedly frees Tintin from captivity and saves him from dangerous situations, and will sometimes identify a villain before Tintin. The Black Island and The Shooting Star show that his only fear is
arachnophobia Arachnophobia is a specific phobia brought about by the irrational fear of spiders and other arachnids such as scorpions. Signs and symptoms People with arachnophobia tend to feel uneasy in any area they believe could harbour spiders or th ...
. Snowy is loyal to Tintin and always wishes to stay by his master's side: in a scene in '' The Shooting Star'' when Tintin temporarily abandoned him, Snowy was inconsolable.Farr (2007): 29 Snowy loves whiskey, and occasionally gets drunk (as occurred in ''
Tintin in the Land of the Soviets ''Tintin in the Land of the Soviets'' (french: link=no, Tintin au pays des Soviets) is the first volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Commissioned by the conservative Belgian newspaper as ant ...
,'' ''
The Black Island ''The Black Island'' (french: link=no, L'Île noire) is the seventh 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 ...
,'' ''
Tintin in Tibet ''Tintin in Tibet'' (french: Tintin au Tibet, link=no) is the twentieth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was serialised weekly from September 1958 to November 1959 in ''Tintin'' magazin ...
'' and ''
Tintin and the Picaros ''Tintin and the Picaros'' (french: link=no, Tintin et les Picaros) is the twenty-third volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The final instalment in the series to be completed by Hergé, it wa ...
''). His appetite for food is the basis for several short, comical sequences. The dog's biggest lust is for bones. This is repeatedly the centre of moral dilemmas, as Snowy has to decide between carrying out important tasks, such as carrying an SOS message, and picking up a bone, as evidenced in ''
King Ottokar's Sceptre ''King Ottokar's Sceptre'' (french: link=no, Le Sceptre d'Ottokar) 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 sup ...
''. Snowy indulges in rowdy behaviour chasing the
Siamese cat The Siamese cat ( th, แมวไทย, Maeo Thai; แมวสยาม, Maeo Seeaam) is one of the first distinctly recognized breeds of Asian cat. Derived from the Wichianmat landrace, one of several varieties of cat native to Thailand ( ...
at
Marlinspike Hall Marlinspike Hall (french: Le château de Moulinsart ) is Captain Haddock's country house and family estate in ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. The original French name of the hall, ''Moulinsart'', ...
until the two become friends at the end of ''
The Calculus Affair ''The Calculus Affair'' (french: link=no, L'Affaire Tournesol) is the eighteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by the Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was serialised weekly in Belgium's '' Tintin'' magazine from Dece ...
''. Snowy often adds to the story in notable ways. For instance, Snowy is the only character in '' Flight 714 to Sydney'' to escape mass hypnosis and to know of their abduction by aliens.


Adaptations

At the end of the run of ''Tintin in the Land of the Soviets'' on 8 May 1930, a mock reception for Snowy and Tintin was conducted at Brussels'
Gare du Nord The Gare du Nord (; English: ''station of the North'' or ''Northern Station''), officially Paris-Nord, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. The station accommodates the trains that run between the capit ...
railway station. There Snowy was played by Hergé's cafékeeper's Fox Terrier. In ''
The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (french: Les Aventures de Tintin ) is a series of 24 ''bande dessinée'' albums created by Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European com ...
'' television series, Snowy is voiced by
Susan Roman Susan Roman (born April 17) is a Canadian voice actress and voice director, best known for voice acting the role of Lita/Sailor Jupiter in the Canada DiC (and later Cloverway/CWi) dub of the anime, ''Sailor Moon''. She is one of the few voice ...
. However, Snowy's comments are not present. Among the
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 t ...
cast of Bryan Talbot's graphic novel '' Grandville'', there is a white Wire Fox Terrier named "Snowy Milou". In a drug-induced delirium, he describes the dreams he has had, with close parallels to the various adventures of the ''Tintin'' books. From a
computer-generated imagery Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the use of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, simulators, and visual effects in films, television programs, shorts, commercials, and videos. The image ...
point of view, Snowy was the most difficult character to film during production of the 2011
motion capture Motion capture (sometimes referred as mo-cap or mocap, for short) is the process of recording the movement of objects or people. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robo ...
film ''
The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (french: Les Aventures de Tintin ) is a series of 24 ''bande dessinée'' albums created by Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European com ...
''. Fur is generally difficult to render, with white being the most difficult colour and curly fur being the most difficult shape. Another issue was Snowy is always shown at particular angles, which made it difficult to make him recognisable with moving camera shots.Weta Workshop: 37 Early in the development process, when the motion-capture was being filmed in-studio, the production team considered casting a dog as Snowy. Instead a puppet was used, acted out by a puppeteer. Thus, the actors worked with the puppet placeholder; Snowy and the other characters were then animated afterwards.


Statues and commemorative murals

* The
Place du Grand Sablon The () or ( Dutch) is a neighbourhood and hill in the historic upper town of Brussels, Belgium. At its heart are twin squares: the larger or ("Large Sablon") square in the north-west and the smaller or ("Small Sablon") square and garden ...
,
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
,
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 ...
contains a life sized bronze statue of Tintin and his
fox terrier Fox Terriers are two different breeds of the terrier dog type: the Smooth Fox Terrier and the Wire Fox Terrier. Both of these breeds originated in the 19th century from a handful of dogs who are descended from earlier varieties of British ter ...
, Snowy just outside Comics cafe. * A mural on a building at Rue de l'Etuve recreates a scene of Tintin,
Captain Haddock Captain Archibald Haddock (french: Capitaine Archibald Haddock, link=no, ) is a fictional character in '' The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. He is one of Tintin's best friends, a seafaring pipe-smoki ...
and Snowy coming down a building fire escape from
The Calculus Affair ''The Calculus Affair'' (french: link=no, L'Affaire Tournesol) is the eighteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by the Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was serialised weekly in Belgium's '' Tintin'' magazine from Dece ...
. * The Gare du Midi station in
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
contains a huge reproduction of a panel from Tintin in America. * The Le Lombard building in Central Brussels (Near Gare du Midi) has two giant heads of Snowy and Tintin on the roof. These are lit up with neon lights at night. Lombard was the editor of the Journal de Tintin. * The Stockel subway station in
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
has huge panels with scenes from Tintin comic books painted as murals. * The Uccle cultural center (Rue Ruge) 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 ...
has a life size statue of Tintin and Snowy. The statue was sculpted by Nat Neujeun and commissioned by
Raymond Leblanc Raymond Leblanc (born 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 ...
, the publisher of Tintin.


See also

* List of ''The Adventures of Tintin'' characters * List of fictional dogs


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{Tintin and Hergé Tintin characters Comics characters introduced in 1929 Comic book sidekicks Fictional dogs Hergé characters