Jacques Van Melkebeke
| Jacques Van Melkebeke | |
|---|---|
| Born |
12 December 1904 Brussels, Belgium |
| Died | 8 June 1983 (aged 78) |
| Pen name | George Jacquet |
| Occupation | painter, journalist, writer |
| Nationality | Belgian |
Jacques Van Melkebeke (12 December 1904 – 8 June 1983) was a Belgian painter, journalist, writer, and comic strip writer. He is regarded by many as the "third man" of the Franco-Belgian comic strip, as obscure now as his influence was great at a certain time.
A friend of Hergé, Van Melkebeke took part in a semi-official way in the development of some of the storylines of The Adventures of Tintin, adding a number of cultural references. He is also supposed to have contributed to certain elements of the Blake and Mortimer series, although Edgar P. Jacobs disputed this fact. Van Melkebeke's personality was one of the main sources of inspiration for the Blake and Mortimer character Philip Angus Mortimer.
Born in Brussels, Van Melkebeke was a childhood friend of Edgar Jacobs and Jacques Laudy. He spent his twenties pursuing fine art painting.
During the German occupation of Belgium during World War II, Van Melkebeke was responsible for main articles in Le Soir Jeunesse, the children's supplement of the daily newspaper Le Soir. During this period, when he first crossed paths with Hergé, Van Melkebeke's strip Les Nouvelles Aventures du Baron de Crac ran in Le Soir as well. As a fine arts painter himself, Van Melkebeke encouraged Hergé's own interest in art, introducing him to art world figures of the time. Van Melkebeke painted a portrait of Hergé which hung in the cartoonist's home for many decades.
Van Melkebeke co-wrote with Hergé two Tintin plays which were staged from 1941 to 1942: Tintin in India: The Mystery of the Blue Diamond and Mr. Boullock's Disappearance.
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