Sjors & Sjimmie
| Sjors & Sjimmie | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Oberon (Netherlands) |
| First appearance | 1938; Sjors |
| Created by | Frans Piët |
| In-story information | |
| Supporting character of | Sjors Sjimmie The Colonel Sally Dikkie |
| Categories | Comics magazine |
|---|---|
| Frequency | biweekly |
| Publisher | Oberon |
| First issue | 1988 |
| Final issue | 1999 |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Language | Dutch |
Sjors & Sjimmie (George & Jimmy) is a Dutch adaptation of the comic strip Winnie Winkle, specifically the character Perry Winkle from that strip. The difference between the American original and the Dutch adaptation is that Sjors (Perry) forms a duo with Africa-born Sjimmie. They're raised by Sally and the Colonel. The Colonel regularly finds himself on the receiving end of their pranks. In return Sjors & Sjimmie are outsmarted by their scheming classmate Dikkie, although they manage to stay the best of friends.
The popularity of the newspaper strip Buster Brown (debuting in 1902) spawned many imitators, including the Perry Winkle character (Winnie's adopted younger brother) in Martin Branner's long-running strip Winnie Winkle (debuting in 1920). Perry's adventures were translated and published in Dutch newspapers; and in 1938 given a Dutch-made version (Sjors en de Rebellenclub by Frans Piët) after the original US strip shifted focus back on to Perry's sister Winnie.
After the strip took a hiatus during World War II, the protagonist Sjors found a companion in Sjimmie, an African boy who was part of the visiting circus. Sjimmie was originally portrayed in blackface stereotypical ways such as speaking in broken language. In 1969 Jan Kruis took over the comic from the retired Frans Piët; he made Sjimmie look like a normal teenager and speak proper Dutch.
Kruis produced two 44-page stories, but eventually chose to work on his one-page comic Jack, Jacky and the Juniors in which Sjors & Sjimmie made one cameo appearance. Jan Steeman continued Sjors & Sjimmie during the first half of the 1970s.
In 1975 the Sjors and Pep magazines merged into Eppo; Sjors & Sjimmie were re-invented as one-page gags drawn by Robert van der Kroft. Initial response was tepid, but things improved when scriptwriter Patty Klein was replaced by the duo of Wilbert Plijnaar and Jan van Die. Collectively known as Wiroja, the threesome of van der Kroft, Plijnaar, and van Die turned Sjors & Sjimmie into one of Eppo's most popular features.
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