Le Petit Vingtième

History

Le Vingtième Siècle, a Catholic and conservative newspaper in Brussels led by abbot Norbert Wallez, employed the 18-year-old Hergé in 1925. After his military service, Hergé worked as an illustrator for the main pages and supplements. In 1928, Wallez decided to start an eight-page youth supplement appearing every Thursday, called Le Petit Vingtième, with Hergé as editor-in-chief. The first issue appeared on 1 November 1928 and included a short comic by sports editor Desmedt.

Hergé, finding that comic lacking in spirit and old-fashioned compared to American comics and the work of Alain Saint-Ogan, began his own comic. On 10 January 1929, in issue 11, Tintin in the Land of the Soviets began, with two pages per issue and Hergé often drawing covers featuring Tintin. On 23 January 1930, the supplement expanded from eight to sixteen pages, and the first page of Quick & Flupke appeared. The supplement was an overwhelming success, quadrupling circulation on Thursdays.

At the end of each of the first three Tintin stories, a reception for the comic hero was organized at a Brussels station, attended by thousands; the first included Zita of Bourbon-Parma, former empress of Austria. Assistants Eugène Van Nijverseel (Evany) and Paul Jamin (Jam) were hired to help Hergé.