Cori de Scheepsjongen - 'De Onoverwinnelijke Armada'.
Bob De Moor was one of the masters of the Belgian "Ligne Claire" ("'Clear Line") style. He is best known for creating series like 'Meester Mus' ('Monsieur Tric', 1950-1979), 'Barelli' (1950-1989), 'Cori de Scheepsjongen' ('Cori le Moussaillon', 1952-1993) and 'Balthazar' (1965-1967) for Tintin, but he was also a loyal assistant to Hergé and Jacques Martin and a versatile contributor to Flemish comic magazines. Throughout his entire career he switched between humorous and dramatic narratives with the greatest of ease. He was the first artist to draw the long-running children's gag comic 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' (1947-1989), which he did during the first two years. Some of his most impressive artwork can be seen in his historical comics, of which 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' ('The Lion of Flanders', 1949) remains a classic. His masterpiece, however, is 'Cori de Scheepsjongen'. The thrilling adventures of a young cabin boy who sails along with the Dutch East India Company in the 16th-17th century are a stunning and vivacious expression of De Moor's love for ships and the ocean. Overall, De Moor was a versatile talent who somewhat unfortunately sacrificed most of his personal career in function of Hergé. As a result the general public is less familiar with his name than they ought to be, while millions of readers have unknowingly seen his artwork in 'Tintin' without even realizing it.
Early life
Robert "Bob" De Moor was born in 1925 in Antwerp as the son of a technical artist who drew tools for a living. Throughout his entire life De Moor had a keen interest in shipping. Even as a child he often visited the Antwerp harbour to watch the ships come in and go by. He adored maritime novels and films, particularly those set in the 16th and 17th century. From his youth on he documented himself thoroughly about the subject, down to how ships were exactly built and constructed. De Moor became such an expert in the matter that he was able to spot inaccurate details in the way ships were portrayed in Hollywood films and book illustrations. In terms of maritime perfectionism De Moor is comparable to one other comic artist: the Dutchman Pieter J. Kuhn. Both were contemporaries, but De Moor was arguably a greater virtuoso and specifically focused on 16th and 17th-century ships.
Still, he felt more for a career as an artist than a sailor. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in his native city Antwerp. During World War II he worked for the AFIM animation studios, where he drew backgrounds for productions like 'Smidje Smee' and 'Hoe Pimmeke ter wereld kwam'. Among his colleagues there were co-founder Ray Goossens and the future comic artist Jef Nys. When the AFIM studios were closed down in 1943 due to the refusal of the studio chiefs to move their activities to Germany's UFA studios, De Moor was forced to work in the Erla factories in Mortsel near Antwerp, where Messerschmitt Bf 109 aircrafts were built and maintained for the Luftwaffe. It was the same factory where his father Louis De Moor was killed one year earlier during an allied bombing.
'Bart De Scheepsjongen'.
Early comics career
While the Liberation in 1944 brought peace back to Belgium, De Moor was also severely injured by a piece of shrapnel and lost the middle and ring finger of his left hand. This didn't hinder his graphical career, though. Shortly after the war, he began a steady production of comic strips for the Belgian press. To keep up with the workload, he eventually founded the Artec Studio with his brother-in-law John van Looveren, who did the business part and some scriptwork. Other artists involved were Armand van Meulenbroeck and presumably François Cassiers, who later formed the Flemish comedy duo De Woodpeckers with his brother Jef.
Comics in De Kleine Zondagsvriend
For someone with such a love for ships and boats it came to no surprise that De Moor's first comic strip, 'Bart, de Scheepsjongen' (1945-1946), followed the adventures of a cabin boy in the late 16th century. The comic was published from issue #11 to 49 in the Flemish children's magazine Kleine Zondagsvriend. He followed this up with two adventures starring private detective 'Inspecteur Marks' (1946-1947) and the more comedic 'De Lotgevallen van Hannes Boegspriet (1946-1947)'. Professor Hobbel and his bumbling assistent Sobbel also enjoyed two humorous adventures with the series 'Hobbel en Sobbel' (1946-1950). In 1948 De Moor illustrated 'Dat Wondere Pimpeltje', scripted by J. van Overstraeten. His final comic strip for the supplement was the one-shot story 'De Verklikker' (1949-1950).
Other minor comics
During the same period, De Moor made illustrations and cartoons for ABC and Zondagsvriend, while creating new comic strips for Week-End ( 'Professor Quick', 4 May 1947- 20 January 1952) and 'De Lotgevallen van Babbel & Co' (13 February 1949 - November 1950).
Debut episode of 'De Lustige Kapoentjes'. November 1949.
De Lustige Kapoentjes
De Moor was also active in 't Kapoentje, the children's supplement of Overal, edited by Marc Sleen. From its first issue on 3 April 1947 until 6 November of that same year Willy Vandersteen's 'De Vrolijke Bengels' (1946-1954) was the magazine's flagship. The gag comic starred four young children frequently performing pranks and counter-pranks on a bumbling police officer and a youngster hoodlum. The plots are often sent in motion whenever an elder woman's cakes are stolen by the youngster hoodlum, giving the kids a reason to act revenge on him. However, in November Vandersteen left 't Kapoentje to join Ons Volkske, taking his hit series with him. De Moor was instantly asked to create a substitute comic, following the same concept. He redesigned the cast and gave them different names. The child protagonists were now named Petrus (the leader of the gang, who has a huge quiff), Janus (the tall one, with glasses), Bertus (the short one with the baret), Eefje (the girl) and Benjamien (her kid brother). The police officer was fittingly named Pakker (literally: 'Grabber'), the older woman became Mie Vis and the hoodlum was renamed Dorus. Since they couldn't use the copyrighted title the series was retitled 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' (literally: 'The Jolly Rascals'). The series also ran in 't Kapoentje's French-language sister magazine Le Petit Luron as 'Les Joyeux Lurons'.
De Moor drew gags for two years, but in December 1949 he too left 't Kapoentje, in his case to join Tintin magazine. Marc Sleen continued 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' from 9 February 1950 until April 1965. After that date he left to join De Standaard. 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' was continued for the next decades by several different artists who all redesigned and renamed the main cast members: Jef Nys (1965-1966), Hurey (1966-1976) Karel Boumans (1976-1985) and finally Jo (1985-1989). 't Kapoentje published its final issue in 1989. Between 1965 and 1974 Sleen's version of 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' also ran in Pats, the children's supplement of De Standaard. However, while the characters had the same look and names they were drawn by Hurey and Jean-Pol and since 't Kapoentje owned the rights to the title this continuation of Sleen's 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' was always published without a title! It therefore made album releases impossible. In 2011, after a long absence, 'De Lustige Kapoentjes' made a comeback, this time drawn by Tom Bouden, with a different scriptwriter for each gag.
'Willem Koelbloed'.
Willem de Vrijbuiter (Willem Koelbloed)
De Moor also drew the medieval story 'Willem de Vrijbuiter' (from the fifth episode renamed as 'Willem Koelbloed') for 't Kapoentje in 1947-1948, which was published as 'Willem Koelbloed' in De Volksmacht in 1949-1950. It followed a brave and strong Flemish resistance fighter in 1302, who later joins the Brugse Metten and the Guldensporenslag (The Battle of the Golden Spurs), fighting the French oppressors. The story was clearly influenced by Hendrik Conscience's classic novel 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' (1843), which romanticizes the same historic events. 'Willem Koelbloed' can be considered a predecessor to De Moor's later more ambitious comic strip adaptation, 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' (1949) in Tintin magazine.
'De Rosse', by Artec Studio's.
Other comics in 't Kapoentje
Between 1947 and 1950 De Moor drew various other one-shot comics for 't Kapoentje, including 'Monneke en Johnneke' (1948), 'Janneke en Stanneke' (1948-1949), 'Het Land Zonder Wet' (1948-1949), 'De Rosse' (1948-1949), 'Bloske en Zwik' (1949), 'Fikske neemt wraak' (1949), 'De Slaapmachine van Jonas' (1949), 'De Vergeten Stad' (1949), 'De Koene Edelman (of het bewogen leven van Jan Baptist Messire de la Salle)' (with text by Gaston Durnez, 1949), 'Het Halssnoer met de Groene Smaragd' (1949-1950), 'De Slaven van de Keizer'(1949-1950) and 'De Tijdmachine van Carolus Clem' (1949-1950).
'Monneke & Johnneke'.
Some of this comics weren't exclusive to 't Kapoentje. 'Het Land Zonder Wet' was reprinted in the newspaper Het Nieuwsblad between 4 October 1949 and 29 June 1950 and later ran again in De Volksmacht in 1953. The first 'Bloske en Zwik' story, which featured them as detectives, also appeared in Het Volksweekblad, from 1 January 1955 until 31 December of that same year. The second 'Bloske en Zwik' story, 'Het Eiland der Reuzen' ran in Het Handelsblad between 26 November 1949 and 15 February 1950. Het Handelsblad also reran 'De Slaapmachine van Jonas' between 26 November 1949 and 15 February 1950, rerunning it in 1960 in Het Wekelijks Nieuws too. 'Het Halssnoer met de Groene Smaragd' reran in Het Volksweekblad in 1954, much like 'De Slaven van De Keizer' in 1951. Decades later, in 1960, 'Janneke and Stanneke' was reprinted in Pum-Pum, the juvenile supplement of Het Laatste Nieuws.
Comics in Overal
'De Dodende Wolk' (1948) appeared in Overal and reran in De Nieuwe Gazet (1948-1949), as well as 't Kapoentje (1950-1951).
Comics in Ons Volkske
De Moor could also be enjoyed in Ons Volkske, with the one-shots 'Het Wonderschip' (1949), 'Oorlog in het Heelal' (1949-1950), 'Fikske Neemt Wraak' (1949) and 'Mieleke en Dolf' (1949-1951). Like many other comics, the magazine also reprinted series by De Moor which had previously appeared in Tintin magazine.
Comics in Het Handelsblad / De Nieuwe Gazet
He drew the stop-comic 'Petrus en zijn rakkers' (5 July 1950- October 1952) for Het Handelsblad and De Nieuwe Gazet, 'De Lotgevallen van de Familie Kibbel' (1947-1948) for De Nieuwe Gids and 'Vodje de Zwerver' (1947-1949) and 'De Lotgevallen van Kareltje' (1947-1949) for De Zweep.
Many of his comics for Flemish magazines were scripted by Gommaar Timmermans, son of famous Flemish novelist Felix Timmermans, who would later become a well-known cartoonist under the name Got. De Moor's first publication in the French language was 'Le Mystère du Vieux Château Fort', a comic album scripted by John van Looveren and published by Campéador in 1947.
Tijl Uilenspiegel
De Moor started a collaboration with the newspaper Het Nieuws Van Den Dag in 1950, for whom he created 'De Nieuwe Avonturen van Tijl Uilenspiegel' (1950-1951). This was a modernization of the Flemish folk hero Tijl Uilenspiegel set in present times. Some stories, like 'Het Vals Gebit ', were basically Flemish-nationalist propaganda, criticizing the post-war repression of Nazi collaborators, the 1946 bombing of the Yser Tower and the forced abdication of king Leopold III. In total four stories were drawn, which ran in the paper between 22 May 1950 and 14 August 1951. They also appeared in sister papers 't Vrije Volksblad, De Nieuwe Gids and De Antwerpse Gids.
'Nonkel Zigomar, Snoe en Snolleke'.
Snoe en Snolleke (Johan en Stefan)
De Moor first enduring comic series, 'De Avonturen van Nonkel Zigomar, Snoe en Snolleke', also debuted in Het Nieuws Van Den Dag and its sister papers. On 16 August 1951 uncle Zigomar and his nephews Snoe and Snolleke enjoyed their first adventure. Zigomar is a gardener who hails from Antwerp. Much like Willy Vandersteen's Lambik and Marc Sleen's Nero he is an easily agitated, naïve, clumsy, vain but well-meaning twit. Usually the blond quiffed Snoe and his younger, black-haired brother Snolleke solve all the problems. De Moor usually drew each episode after completing his daily activities at Studio Hergé. Since the artwork for Hergé had to look perfect down to the tiniest details, 'Snoe en Snolleke' was a way to let off steam. The drawings still looked neat, but were a bit more loose in their execution. The same was true about the stories, which De Moor just improvised along. In four-and-a-half years time he managed to churn out 15 (!) stories. Yet despite the large quantity, only four were made available in album format by N.V. Periodica at the time. The final episode appeared in papers on 29 February 1956, because De Moor's workload at Hergé's studio became too much.
Between 1978 and 1984 other 'Snoe en Snolleke' stories were finally made available as albums when publisher De Dageraad released them in the 'Magnum' series. Thanks to enthusiastic collectors the books sold well. As such De Moor rebooted the series in April 1989 after nearly 30 years hiatus. The older stories were colourized, Flemish dialect was changed to standard Dutch and certain panels redrawn. The series was retitled as 'Johan en Stefan', named after De Moor's sons, and serialized in Gazet van Antwerpen. Several episodes of 'Snoe en Snolleke' were later assisted by Geert de Sutter. The albums were published by Casterman and even translated in Portuguese.
De Leeuw van Vlaanderen ('The Lion of Flanders')
In 1949 De Moor started working for the magazine Tintin (Kuifje in Dutch), published by Éditions Lombard. His first work for the magazine was a comics version of Hendrik Conscience's historical novel 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' ('The Lion of Flanders', 1949-1950, also published in Ons Volkske). Both the original book as well as De Moor's adaptation are a romanticized account of the Battle of the Golden Spurs (1302), when Flemish troops won a victory against French armies. Conscience's novel helped reviving interest and pride in this almost forgotten medieval event. His book became a bestseller and the battle date itself (11 July) a national holiday for the Flemish community. As such, when De Moor published his comic book adaptation, many Flemings were familiar with the story, which likely helped its good reception. De Moor wasn't the first Flemish comic artist to adapt Conscience's novel: that honour should go to Eugeen Hermans in 1934. And around the same time De Moor's comic book adaptation was published an artist named Wik published another comic book version of 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' in rival magazine Robbedoes. De Moor wasn't even the last comic artist to translate Conscience's classic novel into a comic strip: Buth, Jef Nys, Gejo, Karel Biddeloo, Christian Verhaeghe and Ronny Matton all did the same. But it is generally agreed upon that De Moor's version is the best comic strip adaptation. Willy Vandersteen was so impressed that he too decided to make a realistic comics adaptation of a classic Flemish-nationalistic novel, 'Tijl Uilenspiegel', a few years later. De Moor even helped him with some of the artwork. And Buth was in such awe that he plagiarized several images from De Moor's 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' for his own text comic version.
While considered a classic today, De Moor's 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen' was not without controversy. Since the original book was such an important influence on Flemish nationalism and had French nobility as major villains De Moor's comic adaptation only saw light in the Dutch-language version of Tintin. The French-language version of Tintin published not the comic, but a written text, illustrated by De Moor, so they could still use the same magazine cover of a medieval battle. One little detail on the cover was changed, though. The Flemish flag was changed into a German eagle.
'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen'.
Sterke Jan
Around the same period, De Moor drew similar medieval-themed comics, namely 'Sterke Jan' ('Conrad le Hardi', 1951-1952) and 'De Kerels van Vlaanderen' (1952-1954). 'Sterke Jan' came from De Moor's own imagination and featured a medieval strongman not unlike the folkloric hero Jan Zonder Vrees or De Moor's previous 'Willem de Vrijbuiter'. However, the tone of 'Sterke Jan' is a bit sillier. Jan's strength is highly unrealistic. In one scene he hangs all his opponents to the city gate by their belts as if they are a bunch of clothes left out to dry. 'Sterke Jan' was reprinted in Ons Volkske as well.
De Kerels van Vlaanderen
'De Kerels van Vlaanderen' was another adaptation of a novel by Hendrik Conscience. The story centers around a group of Flemish rebels who rise against count Charles the Good in 1126-1127. While certainly epic, 'De Kerels van Vlaanderen', is a bit more nuanced, with heroes who aren't all incorruptible. This comic strip was also published in Ons Volkske.
'Monsieur Tric' ('Meester Mus', 1953).
Meester Mus
De Moor's most recognizable character created for Tintin was 'Meester Mus' ('Professeur Tric', later renamed 'Monsieur Tric', 1950-1979). Meester Mus is a well-meaning, but clumsy school teacher who looks somewhat like a cross between Charlie Chaplin and Willy Vandersteen's Lambik. He appeared both in short gags, as well as longer adventures of four pages in length. René Goscinny wrote the scripts for nine short stories in the 1957-1958 period. Gags of 'Meester Mus' were reprinted in Ons Volkske too, between 1952 and 1958.
Balthazar
For Tintin, De Moor also drew the gag strip 'Balthazar' from 1965 to 1967. 'Balthazar' is a pantomime comic about a little man in a black suit with a white moustache. Inspired by Mad Magazine, De Moor used a more absurd, cynical kind of comedy and cartoony style. He deliberately tried to draw "bad", without any regard for perspective or perfect anatomy. The free-spiritedness of 'Balthazar' was much to De Moor's liking and even Hergé and Greg supported the comic strip. Yet for Tintin's readers 'Balthazar' looked too "slovenly and sloppy". Several readers complained that this "badly drawn comic" didn't fit in the pages of their favorite magazine. After two years 'Balthazar' was therefore discontinued.
Other one-shot humor comics
De Moor additionally made a few other gag comics for Tintin, such as the gag strip 'Fee en Fonske' ('Bouboule et Noireaud', 1949-1951, also published in Ons Volk) and another humorous comic 'Mik, Dik en Vik. De Zoetwaterpiraten' ('Pirates d'Eau Douce', 1959.
'Barelli'.
Barelli
De Moor established a Clear Line style in the tradition of Hergé and Jacobs, and created his first continuing series starring the theatrical actor 'Monsieur Barelli' in issue #30 of Tintin in 1950. Georges Barelli is the son of the actor couple Olga and Otto Barelli. His uncle Vittorio is head of a theatrical company. Barelli's bespectacled aunt Sofie is one of the main side characters, as well as his black-curled love interest Anna Nannah, making 'Barelli' notable for a strong female cast. Barelli is comparable to Tintin, not just because of his quiff, but also because his actual profession is closer to being a private investigator. He frequently gets involved in all kinds of criminal situations which he then tries to solve. His best friend is the journalist-paparazzo Randor, who works for the paper Overal. At first presumably aided by Jacques van Melkebeke for the script, 'Barelli' appeared in new adventures in 1951 and 1952, and then in irregular intervals in 1964, 1968, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1979, 1981 and 1989.
In 1989 De Moor made a special 'Barelli' story, 'Barelli in Bruisend Brussel' (in French: 'Bruxelles Bouillonne', 1989), in commission for the Flemish Community. The comic book shows several tourist hotspots in Brussels and was succesful enough to be instantly reprinted and translated in English and Spanish too. During the making of the album De Moor was frequently assisted by his son Johan De Moor and assistant Geert de Sutter.
Cori de Scheepsjongen - 'Koers Naar Het Goud'.
Cori de Scheepsjongen ('Cori the Cabin Boy')
In 1952 De Moor created the comic series he is best known for and whom many consider his greatest achievement: 'Cori De Scheepsjongen' ('Cori Le Moussaillon'). In a way a continuation of 'Bart de Scheepsjongen', which he drew for Kleine Zondagsvriend in 1945, the work was drawn in a far more realistic style. 'Cori De Scheepsjongen' is set in the 16th-17th century and follows the adventures of Cori, a young boy who is kidnapped by pirates, but rescued by the Dutch East India Company, who adopt him as their cabin boy. The vivacious adventure stories are filled with sea battles, treasure hunts and provide readers with a well documented time capsule of nautical life during the heydays of exploring. Cori gets involved in battles against the Spanish Armada and the Eighty Years' War between the Netherlands and Spain. His travels bring him to exotic continents such as South-East Asia, Africa, America and the Arctic, while he also meets real-life historical naval officers like Pieter van der Does, Joris van Spilbergen, Willem Janszoon, Piet Heyn and explorers like Willem Barentsz.
Above all, 'Cori de Scheepsjongen' is a breathtaking showcase for De Moor's expertise in depicting caravels, galleons and other kinds of vessels down to the tiniest details. The first three stories were published in the 1950s, as 'Onder De Vlag van de Compagnie' (1952) and the two-parter 'De Onoverwinnelijke Armada'. After these three stories it would take until 1977 before De Moor found the time to continue the series. His first new entry, 'Koers naar het Goud' (1982), was actually a redrawn and colorized update of 'Onder De Vlag van de Compagnie'. He followed this with a genuine new story, 'De Gedoemde Reis' (1987), which received the Prix Jeunesse for children between the age of nine and twelve at the Comics Festival of Angoulême in 1988. His assistant on the later 'Cori' series was Geert de Sutter.
Bob de Moor was largely responsible for the modernization of the Tintin episode 'The Black Island'.
©Hergé/Moulinsart 2012
Assisting Hergé
De Moor's irregular post-war schedule can be blamed on his employment at Studio Hergé from 1950 on. Very quickly he became the main assistant to the Master. He worked on the re-styling and modernization of older 'Tintin' stories and made backgrounds for new ones, starting with 'Objectif Lune' ('Destination Moon', 1950-1952). Among his most astonishing contributions are the moon rocket and lunar landscapes in 'On A Marché Sur La Lune' ('Explorers On The Moon', 1952-1953), as well as his 1965 revision of 'L'Île Noire' ('The Black Island'). Hergé asked De Moor to redraw the backgrounds for this latter album at the request of British publishers, who felt that the original 1936 book presented an outdated version of their country. De Moor took the effort to actually travel to Great Britain and made countless sketches of local architecture, landscapes and official uniforms. He was also involved with the studio's promotional art and animation projects, such as Belvision's 1956 TV cartoons based on 'Tintin' and the backgrounds for their feature films 'Tintin et le Temple du Soleil' ('Prisoners of the Sun', 1969) and 'Tintin au Lac des Requins' ('Tintin and the Lake of Sharks', 1972).
Assistance of Willy Vandersteen
Between all his work for Hergé, De Moor still found the time to help out other colleagues as well. When his best friend Willy Vandersteen joined Kuifje/Tintin in 1948 to boost up sales, he was expected to improve his drawing style to be allowed in Hergé's magazine. Vandersteen still drew quite cartoony at that point and De Moor often assisted him with certain complicated scenes in the first 'Suske en Wiske' story in Tintin, 'Het Spaanse Spook'. His aid and lessons helped Vandersteen's artwork improve. De Moor also helped him with his realistic adventure comic 'Tijl Uilenspiegel' (1951-1953). The two Antwerp comics legends remained lifelong friends and often hung out together. Vandersteen was even godfather to De Moor's sons.
Assistance of Jacques Martin and Edgar P. Jacobs
De Moor also helped out Jacques Martin with his 'Lefranc' album 'Le Repaire du loup' (1970). He parodied Edgar P. Jacobs' 'Blake and Mortimer' in two pages published in Tintin in 1982. Following Jacobs' death in 1987, he and Geert de Sutter completed the second installment of the 'Blake & Mortimer' episode 'Les Trois Formules du Professeur Sato' in 1989.
'Les Trois Formules du Professeur Sato'.
Controversy
De Moor's work for Hergé since 1950 has both been praised and contested. Critics have accused him of basically drawing every 'Tintin'-related product, including the albums, while Hergé didn't even lift a pencil for it. Many scenes in later 'Tintin' stories look and feel more like artwork by De Moor than Hergé. In reality Hergé kept a close watch on the production. He still sketched out every story beforehand and had the final say over the content of each new album. While it's true that De Moor did draw the majority of the backgrounds and more technical aspects, Hergé insisted on drawing his main cast characters personally. Fans of De Moor also feel spiteful, because De Moor sacrificied the majority of his own career in function of Hergé. For a while it seemed likely that De Moor would finish Hergé's sketches for the final 'Tintin' album 'Tintin et l'Alph-Art' ('Tintin and the Alpha Art') and bring it out as a proper album. To his disappointment Hergé's widow Fanny Rémi vetoed the idea, feeling it would not be in line with her late husband's wish to have the series die with him. The plus side was that De Moor could now finally devote more time to his own comic series again.
Graphic contributions
De Moor illustrated the cover of 'Het Beeldverhaal in Vlaanderen en Elders' (Archief en Museum van het Vlaams Cultuurleven '1969). In 1980 he designed a sticker for Unicef and the same year he was one of several Belgian comic artists to make a graphic contribution to the book 'Er Waren Eens Belgen.../Il Était Une Fois... Les Belges' (1980), which illustrated historical anecdotes about Belgium with a gag comic or illustration on the opposite page. For a 1983 special issue of (Á Suivre) and its Dutch-language sister magazine Wordt Vervolgd, titled 'Adieu Hergé', he drew a graphic tribute to commemorate Hergé's death and designed the invitation for the 10th International Comics Festival of Angoulême that same year.
In 1987-1988 the publishing company Brain Factory International released a four-volume comic book series where Franco-Belgian comic authors visualized several songs by singer Jacques Brel in comic strip form. The second volume, 'Les Prénoms' (1987) featured a contribution by De Moor, illustrating the song 'Jojo'. In 1988 he parodied his own series 'Barelli' as 'Bary Lelli' in 'Les Auteurs Ravis Vous Proposent Leurs… Parodies' (Toulon, 1988), a collective comic book in which comic artists spoofed their own creations. He created the cover of the debut album 'A World of Machines' (1982) by the Belgian pop band The Machines, best known for the Belgian hits 'Don't Be Cruel' (1981) and '(I See) The Lies in Your Eyes ' (1982). For the Federation of Chemical Industry he made the educational comic book 'Een Afspraak in 2009'.
De Moor designed a large panel for the Belgian Pavillion at the Expo of Montréal (1967). In 1968 he created the poster for the exhibition 'Het Stripverhaal in België' in the Royal Libary of Brussels, reusing a drawing which appeared earlier in Tintin nr. 14 (1966). In 1987 he designed a fresco dedicated to 'Tintin', which was inaugurated on 31 August 1988 at the metro station Stoccle / Stokkel in Brussels.
Scriptwriting
While De Moor mostly did illustration work, he also wrote some gags for comics by Géri and and a story by Ploeg which appeared in Tintin Sélection nr. 19 (1973).
'De Lustige Kapoentjes'.
Recognition
Near the end of his career De Moor received the CISO-prijs (1972), the Stripclubprijs van de Vrienden van de 9e Kunst (1985) and the Crayon d'Or (1988) from the Chambre Belge des Experts for his entire oeuvre, while his 'Cori' story 'De Gedoemde Reis' won the Prix Jeunesse (1988) at the Festival of Angoulême. In 1991 he was knighted by king Boudewijn/ Baudouin as a Knight in the Order of Leopold.
Comics organisation work
Since 1977 De Moor was a jury member of the Bronzen Adhemar awards and a member of the Vlaamse Onafhankelijke Stripgilde. On 24 October 1984 the Center of Belgian Comics was founded, an association without lucrative purpose. Among its members were people like Alain Baran, Bob de Groot, Hec Leemans, François Schuiten and Marc Sleen. De Moor was named its president, because he was perfectly bilingual and respected on both sides of the language border. In 1989, when the Belgian Center of the Comic Strip opened its doors in Brussels, De Moor was honoured as one of several Belgian comic pioneers to be part of the permanent exhibition. The same year he was appointed artistic director of the publishing house Le Lombard. In 1990 he was part of the editorial board of JET, the first European magazine for young talent published monthly by Le Lombard.
Final years and death
In 1989 and 1992 De Moor suffered two strokes. During his hospitalisation he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He passed away in the late summer of 1992. His final 'Cori' album, 'Dali Capitan', was completed posthumously in January 1993 by his sons, Johan de Moor and Stefan De Moor.
Family connections
De Moor had five children. Johan De Moor enjoys a career as comic artist and political cartoonist of his own. Stefan De Moor is also active as a graphic artist. Chris De Moor enjoys some fame as an opera singer, while Dirk De Moor is a conductor. De Moor's only daughter Annemie works for Casterman.
Bob De Moor signed his books in Kees Kousemaker's Lambiek store in Amsterdam on 21 February 1981.
Legacy and influence
De Moor is remembered by many as a jolly soul, who enjoyed his work and always had stories to tell. In an interview in Tintin issue #38 (1975) he described comics as a "music-hall of paper" of which he enjoyed "the show, theater and spectacle". His comics and artwork are still admired by new generations of artists. Among the artists influenced by him are Philippe Geluck, Dirk Stallaert and Peter de Wit. In September 1998 'Cori' received his own comic book mural in the Rue des Fabriques / Fabrieksstraat in Brussels, as part of the Brussels' Comic Book Route. It was designed by G. Oreopoulos and D. Vandegeerde. The excellent website www.bobdemoor.info, hosted by Bernard Van Isacker and Luc Huygh, also keeps the latest news about De Moor in check. Several of De Moor's classic comics are reprinted to this day, most notably his five 'Cori de Scheepsjongen' adventures. In January 2019 the first issue of a new Flemish comic magazine, Stripkiosk, offered a reprint of his extremely rare comic book 'Bloske & Zwik, Detectives' as a free supplement.
Books about Bob De Moor
For those interested in De Moor's life and career Ronald Grossey's 'Bob De Moor. De Klare Lijn en De Golven' (Vrijdag, 2013) is a must-read.
Lambiek will always be grateful to De Moor for illustrating the letter "M " in our encylopedia book, 'Wordt Vervolgd - Stripleksikon der Lage Landen', published in 1979.
Bob de Moor and his characters. We recognize among the kids at the left side of the table (from left to right): Snoe (Johan), Snolleke (Stefan) and two Lustige Kapoentjes. Behind the table, leaning over De Moor's shoulder one can spot aunt Sofie, Anna Nannah, Cori, Barelli, a knight from 'De Leeuw van Vlaanderen', Nonkel Zigomar, Meester Mus, Randor and Balthazar. The approving man in the painting is Hergé.