As a kid, nothing was more thrilling to me than to read The Adventures of Tintin, action-packed stories of a young journalist from Belgium. Tintin and his witty sidekick and canine companion, Snowy, somehow always managed to get themselves into a bit of a scrape with a wide assortment of thugs and evildoers. Whether they sailed the high seas in search of a meteorite with the drunken Captain Haddock, or gave the bungling Thom(p)son twin detectives the slip; in the end, Tintin and Snowy always prevailed.
If you’re a fan of Tintin then you probably know about the awesome collection of Tintin merchandise at Crackerjack Contemporary Crafts in Wallingford Center. Now for a limited time, the store’s collection is about to get a whole lot bigger: Beginning Friday (9/30) through Sunday, October 9, Crackerjack is opening an annex to their store to feature limited edition prints, resin sculptures, canvases, figurines and more. From Crackerjack’s press release:
Crackerjack has carried the licensed merchandise for fifteen years, as a bit of a departure from Crackerjack’s primary focus, which is American handmade. Owner Kathleen Koch explains the addition of the Tintin merchandise as a reflection of her admiration for the beauty of the artwork, as well as a fondness for the character.
If you’ve never heard of Tintin, you will soon enough through Stephen Spielberg and Peter Jackson’s upcoming film. But for now, here’s a great synopsis from Crackerjack:
Tintin is a comic character created in Belgium in 1929 by artist Georges Remi, pen name Herge, at the request of the newspaper Le XXe Siecle. They wanted to create a children’s section in the newspaper and thus was born the world-renowned reporter, Tintin, accompanied on all his adventures by his faithful dog Snowy. The serialized comic strip has gone through many evolutions, from newspaper to book form, from black and white into glorious color, and from French into over eighty different languages.
The exhibit opening will take place Friday September 30, 2011 from 5 – 8 p.m. Refreshments will be served and Tintin “specialists” will be on hand to answer questions about the pieces. On Saturday, October 8, 2011, customers are encouraged to dress as their favorite Tintin character and join in activities appropriate for all ages.
Hours for the event are as follows: Friday September 30, Opening, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., otherwise Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday 12 noon to 5 p.m.