[André]

I don't think mine is handpainted, Andre, but will check when I get them out again soon

Just for thought...a lot of the Dutch fakes (those ugly cheap ones) also have the Peyo marking but are clearly fakes, so just having the Peyo marking is not proof that something is licensed

I think the Peyo markings simply means that the character is from Peyo, but not necessarily that the figurine is licensed..this would be the other marking like Schleich, Hering Brazil, Argentinia Minimodel.

In regards to the CNT sticker...doesn't Comic Non Toxico mean that this figurine is not toxic (as in the material that was used is not toxic)? I never took it as a company name but more as a reassurance label for parents

I agree with you Maureen that many fakes are marked Peyo. And also W germany or Schleich etc.

You write: "I think the Peyo markings simply means that the character is from Peyo, but not necessarily that the figurine is licensed". I agree with that some fakers could just have put Peyo on the smurfs because he is the artist. And then off course it is not a licensed smurf. For me it is licensed if it is made for Peyo, and also approved by him.

So when I write licensed I mean genuine items made for Peyo or Dupuis. Not made for Schleich or Bully. They are just companies making smurfs for Peyo.

There are a lot of companies making smurfs, made of not that good quality. For example the small smurfs made for kindereggs are licensed and I don´t see them as fakes, eventhough the quality is bad. But then they don´t cost that much. Schleich are known for making handpainted quality figurines and then they costs more. And other smurfs like Pixi, Leblon Delienne, plastoys, restitec etc costs even more, because of their quality materials and artistskills.

Bur for example if the smurfs are meant to be giveaways in a kelloggs box, the quality don´t necessarily have to be that good. It could be a small unpainted minismurfs, but still approved by Peyo.

Maybe I use the wrong word when I write licensed??

For me fakes are smurfs sold without the permission of Peyo or IMPS. Good quality or bad doesn´t matter. Same goes the opposite way. Not all licensed smurfs are of good quality??

Intresting the thing about the CNT´s Maureen!
I did not think of that since everyone calls them CNT. So the companyname is the one Joaquin wrote about?
The story Joaquin tells us makes a lot of sence and so far is the most likely story of what happend. But the very good quality and markings and sticker tells me there could be more! But the very colourful ones would definatly not have been approved by Schleich.

But it could simply be that this company had really good intentions and wanted to make really good smurfs to show Schleich ( in this case they are using Schleichmolds and would then have to had been making these for Schleich) and hoped by showing these for Schleich that they would get approved to make these for Schleich??

[Smurfysmurf]

I disagree about the use of Peyo on the smurfs, Andre. I have seen obvious unlicensed items that I don't think Peyo would have ever given his approval for with the stamp Peyo, i.e. the ugly Dutch fakes that appeared a few years ago...so for me this means that either the copy-right of the name Peyo expired and therefore was changed to IMPS (and now Lafig) or it was never copy-righted and everybody can use it

I agree that I would never consider the Kinder smurfs or smurfs given out as a giveaway as unlicensed..because those are approved by IMPS as can usually been seen on the packaging of the items that were added to (i.e. boxes for the giveaways, or wrappings for the kindereggs)

[barrufet]

I remember some ad in the 1980's spanish newspapers warning about the fake smurfs. I have the clipping somewhere.

And here it is, an ad about fake smurfs in the spanish market.
From a Barcelona newspaper called La Vanguardia, 1983 7h June.

[Lia]

Fantastic that you`ve found this!

Lia

[André]

That is fantastic!!

Thanks for that ad and the information. Just have to try to translate it!!

And then read the thread again and see what I have written???

Ads like this are so important when trying to get the history.

So this probably meant that the last fakes, made by the factory making the CNT´s stopped around 1983? Would you say that is correct?

[barrufet]

Glad you like it. Sorry, I have no idea about CNT. I don't think fake smurfs stopped after this ad. Here you have some translation:

WARNING from THE SMURFS
The brand Schleich, company located in 7070 ...Germany, is the owner of all world wide production copyrights of the smurf figurine in PVC and all their accessories.
Some not authorized figurines appearing at the spanish market belong to Schleich S c Peyo.
With this AD we comunicate that our exclusive importers in Spain is the brand:
MONT-TORRES
Gran Via street num 641
Barcelona
who through them or through the society IREC S.A of the same address can commercialize them in Spain.
WARNING:
Fabrication and/or not authorized comercialization of SMURF, their accessories or any other character of our catalogue constitute a severe violation of the copyrights of SCHLEICH, as current law provides them.
SCHLEICH is strongly determined to proceed in the court against offenders of those copyrights in a immediate way, with all the strength that law allows.

[barrufet]

Here you have the original newspaper in pdf, hope you can open it :

http://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/prev ... 3/pdf.html

Don't you have any internet newspaper and periodicals library like this in USA?
It would be very useful to find interesting data...for example the correct order of the HB episodes...

[André]

I have some Eura smurfs too since 1980. They were at shops.
Anyway what was Eura? I don't think they were official.
I remember some ad in the 1980's spanish newspapers warning about the fake smurfs. I have the clipping somewhere.

I agree that the marking is a bit odd.

Eura Spain. Why mark anything Spain?? Schleich marked the smurfs W germany, but they send them abroad.

The ad in the newspaper is really nice and that actually goes very well with when the CNT´s stopped. I mean when looking at the smurfs released. No smurfs made after 1982/83 seems to have been made by the factory making CNT´s. Is that correct??
There were a few CNT´s with marking that made me think that they could have been licensed in the beginning. But when I found out that those actually were copies of the Eura spain-smurfs I think the story Joaquin told us is the most likely one! So no CNT´s were licensed.

Regarding the Eura Spain. Since the CNT´s factory made copies of these they must have been made before the CNT´s were made. I would guess the CNT´s could have been made for a few years, meaning from 1980-1983??? Could that be correct?

[André]

For me both the Eura Spain smurfs and the PAT marked smurfs goes very well with smurfs used as give aways in cereals or used in some kind of promotion. I mean there are only a few made of each. The smurfs made tells us they go very well with around 1978?? Also the fact that this was during a time when lots of smurfitems were made for different kind of promotions tells us they could be licensed.

And the name Eura Spain is as you pointed out a bit odd. Maybe these figurines, not only the smurfs( other figurines with this marking), was made outside Spain, but for the spanish market??? Maybe stupid, but still a thought!!

Well, still a mystery those ones.

[Lia]

in Spain, a lot of figurines exist with eura spain marking:
Asterix, Maya the bee, Disney, Don Quichot, Superman...
I can`t imagine, these are all unlicensed????

[André]

That´s what I think also Lia.

The year for those to me seems to be around 1978. I wouldn´t be surprised if there were a company making figurines for promotions or similair in Spain. And as said not necessarily located in Spain.

If you would compare the size on the eura spain with the schleich ones. would you say they are almost the same?? I mean the CNT´s seems to be smaller??? Or??

[Lia]

not always.

I try to compare and I put the camera on the exact same level as the smurfs.
All left smurfs are eura, the right ones are CNT.
really hard to tell

Lia

[Pitufo]

Very very interesting, Joan!!!

I think I have said it before: the owner of the shop where I usually bought smurfs when I was a child told me not much time ago that he bought licensed smurfs and the called (for us) cnt smurfs in the same store. But I have no doubts they were unlicensed

[André]

Great to hear Joaquin and I think that is the correct story to. Makes sence. Thanks for that information.

Do you remember the ones marked Eura spain also?

And the Pat marked ones.

It is always intresting to hear the stories from the ones living in Spain and who have actually bought the smurfs once. Eventhough it is off course very hard to remember exactly. I mean usually children don´t check markings! And the CNT smurfette and drummer are copies of the Eura Spain marked ones.

It is the same for me when I bought the smurfs in Sweden when I was a child in the 70s. I don´t remember exactly. But I remember that there were different colours on the gymnast shirt. Also both handstand colours existed. The sunbathers and the pirates also came in different colours. Since me and my brother wanted all smurfs released I mainly remember those because these came in variations of the same smurf. Off course same with the soccerplayer. As the black and white one I have, on which I wrote the name of our local team on the shirt, because they played with the same colours.