[Fram]

I thought I had the 'Robbedoes' magazine with the first appearance of the Smurfs nearby, but I somehow can't find it now. Instead, I have two other pics of early 1959 that I thought you might like to see.

The sad news is that this week, the very last edition of Robbedoes weekly magazine has appeared, after 67 years and more than 3500 numbers. The French language version, Spirou, keep on appearing (more than 100,000 copies every week), but for me, this is quite sad, as it is the origin of the Smurfs, and I collected them (I have almost every copy from 1960 on).

Advertising for the Pirrewiet (Pirlouit, Peewit) puppet from 1959, the first one together with the Marsupilami to be available: a Johan and some Smurfs would follow later


The first advertisement using Smurfs, appeared in 1959, while 'The magic flute' wasn't even finished yet! It's an advertisement for a game from Robbedoes magazine combined with Black Cat coffee.

[Rachel]

I know how much you love your comics Fram so I am sorry to hear one of your favourite ones is now be discontinued.

They are lovely early pics, Thank You for sharing them with us.

[Syd Smurf]

Fram that is quite an incredible collection....I have tons of Rolling Stone magazines and I thought that was impressive....but to have nearly every "weekly" magazine dating back to 1960 is phenomenal. I have liked some music magazines in the past that I bought religiously and have been very sad when their time has come to an unexpected end but I am sure none of these would mean as much to me as this magazine does to you.

Thank you for the pics and the insight of these magazines.....perhaps one day you will be involved with your own magazine that can carry on the spirit of what Robbedoes did.....I tend to think this type of work would suit you well. I guess it's just a shame that so many good things have to come to an end....but on the bright side Robbedoes did have a very good life which is more than most magazines would even dream about.

Dyar

PS - Just wanted to ask in that pic with the smurfs (before the release of the Magic Flute)....what was the advertisement for or of?

[Guest]

Fram you really should do a website, you have so much knowledge about this stuff.

[Fram]

The advertisement with the Smurfs was published before publication of the Magic flute story was finished (it appeared with a rhythm of one or two pages a week, so it took a while to finish), but some months after the Smurfs first appeared in it (and thus in the magazine). So it isn't the first appearance of the Smurfs or so, but it is the first one (I know off) outside the original Johan and Peewit story.
Robbedoes magazine had a contest every month, sponsored by a Belgian coffee label, "Zwarte Kat" or "Chat noir" (Black cat). This time, they had taken standing expression, and changed some words by "Smurf" (e.g. "what do you have up your Smurf" or "I'm hungry like a Smurf" or so). The readers had to find the original expression. Not too tough, but as it was a juvenile magazine (readers from 7 or 8 years on), it wasn't supposed to be too hard.
You couldn't win any Smurfs or so, as there were none available yet.

[attombomb7]

hi ! Fram

very impressive

thanks for showing us those primitive looking images of the smurfs

very sweet!