Henryk Chmielewski (comics) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Henryk Chmielewski |
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Chmielewski in 2007
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| Born | Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski 7 June 1923 Warsaw, Poland |
| Died | 22 January 2021 (aged 97) Warsaw, Poland |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Pseudonym(s) | Papcio Chmiel |
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Notable works
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Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek series |
| http://www.tytusromekiatomek.pl/ | |
Henryk Jerzy Chmielewski (born June 7, 1923 – died January 22, 2021) was a famous Polish comic book artist and journalist. Many people knew him by his nickname, Papcio Chmiel, which means "Daddy Hops".
During World War II, he was part of the Home Army and fought in the Warsaw Uprising. After the war, he started working as an artist for a magazine called Świat Młodych. This is where he began publishing his own comics.
His most famous work is the Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek series. The first book came out in 1966. This series tells the adventures of Tytus de Zoo, a talking chimpanzee who acts like a human. Tytus wants to become a real human.
Papcio Chmiel's comics are known for being very funny and using clever word plays. They were made for kids and teenagers. His goal was to be both fun and educational. His stories often taught readers about history (especially Polish history), science, art, or showed characters trying out different professions.
Contents
Early Life and War Heroism
Henryk Chmielewski was born in Warsaw, Poland, on June 7, 1923. When World War II started, he joined the Home Army. This was a secret Polish army fighting against the invaders. He bravely took part in the Warsaw Uprising. This was a big fight in 1944 to free Warsaw.
Family Life
In 1949, Henryk Chmielewski married Anna Śliwińska. They had two children: a daughter named Monika (born in 1951) and a son named Artur Bartłomiej (born in 1957). His son Artur later worked at JPL, which is a famous place where they build spacecraft. Henryk Chmielewski passed away on January 22, 2021.
Starting His Comic Career
On September 1, 1947, Henryk Chmielewski began working as an artist for Świat Przygód (which means The World of Adventures). This magazine was for children and teenagers. It often printed comic strips from other countries, translated into Polish.
One day, the magazine couldn't get the newest parts of an American comic called King of the Royal Mounted. So, Henryk Chmielewski was asked to draw his own parts of the story. This way, the comic wouldn't just stop suddenly. He drew six episodes, and he considered this his first time as a comic artist.
When he answered letters from readers, he used the name Dziadzio Chmiel. This means "Grandpa Hops". He thought kids would feel more comfortable writing to a "grandpa" than to a 25-year-old man.
In 1949, Świat Przygód joined with another magazine to become Świat Młodych (meaning The World of Youth). Around this time, the magazine stopped publishing comics. This was because Poland was under a Stalinist government, and comics were seen as an American art form.
Between 1950 and 1956, Henryk Chmielewski studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. After he finished his studies, he thought about becoming a poster artist. Publishing comics was still not allowed.
However, in 1956, things started to change in Poland. This period was called the "Gomułka's thaw". It meant that some rules became less strict. So, Chmielewski decided to try drawing comics again.
He created a black-and-white comic called Romek i A'Tomek. It was about two boys who accidentally flew into space in a rocket. During their trip, they found a talking space monkey named Tytus. At first, Tytus was just a side character. The idea of making Tytus more human wasn't fully developed yet.
The comic wasn't published right away. The editor of Świat Młodych was worried. He feared that publishing a comic might cause problems with the government's censorship office. But then, the Soviet Union launched the Sputnik 1 satellite in October 1957. Because of this, Świat Młodych decided to publish Romek i A'Tomek since it was about space.
The first part of the comic appeared on the front cover on October 22. It was called a "picture story" instead of a comic. The characters quickly became popular. Chmielewski then started creating more adventures, now called Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek. In 1964, he even started a "Tytus Club" in the magazine. It featured funny articles supposedly written by Tytus himself.
The Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek Series
In 1965, after nine years of Tytus... appearing in the newspaper, a publisher suggested making a comic book. The publisher only printed things related to scouting. So, Henryk Chmielewski got very specific instructions. Romek and A'Tomek were supposed to be scouts. They would check if Tytus could also become a scout. The characters would also try to find jobs, earn money for a scout camp, learn about old buildings, and fight superstitions. The publishers wanted the comic to "educate through entertainment and entertain through education."
After six months of drawing, the first book, Tytus harcerzem (Tytus the Scout), came out in 1966. They printed 30,000 copies, and they all sold out in just one week!
Even though they didn't plan for a series at first, people wanted more. So, Chmielewski was asked to create a second book. This one was about traffic laws. Tytus otrzymuje prawko jazdy (Tytus gets a Driving License) came out in 1967. It sold 50,000 copies very quickly. Because of this success, the publisher ordered three more books:
- Tytus kosmonautą (Tytus the Cosmonaut, 1968)
- Tytus żołnierzem (Tytus the Soldier, 1969)
- Podróż do ćwierć koła świata (Journey around a Quarter of the World, 1970)
In his later years, Chmielewski also created "albums" with his characters. These were like artbooks. They didn't have a story, but instead had separate funny pictures. The first album, showing Tytus and his friends as soldiers during the Battle of Warsaw, was published in 2010.
Main Ideas in the Comics
The main idea of the Tytus... series is Tytus becoming more human. This means his intellect becomes more like a human's. This idea often helps to include educational parts in the story.
Chmielewski's comics are famous for using word plays, like puns and new words. For example, the character A'Tomek's name is a mix of the word atom and Tomek (a common Polish nickname for Tomasz).
Publisher's Influence on Stories
Before 1989, when Communism ended in Poland, the publishers often decided what the main topics of the comics would be. Sometimes, they even chose specific adventures. Henryk Chmielewski didn't always like these ideas. For example, he wasn't a fan of the second book's topic, which was about road rules. He wanted to focus more on funny situations, while the publisher wanted it to be mostly educational. As a compromise, he created a board game about traffic laws that was included in the middle of the book.
For the fourth book, Tytus the Soldier, the publishers worried that drawing army vehicles in a cartoon way might make the army look silly. So, they hired another artist to draw realistic pictures of army vehicles and weapons. These drawings, along with technical details, were put in the margins of the comic book.
Chmielewski wanted to show the United States in a good way in Journey Around a Quarter of the World. He wanted his characters to become stuntmen in Hollywood. However, the publishers wanted to show that racism existed there. They also suggested an episode where Tytus would meet fighters in the Angolan War of Independence. Chmielewski disagreed, saying these topics were too serious for a funny comic. But in the final book, the characters do see a "whites only" beach in Miami.
Awards and Recognition
Henryk Chmielewski received many awards for his bravery in World War II. He was given the Warsaw Cross of the Uprising in 1983. In 2006, he received the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.
For his amazing work as an artist, he was awarded the Gloria Artis Medal for Merit for Culture, Gold Class, in 2007. This is the highest Polish award for artistic achievements. On the same day, two other comic artists also received this medal. It was the first time that comic book artists were given the Gloria Artis award.
In 2019, the President of Poland honored Chmielewski with the Medal of Century of Regained Independence. He was also a Knight of the Order of the Smile, which is an international award given by children to adults who have done great things for them.
Images for kids
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Chmielewski in 2007
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A commemorative plaque in Łódź where Chmielewski lived in 1945
