We inadvertently overlooked the birthday of Smurfs (a.k.a. Schtroumpf) creator Peyo yesterday. To correct the oversight, we present a brief timeline highlighting the career of those little blue people and the man who introduced them to the world.
1928 Pierre Culliford was born in Brussels, Belgium on June 25. He would later adopt the pen name Peyo based on a childhood nickname given to him by one of his cousins.
1958 The Smurfs first appeared in the story “La flûte à six trous” (“The Flute with Six Holes”) featured in the Belgian comic Johann and Peewit.
1959 The first Smurf figurines debuted: Papa, Normal, and Angry.
1965 The Smurfs appeared in the black-and-white animated film Les Aventures des Schtroumpfs (The Adventures of the Smurfs).
1976 Belvision Studios produced the animated film La Flûte à six schtroumpfs (The Smurfs and the Magic Flute). The movie will not be released in the United States until 1983.
1981 The animated television series The Smurfs premiered on NBC in the United States. Produced by Hanna-Barbera, the show aired 256 episodes before being cancelled in 1989.
1992 Peyo died in Brussels on Christmas Eve at age 64.
2008 To mark the 50th anniversary of the Smurfs and Peyo’s 80th birthday, the Royal Belgian Mint issues a 5 eruo commemorative coin.
2011 Columbia Pictures released the family-friendly movie The Smurfs, a combination of live-action and CGI starring Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Hank Azaria, and Sophía Vergara. The film also features the voices of Jonathan Winters (Papa Smurf), Katy Perry (Smurfette), Fred Armisen (Brainy Smurf), Alan Cumming (Gutsy Smurf), Jeff Foxworthy (Handy Smurf), George Lopez (Grouchy Smurf), B. J. Novak (Baker Smurf), Wolfgang Puck (Chef Smurf), Paul Reubens (Jokey Smurf), Kenan Thompson (Greedy Smurf), and Anton Yelchin (Clumsy Smurf).
(Image: Smurfette by Peyo)
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