Jan Steeman

Jan Steeman was born on 23 May 1933 in the Netherlands and became one of the more quietly enduring figures in Dutch comics, working as an artist, inker, colorist, letterer, and writer across more than 470 issues over a career that stretched from the early 1970s well into the following decades.

He is remembered above all for two long-running series. The first, *Roel Dijkstra*, brought association football to Dutch comic readers in an era when the sport was at the heart of national culture. The second, *Noortje* — a humor strip centered on the misadventures of an endearingly clumsy teenage girl — ran in the girls' weekly *Tina* for more than forty consecutive years, a record that makes it the longest-running Dutch comic strip maintained by the same artist. His scriptwriter on *Noortje* was Patty Klein, and the strip's continuity was eventually secured when Steeman's son Lucas took over the creative duties, ensuring the character outlived its creator.

Among his other credited titles were *Sjors*, *Arad en Maya*, and *Het beste uit Tina*. In 2005 Steeman received the Stripschapprijs, the Dutch comics field's most prominent honor. He died on 24 January 2018 from kidney failure, leaving behind a body of work defined by consistency, warmth, and an unusually deep connection to a single devoted readership.