Willy Vandersteen

Willebrord Jan Frans Maria Vandersteen — universally known as Willy — was born on 15 February 1913 in Belgium and died on 28 August 1990. Along with Marc Sleen, he is regarded as a founding father of Flemish comics, and his influence extended well beyond his home country into the Netherlands and Germany.

Vandersteen built one of the most productive studios in European comics history over a career of roughly five decades, ultimately overseeing more than 1,000 albums across upward of 25 series, with worldwide sales exceeding 200 million copies. His most celebrated creation is Suske en Wiske, a series that has appeared in English under several titles — Spike and Suzy, Bob and Bobette, and others — and was still selling 3.5 million books annually as of 2008. Two other major series defined his output: De Rode Ridder, which grew to more than 200 albums, and the western-flavored Bessy, which reached nearly 1,000 albums in the German market alone.

His ability to industrialize comic production while maintaining wide popular appeal earned him the informal title "the Walt Disney of the Low Countries," and Hergé himself described Vandersteen as "The Brueghel of the comic strip" — a nod to both his Flemish roots and his gift for populous, energetic visual storytelling. His work continues to be published and collected long after his death.