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I recently acquired the prequel to Tintin in America published in Le Petit Vingtième before the start of the actual adventure. As far as I can understand the French (and I am pretty poor at it) it has got 3 parts.

First there is an interview between Jamin, Tintin and Snowy to discuss Tintin's oncoming adventure.
An interesting thing that I found out from this is that Tintin actually knows Quick and Flupke and moreover, recommends them to Jamin in his absence.

Next there is a conversation between Tintin and Snowy in their apartment who discuss the criminals they evidently have to face in Chicago.

Then there is another bit where Tintin receives couriers from all around the world acknowledging his work and inviting him to their places. They receive some from America too and naturally, Tintin and Snowy's conversation shifts there.

Can anybody check whether I have got my information correct because, at present, I have no confidence in my French. Any further information is also welcome.

Here is the thread for the extra scenes, or prequels and sequels, of Tintin in the Congo.

As far as I can tell, this was done for every Vingtième adventure. If you want to understand the words, maybe you can either get a French dictionary or put it into Google Translate (not the most accurate, but better than nothing)?

Good idea! I will Google translate the whole thing once I get time and if there is anything new I will post it here.

Here is the prequel to what happened before Cigars.

As for the unofficial sites, you can rest assured I won't mention them in these forums. Thanks for clearing it up.

Better late than never, I suppose...!

Here's some additional information I have gleaned over time as to what the Petit Vingtième did for the start of Tintin in America in 1931.

On the 13th August there was a two page conversation (in dialogue form, with illustrations) between Snowy and Tintin.
It ran under the English headline Gangsters? Bootleggers? Hijackers? Racketeers?, and after a bit about the weather, and Snowy not being keen on the rain, it reveals that Tintin had been discussing a trip to America with someone from the paper. Much of that conversation was in English, which Tintin apparently speaks fluently, but Snow doesn't understand, so Tintin has to do a recap for him (and thus the readers) of the state of America - largely dealing with Prohibition and bootlegging.
The fact that the headline so neatly evokes the as-yet-to-be-created Captain Haddock, and the piece is largely about the problems of alcohol, is quite interesting.

In the week of the 20th, Tintin and Snowy answer their post (this is the "courrier" mentioned above - it's a French word for mail) which has been coming in from around the globe; this includes letters from various leaders and statesmen, calling on Tintin to undertake various commissions for them; he's also had a "formidable" pile of letters from America, some of which are threatening, but some of which are charmimng, and include an invitation to visit Chicago.

There then follows a section which is notable for condemning racism in America, and criticising the poor treatment of people of colour. It's an interesting counter to the questions over whether Hergé was inherently racist or not, however, it needs more un-picking.
While Hergé will have passed the copy for publication, he didn't actually write it; it also contains what I think is meant to be a joke (which seems to involve a punning word-play over why a Rastafarian from Abyssinia supposedly invited Tintin but not Snowy/ Milou, because he is a "ratter", rather than "rasta") which can be classed as racially and culturally insensitive.

At the time Jamin was strongly engaged with right-wing politics in Belgium, and indeed left Le Petit Vingtième to work for the Rexist Party of Léon Degrelle, producing many anti-Semitic cartoons; he then rejoined Hergé to work at the Le Soir Volée on Le Soir Jeunesse; I've seen it said that Hergé apparently remarked in 1939 that the success of the Rexist Party was more a result of Jamin's cartoons than Degrelle's speeches. Having gone to live and work in Berlin, Jamin was tried as a collaborator on his return to Belgium after the war, and sentenced to death for the more than 500 anti-Semitic cartoons he'd had published, and ordered to pay reparations; the death sentence was later commuted to a term in prison, and he was released in 1951.

So he has a background even more problematic than Hergé's, and perhaps we'd need more research into the origin and motives for the depiction of America in this Le Petit Vingtième feature.

But it's food for thought all the same.

Then on the 27th August, a further two page spread reveals that Tintin and Snowy are departing for America, on a liner from Cherbourg, on what will be a six day voyage. Snowy is worried abut having nothing to do, but Tintin explains that the boat is like a floating town, full of anything one might find there, such as hairdressing facilities, tobacconists, restaurants, bars, theatres and cinemas. There is also the chance to contemplate the raging waves!
This idle chit-chat is interrupted by an enounter with a bearded man, who asks for a light for his cigar. The illustration shows him doffing his hat, which reveals to the reader, if not our heroes, that the man's beard is false, held on by strings tied with a bow (his nose may be fals too, going by the picture). Tintin regrets he cannot oblige, as he doesn't smoke (using the English word "Sir" in his reply).
There is then a short epilogue, in which the stranger says (to himself) that he will telegraph "A.C." to say that the "little Belgian" is on his way, for which information he will be paid a lot of money.
Tintin and Snowy have gone to have their dinner, and Snowy asks Tintin if he thought there was something odd about the bearded man...?
The piece then ends with a message to readers that our heroes will arrive in Chicago the following Thursday, for their newest adventure.
I suspect that once again, Hergé provided the spot illustrations, while Paul Jamin wrote the text, but again, I can't say for certain.

It's always nice to know a bit more about the background of these earlier adventures especially since these short snippets often indicated the general direction the story would eventually take.

I wonder whether these prequel stories are collected somewhere? It would be interesting to compare the initial ideas that were teased in these stories and the eventual final product.


Did Hergé and Jamin still keep in touch after the war? They might have understood each other's plights since they were in a somewhat similar situation, being tried for their work during that period and so on. Apparently a book was published titled 'Complices Cités' that explored Jamin and Hergé's friendship. Unfortunately, it's kind of hard to get hold of it now.