babar - king of the elephants
Babar, the peace-loving elephant was created by Jean De Brunhoff who was born in Paris on 9th December 1899. Jean studied Art at L'Academie de la Grande-Chaumiere in Paris and here he became close friends with fellow pupil Emile Sabourand. They had much in common. Besides their wealthy, middle-class backgrounds both families loved music and literature.
Jean became a frequent visitor to the Sabourand home and this is where he met his wife Cecile, who was Emile's younger sister. Jean and Cecile married in October 1924. Jean and Cecile's first son, Laurent, was born on 30th August 1925, their second, Mathieu, on the 28th July 1926 and their third, Thierry in 1934.
Jean was inspired when he heard Cecile telling their two boys a bedtime story about an elephant. Jean named the elephant 'Babar' and produced some pictures in bright and clear colours. It was Jean's brother, Michel, and brother-in-law who saw its potential and as they were magazine publishers they soon arranged for Jardin Des Modes to issue L'Histoire De Babar Le Petit Elephant as a large picture book just before Christmas 1931.
Jean owed his initial popularity with the British children to A.A. Milne. Milne had seen the French edition of the first book at a friend's house in 1932 and was both impressed and enchanted by the bright-coloured and detailed drawings, as well as the hand written text. Milne persuaded his publishers, Methuen, to bring out a British edition for which he provided an introduction. So in 1934, under the title 'The Story of Babar' was published with immediate success.
Jean had been working on "Babar at Home" and "Babar and Father Christmas" when he was diagnosed with tuberculosis ofthe bones. Jean managed to complete the line drawings but was too ill to complete the full colour volumes. Jean died in the autumn of 1937 at the age of 38.
After his death, his French publisher Hachette, under the supervision of Jean's brother Michel, had the drawings coloured. Michel asked Jean's eldest son, Laurent, who was thirteen, to colour two double-page spreads for Babar at Home and the cover for Babar and Father Christmas.
Laurent proved to be a talented artist, and his bold, abstract paintings were exhibited in Paris. However, since Laurent had been making sketches of elephants in a notepad since he was ten, he decided to produce a 'Babar' book of his own, and in his father's style. 'Babar and that Rascal Arthur' was published in Britain in 1948 in the familiar extra-large format and with a hand-written text.
Laurent married Marie-Claude in 1951 and had two children, Anne and Antoine before their separation in the mid-1980's.
Laurent went on to produce a long series of 'Babar' picture books. Babar's Castle (1962) shows Laurent at his best. But with this picture-book and with the later titles the familiar large format was abandoned and the hand-written text replaced by letter-press.
In 1985, Laurent left France for America. He lives today in Connecticut, with his second wife, Phyllis Rose, who is a writer and teacher.
Jean De Brunhoff had written seven titles in his short life, but even without Laurents fifty-or-so stories the kindly elephant would still be amongst the century's great childrens characters.
Contributed by Fiona Lane
(Published 30th Sep 2013)
