Sanmao, China's favorite son turns 70
(Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2005-07-28 11:10

Mr Zhang Leping, the father of Sanmao, passed away in 1992. Zhang created the old Shanghai poor boy image in order to help many real life Sanmaos then. [baidu]

The 1930s, or the early period of Sanmao's life, is considered to be a period of great advancement in the development of China's modern cartoon industry.

In Shanghai alone back then, there were more than 20 cartoon magazines and cartoon comics could be found in most of the newspapers.

In 1936, the first nationwide exhibition on cartoon works was organized and an association bringing together all the best-known cartoonists was formed, marking 1936 "The Year of Cartoon."

"However, almost all the cartoon images created by Chinese artists at that time were of adults instead of children, " Zhang recalls. "The emergence of Sanmao filled a blank space - young readers had finally found their own equivalent of Mickey Mouse or Popeye."

Sanmao's "father" Zhang Leping also broke a rule by not adding words to his comic strips at a time when cartoon works had dialogue.

"Sanmao was created for all the people, including the poor and the illiterate," explains the junior Zhang. "Every time when my father finished a cartoon, he always showed it to us first to see whether we could understand - if we couldn't, he would restart."

In two years from 1935 to 1937, Zhang Leping had created more than 200 works about Sanmao who was just like any naughty boys in the neighborhood.

However, China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1937-45) broke out and forced the cartoonist to stop working on Sanmao for almost 10 years.

He resumed his work in 1946 and decided to draw images reflecting his thoughts and experiences of the war years.

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