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Bianca Castafiore)
The Adventures of Tintin has several minor characters:
General Alcazar
General of the army of San Theodoros, Alcazar switches with comedic frequency between being president of the country and leading a rebellion to battle the government led by his arch-rival General Tapioca. His first appearance was as an anonymous criminal in Cigars of the Pharaoh, his last being in Tintin and the Picaros.
Allan
Originally a first mate under an alcoholic Haddock, Allan is often involved in smuggling and other criminal activities as one of Rastapopoulos' henchmen. He was known originally as Allan Thompson, but when English translations began to appear, this was shortened down to Allan to avoid confusion.
Bianca Castafiore
The only major recurring female character in the Adventures of Tintin, the opera diva first appeared in the album King Ottokar's Sceptre. Her name is Italian for "chaste flower". Although apparently one of the leading opera singers of her generation, the only thing that Castafiore is ever heard to sing is the opening line of the Jewel Song, l'air des bijoux, from Faust, always at ear-splitting volume: "Ah my beauty past compare, these jewels bright I wear!" Unsurprisingly, opera was one of Hergé's pet hates. She is said to have been modeled on real-life opera singer Maria Callas. She has a crush on Haddock, for whom she has a strong mothering instinct. She always pronounces his name incorrectly ("Capitaine Karbock"), and whenever she showers him with tokens of affection the results are disastrous. She later gets involved in rumours surrounding an affair with Haddock — much to the Captain's chagrin.
Chong-chen Chang
Based upon Chang Chong-jen, a real friend of Hergé, Chang is perhaps Tintin's dearest friend, and is the only character for whom Tintin ever sheds a tear. Chang first appears in The Blue Lotus, as a young orphan who Tintin saves from drowning and befriends. Chang later appeared in Tintin in Tibet, which concerns Tintin and Haddock's mission to find Chang in the Himalayas when his plane crashes. The book is perhaps Hergé's most deeply personal. When he wrote it, he had not seen the real-life Chang for several decades.
Ben Kalish Ezab and his son Abdullah
The Emir of Khemed, and his very spoilt son. Abdullah can be very tiresome at times, as Tintin finds out when rescuing them in Land of Black Gold and again in The Red Sea Sharks.
Oliveira da Figueira
A native of Lisbon, Portugal, he is a friendly salesperson who has the ability to sell even the most trivial of items from umbrellas to roller skates to patrons throughout the Middle Eastern region, though he eventually set up shop in Khemed. He first encounters Tintin in Cigars of the Pharaoh as a bustling trader, and then in Land of Black Gold as a retailer/supplier for Emir Ben Kalish Ezab, where he offers to help Tintin infiltrate J.W. Müller's palace and uncover his oil control scheme.
Irma
The maid of Bianca Castafiore.
Pablo
First appears in The Broken Ear when he saves Tintin from some soldiers. He later tries to help him get killed. Tintin forgives him, however.
Mitsuhirato
A Japanese spy who appears in The Blue Lotus. He tries to turn Tintin insane by injecting him with the fictional "Rajaijah" juice. After this fails, he trys to kill Tintin with his knife, then discovers that Tintin has substituted a rubber knife. He commits seppuku after being found out.
Dr. J.W. Müller
Villainous doctor, whose main appearance was in The Black Island. Later he appears in Land of Black Gold and The Red Sea Sharks .
Nestor
Before he was under the employment of Captain Haddock at Marlinspike Hall, he dutifully served as a butler for the Bird Brothers, the estate's previous owners. Nestor made his first appearance in The Secret of the Unicorn, and proves to be a staple character in numerous Tintin stories.
Roberto Rastapopoulos
A Greek-American tycoon, also known as Marquis di Gorgonzola. He is Tintin's arch-nemesis, who first appeared in Cigars of the Pharaoh, initially as a seemingly sympathetic character. It was not until the denouement of The Blue Lotus, the follow-up to Cigars of the Pharaoh, that Rastapopoulos was revealed to be the head of the sinister opium-smuggling ring against which Tintin had been pitting his wits for two books.
Rastapopoulos subsequently resurfaced as a slave trader in The Red Sea Sharks, and kidnapped the millionaire Lazslo Carreidas in Flight 714. In the unfinished Tintin and Alph-Art, Rastapopoulos resurfaced (how he escaped abduction was not dwelled upon). Rastapopoulos also appeared in Tintin and the Lake of Sharks, an album adapted from an animated feature of the same name, and into which Hergé had no creative input. It is not considered to be part of the Tintin canon. Rastapopoulos was first glimpsed in Tintin in America, where he is seen sitting left of Tintin, and celebrating Tintin's successful adventure in America during a Gala dinner.
Piotr Skut (originally Szut)
An Estonian pilot, who appears in two albums: The Red Sea Sharks and Flight 714. The surname Skut (or Szut) does not, however, seem to be Estonian. The closest spelling to Estonian should be Sütt. On the other hand, the first name of this character should be not Piotr, but Peeter, since Piotr is a Russian form of Peter. Thus, this character's name would be better suited as Peeter Sütt, sounding typically Estonian.
Colonel Sponz
Former Bordurian Chief of Police of Szohod, Sponz masterminded the plot to kidnap Professor Calculus in The Calculus Affair. Sponz intended to force Calculus to hand over his plans for the ultrasound weapon, or be imprisoned in Borduria for the rest of his life if the proposition is refused. In Tintin and the Picaros, Sponz is "lent" as an advisor to General Tapioca, under the pseudonym Colonel Esponja. Sponz forges documents laying out a plan to assassinate Tapioca and plants them into the possession of a touring Bianca Castafiore, framing her as a conspirator. As Castafiore payed a disastrous visit to Haddock in The Castafiore Emerald, Sponz frames Tintin, Haddock, and Calculus as well, out of revenge for the humiliation they bestowed upon him in The Calculus Affair. Sponz is finally revealed after Alcazar's Picaros take over the country, and, defeated once again, is shipped off to Borduria.
General Tapioca
An enemy of General Alcazar. He appears in The Broken Ear and Tintin and the Picaros. He is the on-again, off-again dictator of San Theodoros (deposed and re-instated in that fictional country's innumerable coups).
Jolyon Wagg (Séraphin Lampion)
An intensely gregarious, simple, and friendly man. As such, he is strongly disliked by Captain Haddock (although Wagg remains cheerfully oblivious to this, believing himself to be a great friend of the Captain). Wagg is often portrayed as a clueless tourist in the exotic places where Tintin and the Captain have their adventures. Wagg is an insurance salesman by trade, and he often tries to sell the other characters insurance. He is generally seen as a more "modern" character, as opposed to the older archetypes (crusty sea captain, absent-minded professor) that inhabit Herge's earlier works. Wagg only appeared relatively late in the series; his first appearance was in The Calculus Affair, the 18th of 25 Tintin books. Wagg also appears in The Castafiore Emerald, Flight 714 and Tintin and the Picaros.
Wagner
The pianist working with Bianca Castafiore.
Frank Wolff
A scientist assisting Calculus during the Moon mission, Wolff earned Captain Haddock's wrath by refusing to allow him to take any alcohol or tobacco on board the rocket (though the captain managed to smuggle some alcohol on-board anyway). Wolff generally stayed out of the story until they landed on the Moon. As soon as he was left alone with Tintin, he went down to the cargo hold and freed one of Tintin's old enemies, Colonel Jorgen. The two then attempted to escape in the rocket, taking Tintin as hostage, but an act of sabotage by Tintin grounded the rocket (but also caused extensive damage). On the return trip, Jorgen managed to escape from his ropes, and decided to shoot the crew of the rocket. However, Wolff tried to stop him, and Jorgen inadvertently shot himself, dying instantly. With the rocket's oxygen running out, Wolff, deciding that the mission's troubles were his fault, decided to exit the rocket out of the airlock. He was presumably killed by decompression and suffocation.
Zorino
One of the gypsies.
For a complete listing of characters, see also List of the Adventures of Tintin characters.
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