Hey Tintin fans! I was looking up some pictures of Abdullah, and apparently our favorite future-emir was based on a real boy, Faisal II, who became the last king of Iraq at 3 years old after his father died in a car crash in 1939. In 1941, Herge saw an article about the “boy king” of Iraq in National Geographic, and created the Abdullah we all know and love!
Like Abdullah, Faisal II was very fond of practical jokes. Sharif Ali bin Hussein, who was a relative to Faisal II, can quote Abdullah’s lines in Tintin from memory and is very fond of how Herge portrayed his cousin as Abdullah.
I love finding out things like this! Look at how handsome Faisal II looked in his 20s up there! :D
