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An interview with the creator Jet Boeke
Dikkie Dik was white
Every Dutch familie with childeren has a cat, even if they have not one at home. Because Dikkie Dik enters through the program Sesamstraat for already twenty- five years every livingroom. With this is the orange cat a bit everyones pet.
Jet Boeke is Dikkie Dik�s creator and illustrator .
twenty-five years ago she designed him specialy for Sesamstraat.
Dikkie Dik debuted the other way. First he was only shown in Sesamstraat. And after many request from childeren and parents he was also available in picture books.. "It was 1976 and I visited America with Athur van Norden, he now writes the stories about Dikkie Dik. There I saw Sesame Street for the first time and I liked the show at once. After a two years trip I heared that they wanted the show in Holland. Because I wanted to mean something for this show, I contacted some people who were in transaction with the people from Jim Henson".
At that time Jet couldn�t possibly think she would make picture books. "I graduated at the art academi as a grafic designer, but I also did a lot with cartoons. At first I wanted to make cartoons for Sesamstraat. But in that time there was no money for it. They gave me the task to create something for the youngest viewerd.... and so I did".

With the task she got the advise that little childeren have a difficulty to watch and listen the same time. "I tried to make pictures where you don�t need any text with. The storie should tell it self. And the  idea is that someone on television could improvise with the childeren arround him. Rudi Kuhn, who was appointed to this job  had a hard time with this.
The redaction then agreed that there should be some text with the pictures. Athur van Norden began to write little stories as if the reader was improvising, very simple."

Dikkie Dik was inspired by Boekes own cat. "When I begon � had a white kitten named Dikkie Dik. I wanted to use the cat for my stories. But because they already kind of a white cat (Troel), Dikkie Dik ended up orange".
Even the real Dikkie Dik died in 1994, he still is the cat that appears in little picture books and still is an inspiration to Jet Boeke.
"Dikkie Dik was curious and had a lot of trust in life. He wasn�t though and did sometimes real stuppid things. but hey, who doesn�t?
Kids fall from trees sometimes too and they climb in the very next day."

Those naughty stories are very reconizable to childeren and that is Dikkie Dik�s succes. But that isn�t all.
"I have the gift to keep things simple. When somepeople talk, they add to much details. Childeren get confused.
Many things came and left the show, but Dikkie Dik is now a random guest for twenty-five years now. And he is as populair as in the beginning. What did I say? He is more populair then ever".
And she is right, because her last picture book `Dikkie Dik, jarig!� that appeared in march 2003, sold out with 50.000 copies.
It looks like the Dutch people never gets enough from him. Jet Boeke her self agrees with this idea. Although she wanted to quit when her real white Dikkie Dik died.
"I thought: I made so many stories, it is ok to stop. But the compliment from parents and childeren gave me stimulation.
I should mis the nice reactions from kids and their parents. So... I got two new cats en went on.

The feeling is great, that childeren who never seen my work get attracted by Dikkie Dik picture books. I think it�s important I can give my contribution to this. And I also can put my ideas in these picture books. You could say that Dikkie Dik is the coat rack where I hang up my ideas.
The thinking and creating is wat I like most. But the colouring is now a routine. But I couldn�t let other people do that for me, it is my handwriting".

`Dikkie Dik, Jarig!�
Jet Boeke
Publisher Gottmer, 2003
ISBN 90 257 3572 X

Geri.
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