Danish actor Palle Huld dies at 98

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Danish actor Palle Huld, who reportedly inspired a Belgian cartoonist to create the comic book reporter Tintin, has died. He was 98.

Huld died Nov. 26 in a retirement home in Copenhagen. The cause of death was not given.

Huld was a stage actor with Denmark’s Royal Theater, and he appeared in 40 Danish films between 1933 and 2000.

However, his fame came before his acting career began.

In 1928, he won a competition organized by a Danish newspaper that wanted to send a teenage would-be reporter around the globe.

For 44 days, the 15-year-old traveled to North America, Japan, Siberia and Germany. He was greeted by 20,000 people upon his return to Copenhagen.

Herge, the pen name of Belgian author Georges Remi, heard of Huld’s journey, which reportedly inspired him to create Tintin, the globe-trotting reporter.

-- Associated Press