Tintin Forums

Last week, while researching Roy Orbison, I stumbled on a music arrangement book from, guess what? Charles Gounod's Faust.
I looked it up and found the arrangement for Castafiore's The Jewel Song and guess what other info I got? Wagner was one of the names of the characters in Faust, and I think that's where Wagner's (the accompanist in the Tintin books) name came from. ;)

Although I agree, Wagner from Faust is Faust's assistant, as Igor Wagner is sort of Castafiore's assistant, it doesn't explain the "Igor" part of the name...

Personally, I believe that Castafiore's pianist got his name from the two composers: Igor Stravinsky and Richard Wagner.

labrador road 26
It doesn't explain the "Igor" part of the name,
Igor was of course Dr. Frankenstein's loyal assistant when making his creature (as portrayed by Marty Feldman in Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein, for example); Terry Prachett has actually created a race of Igors, who act as henchmen (hench-Igors? Hench-persons?) to many of his madder characters in the Discworld series...

...but I like the sound of the Stravinski/ Wagner source better!

Digging up yet another old thread...

In the recent book Les Bijoux de la Castafiore (the Journal Tintin version), included within the extra pages is a floor plan of Marlinspike Hall. This shows the layout of the first and second floor. Aside from the usual residents, there are guest bedrooms for Castafiore, Irma and... Wladimir. Who is Wladimir? Well, it appears this was the working name for Mr Wagner. Although he was first seen in King Ottokar's Sceptre over 20 years prior back in 1938, he wasn't officially named then. He was just Castafiore's pianist, the man with no name. Irma, however, was first seen and referred to by name in The Calculus Affair in 1954, which was almost ten years before Emerald. Wagner didn't get to be formally introduced by name until The Castafiore Emerald.

Another strange one concerning his name; we were watching the Tintin and the Lake of Sharks cartoon film quite recently and in the scene where Castafiore first appears she refers to Wagner as 'Walter'. It's unclear how this came about and whether it's correct in the French language version. I put it down to poor or lazy translation (although I will admit to being one of the few who really like that film!!)

EDIT - 2-1-25
I neglected to mention - the Bijoux book also states that Hergé was toying with the name 'Casimir' for Wagner. It has got me wondering whether Hergé perhaps intended him to be Syldavian, or Slavic or Balkan. You couldn't get a more Syldavian name than Wladimir. We first encounter him in Syldavia and - although Hergé likely wasn't thinking too far ahead at that point - it's possible Castafiore might have hired a local pianist. Irma too is a slightly Balkan and Germanic name, so I'd like to think of them as both having East European roots!

Also, I have since checked the French version of The Lake of Sharks animation and can confirm that he is referred to as Wagner in that!

At the time the latter stories were written there were quite a few East Europeans who had moved to Western European as they didn't fancy their chances living under Communism, so Wagner & Irma could both be émigrés.