Natasja statue

Stripprommenade walk of fame; In 2012 the statue of Natasha was unveiled.

The first story of Natasja, air stewardess appeared almost by chance in the weekly magazine Spirou. François Walthéry, her spiritual father, had made some drawings of this new female heroine since 1967 at the request of the former editor of Spirou who saw talent in the way he could draw female cartoon characters.
Charles Dupuis, who then oversaw the selection of the drawings, was won over by the idea, but the then editor-in-chief sent the drawings to the deepest cellars of the publishing house. The French censorship of that period regarding female figures was enormous. More than six months later, after an editorial change, the new editor-in-chief Thierry Martens found the drawings again. He urged Walthéry to finish the story quickly.

Natasja's first story first appeared in Robedoes no. 1663 of February 26, 1970, of which she immediately graced the cover. Many more adventures would follow.

While Walthéry was still working for Peyo on The Smurfs and on Steven Sterk, he started working with Roland Goosssens (Gos) on the first two stories of Natasja. After these two scripts, Gos would spend most of his time on other series and could no longer continue working with Walthéry. From then on, the artist would ask various screenwriters to develop stories for Natasja. It is even said that Walthéry does not start a new story if he cannot fall back on three different scenarios.

After Gos, Walthéry would work with, among others, Etienne Borgers, Maurice Tillieux, Marc Wasterlain and Peyo as screenwriters. This is why there is so much variation in Natasja's stories. Going from the first two classic adventures through the thriller-like "Metal Memory" to the Science-fiction stories such as "The Enigmatic Shapes" and "Miragues". Source Comics.net

Natasja (French: Natacha) is the Belgian comic series about an air stewardess of the same name, published by Dupuis and later by Marsu Productions. The character was created around 1967 by Walthéry. The leading role in each story is reserved for Natasja herself. She is beautiful, blonde, intelligent and resourceful. In terms of character, she is stubborn. She also has a sense of justice. Walter is a colleague and admirer of Natasja, who tries to win her heart. Commander Turbo is the captain of the Boeing 747 where Natasja is on duty.

Source: middelkerke.be/nl/toerisme/zien-en-doen/cultuur/kunst-open-ruimte/bronzen-stripstandbeeld/natasja