orld-popular cartoon characters The Smurfs are now 50 years old and Belgians have prepared a big birthday bash starting early this week. The celebration will cover key European cities including Paris and Berlin.

The Smurfs, the diminutive blue-colored forest dwellers, were created by late Belgian cartoonist Pierre Culliford, fondly called 'Peyo,' through a comic strip in the late 1950s-back then, they were still called Schtroumpf. In the early 1980s, Smurfs debuted on US television and became hugely popular worldwide since then.

Peyo's family is leading the Europe-wide 50th year birthday celebration of The Smurf's family led by Papa Smurf and Smurfette. To continue the Smurf creator's legacy, an animated film and comic book will be released next year. The Smurfs are also working closely with the United Nations promotion of children's rights and education globally.