Illustrator of legendary ‘Cin Ali’ series passed away

ISTANBUL

Selçuk Seymen, the illustrator of “Cin Ali,” a legendary stick man series that has been published since 1968 and used as a book for teaching the Turkish children how to read and write, has passed away in the capital Ankara on late Aug. 17.

“Cin Ali” was written in 1968 by Rasim Kaygusuz, a Turkish teacher who emphasized Cin Ali’s stories with simple words so that all first-grade students would understand and learn to read with joy.

To seem more sympathetic, Kaygusuz thought of “Cin Ali” as a stick man character.

Then, Selçuk Seymen, one of Kaygusuz’s students, started illustrating “Cin Ali.”

Later, the 10-book series was added to public schools’ syllabus, helping millions of students to learn the skill of reading.

Kaygusuz died on Dec. 3, 1988, after which Seymen took over the portfolio of the series.

In the 90s, Seymen and his colleagues changed the image of “Cin Ali” from the stick man to a dark-haired boy with a bow tie.

The Turkish Education Ministry took the series out of the schools’ syllabus in 2005.

“We have lost Selçuk Seymen,” Cin Ali Publishing House said in a tweet on Aug. 17.

“Cin Ali lost his illustrator after its creator. Cin Ali is now left alone,” daily Hürriyet commented in its feature on Aug. 19.