{"id":29969,"date":"2024-06-09T11:54:27","date_gmt":"2024-06-09T11:54:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=29969"},"modified":"2024-06-09T11:54:27","modified_gmt":"2024-06-09T11:54:27","slug":"walt-disneys-donald-duck-the-brittle-mastery-of-donald-duck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2024\/06\/09\/walt-disneys-donald-duck-the-brittle-mastery-of-donald-duck\/","title":{"rendered":"Walt Disney\u2019s Donald Duck: The Brittle Mastery of Donald Duck"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Carl Barks<\/strong> (Gladstone Comic Album #7)
\nISBN: 978-0-94459-906-8 (Album PB)<\/p>\n

Although experts quibble over the details of Donald Duck<\/strong>\u2019s debut (I cleave to the notion we should use the premier of The Wise Little Hen<\/strong> on 3rd<\/sup> May rather than the June 9th<\/sup> US general release date), everybody agrees 1934 was the year and that the magnificent mallard is 90 this year. In honour of that achievement, here\u2019s a lovely old book starring Disney\u2019s top cartoon star that you might be lucky enough to find. Even if you can\u2019t, the stories are scattered throughout Fantagraphics\u2019 magnificent Carl Barks library editions which we will continue sporadically reviewing and which you really should already own…<\/em><\/p>\n

Donald Duck<\/strong> ranks among a small group of fictional characters to have transcended the bounds of reality and become – like Sherlock Holmes<\/strong>, Tarzan<\/strong>, Popeye<\/strong> and James Bond<\/strong> -meta-real. As such, his origins are complex and convoluted. His official birthday is June 9th<\/sup> 1934: a dancing, nautically-themed bit-player in the Silly Symphony<\/strong> cartoon short The Wise Little Hen<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The animated cartoon was adapted by Ted Osborne & Al Taliaferro for the Silly Symphonies<\/strong> Sunday newspaper strip and thus classified by historians as Donald\u2019s official debut in Disney comics. Controversially, he was also reported to have pre-originated in The Adventures of Mickey Mouse<\/strong> strip which began 1931. Thus the Duck has more \u201cbirthdays\u201d than he knows what to do with, which presumably explains why he\u2019s such a bad-tempered cuss.<\/p>\n

Visually, Donald Fauntleroy Duck <\/strong>was largely the result of animator Dick Lundy\u2019s efforts, and, with partner-in-fun Mickey Mouse, is one of TV Guide<\/strong>\u2019s 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time. The Duck has his own star on the Hollywood walk of fame and has appeared in more films than any other Disney player. Throughout the 1930s, his screen career grew from background and supporting roles via a team act with Mickey and Goofy<\/strong> to a series of solo cartoons beginning with 1937\u2019s Don Donald<\/strong>. That one also introduced love interest Daisy Duck<\/strong> and the irrepressible nephews Huey, Louie and Dewey<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n

By 1938 The Duck was officially more popular than corporate icon Mickey Mouse, and even more so after his national service as a propaganda warrior in a series of animated morale boosters and information features during WWII. The merely magnificent Der Fuehrer\u2019s Face<\/strong> garnered the 1942 Academy Award<\/em> for Animated Short Film<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

Crucially for our purposes, Donald is also planet Earth\u2019s most-published non-superhero comics character, and blessed with some of the greatest writers and illustrators ever to punch a keyboard or pick up a pen or brush. A publishing phenomenon and megastar across Europe – particularly Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Iceland – Donald (& Co) have spawned countless original stories and many immortal characters. Sales are stratospheric across all age groups there and in upwards of 45 other countries they export to. Japan\u2019s manga publishers have their own iteration too\u2026<\/p>\n

The aforementioned Silly Symphonies adaptation and Mickey strip guest shots were trumped in 1937 when Italian publisher Mondadori launched an 18-page comic book story crafted by Federico Pedrocchi. It was quickly followed by a regular serial in Britain\u2019s Mickey Mouse Weekly<\/strong> (a comic produced under license by Willbank Publications\/Odhams Press that ran from 8th<\/sup> February 1936 to 28th<\/sup> December 1957). Issue #67 (May 15th<\/sup> 1937) premiered Donald and Donna<\/strong><\/em> – a prototype Daisy Duck girlfriend – drawn by William A. Ward. Running for 15 weeks, it was followed by Donald and Mac<\/strong><\/em> before ultimately settling as Donald Duck<\/strong> – a fixture until the magazine folded. The feature inspired similar Disney-themed publications across Europe, with Donald regularly appearing beside company mascot Mickey\u2026<\/p>\n

In the USA, a daily Donald Duck<\/strong> newspaper strip launched on February 2nd<\/sup> 1938, with a colour Sunday strip added in 1939. Writer Ted Karp joined Taliaferro in expanding the duck cast and history: adding a signature automobile, pet dog Bolivar<\/em>, goofy cousin Gus Goose<\/em>, and grandmother Elvira Coot<\/em> whilst expanding the roles of both Donna <\/em>and Daisy<\/em>. In 1942, his comic book life began with October cover-dated Dell Four Color Comics<\/strong> Series II #9: AKA Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold<\/strong>. It was conceived by Homer Brightman & Harry Reeves, scripted by Karp and illustrated by Disney Studios employees Carl Barks & Jack Hannah. That was the moment everything changed\u2026<\/p>\n

Carl Barks was born in Merrill, Oregon in 1901, and raised in rural areas of the West during some of the leanest times in American history. He tried his hand at many jobs before settling into the profession that chose him. His early life is well-documented elsewhere if you need detail, but briefly, Barks was a cartoonist, then an animator before quitting the Studio in 1942 to work in the new-fangled field of comic books. From then until his retirement in the mid-1960s (he officially downed tools in 1966 but was cajoled into scripting stories well into 1968), Barks worked in self-imposed seclusion: writing, drawing and devising a vast array of adventure comedies, gags, yarns and covers that gelled into a Duck Universe of memorable and highly bankable characters like Gladstone Gander<\/strong> (1948), Gyro Gearloose<\/strong> (1952), Magica De Spell<\/strong> (1961) and the nefarious Beagle Boys<\/strong> (1951) to supplement the Studio\u2019s stable of cartoon actors.<\/p>\n

His greatest creation was crusty, energetic, paternalistic, money-mad giga-gazillionaire Scrooge McDuck<\/strong>: the World\u2019s wealthiest winged nonagenarian and frequent spur\/gadfly and reluctant sugar daddy to the adventuresome youngsters\u2026<\/p>\n

Whilst producing all that landmark material Barks was also just a working guy, generating cover art, drawing other people\u2019s scripts as asked, and always adding stories to a burgeoning international canon of Duck Lore. Only after Gladstone Publishing began re-packaging Barks material in books like this during the 1980s, did he discover the well-earned appreciation he never imagined existed. Media Historian Leonard Maltin called Barks \u201cthe most popular and widely read artist\/writer in the world\u201d\u2026<\/p>\n

So potent were Barks\u2019 creations that they fed back into Disney\u2019s overarching animation output, despite all his brilliant comic work being for Dell<\/strong>\/Gold Key<\/strong> and not the studio. The greatest tribute was undoubtedly animated series Duck Tales<\/strong>, based on his classic Uncle Scrooge adventures. Barks was a fan of wholesome action, unsolved mysteries and epics of exploration, and this led to him perfecting the art and technique of the blockbuster tale: blending wit, history, plucky bravado and sheer wide-eyed wonder into rollicking rollercoaster romps that utterly captivated readers of every age and vintage. Without the Barks expeditions there would never have been an Indiana Jones<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n

During his working life Barks was utterly unaware that his work – uncredited due to company policy, as was all Disney\u2019s comics output – had been recognised by a rabid and discerning public as \u201cthe Good Duck Artist\u201d. When some of his most dedicated fans finally tracked him down, belated celebrity began.<\/p>\n

In 2013, Fantagraphics Books began chronologically collecting Barks\u2019 Duck stuff in curated archival volumes, tracing his output year-by-year in hardback tomes and digital editions that finally did justice to the quiet creator. These will eventually comprise the Complete Carl Barks Disney Library<\/strong>. Physical copies are sturdy and luxurious albums – 193 x 260mm – to grace any bookshelf.<\/p>\n

Gladstone Publishing began re-releasing Barks material and sundry other Disney strips in the late-1980s and this album is one of their best. Printed in the European oversized format (278mm x 223mm) this joyous compendium collects an occasional series of similarly-themed yarns: some of the best and funniest Duck tales ever crafted.<\/p>\n

The \u201cBrittle Master\u201d series is the name given by devotees to a group of stories wherein the perennial failing, fiery-tempered and eternally put-upon everyman Donald displays an excellence in some unique skill or service, winning the approval and veneration of all and sundry – only to have his own smug hubris bring about his ultimate humiliation and downfall.<\/p>\n

The first untitled tale, from Walt Disney Comics and Stories<\/strong> #156 (1953) sees Donald as an airplane-piloting, cloud-sculpting Master Rainmaker catering to increasingly outrageous requests from his adoring public. This leads him inevitably to disaster – in this case the creation of a full-blown, devastating Ice-storm…<\/p>\n

Next, from WDC&S<\/strong> #222 (1959) comes the tale of the Master Mover, as Donald displays an uncanny ability to transport anything anywhere, only to come a crushing cropper when he guarantees to shift an entire zoo to a mountaintop in one afternoon!<\/p>\n

From Donald Duck<\/strong> #68 (also from 1959) \u2018The Master Glasser\u2019<\/em> (we\u2019d call him a glazier) is a wickedly satirical glimpse at small-town America as the arrogant artificer at the height of his fame attempts to repair the aged fascia of Duckburg\u2019s giant clock. Perhaps he shouldn\u2019t have tried to do it live on TV?<\/p>\n

The fourth tale is one where I suspect Donald actually found his true calling. The \u2018Master Wrecker\u2019<\/em> (WDC&S<\/strong> #26, 1962) is the go-to-duck if you need something demolished with no muss or fuss, and even in this hilarious yarn Donald doesn\u2019t actually fail. The target is utterly razed: it\u2019s just not the one he was supposed to demolish…<\/p>\n

This delightful collection ends with the satisfyingly sharp \u2018Spare That Hair\u2019<\/em> (WDC&S<\/strong> #272, 1963) as Donald the Master Barber finally wins one for a change, even though he mistakenly shaves a gorilla and inspires the ire of a rowdy circus ringmaster…<\/p>\n

Barks was as adept with quick-fire gag stories as epic adventures; blending humour with drama and charm with action, and even if you can\u2019t find this particular volume, most of his unforgettable work is readily accessible through a number of publications and outlets and in many languages. So if you seek to become a Master Reader, you know what you need to do…
\n\u00a9 1988, 1963, 1962, 1959, 1953 The Walt Disney Company. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Carl Barks (Gladstone Comic Album #7) ISBN: 978-0-94459-906-8 (Album PB) Although experts quibble over the details of Donald Duck\u2019s debut (I cleave to the notion we should use the premier of The Wise Little Hen on 3rd May rather than the June 9th US general release date), everybody agrees 1934 was the year and … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Walt Disney\u2019s Donald Duck: The Brittle Mastery of Donald Duck”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,113,128,303,125,97,127,156],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29969","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-comedy","category-disney-comics-and-stories","category-donald-duck","category-humour","category-kids-all-ages","category-nostalgia","category-world-classics"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-7Nn","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29969","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29969"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29969\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29972,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29969\/revisions\/29972"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}