Show Us Your Ducks! 15 15

[50YrsCollctngCmcs]

Another purchase from earlier this year.

 

Regarding the popularity of Disney comics in the US, I think the days of leaning back and slowly watching the value of your collection go up are over. Just a few lurkers can make a huge difference towards keeping the hobby alive if they are willing to share their knowledge, enthusiasm, and photos online.

 

 

A beauty TB! The WDCS run looks to be starting to take shape!

[vaillant]

I can only share my experiences as a youth in the seventies. Things are different now. Remember back then the biggest comic show was attended by hundreds of people maybe the low thousands. Now San Diego attracts hundreds of thousands but the quality of the material they are there to see is very commercial in nature; not necessarily artistic. It's all hard to describe you have to live it!

 

I know when I visited Europe in 1982 I was blown away to find theaters showing only Donald Duck cartoons in France. Also, the stores that sold Graphic novels completly surprised me. Nothing like this existed in the States at that time.

 

I was vaguely aware of the Italian comics but did not see too many of them on that trip. Wished I had looked harder but my time in Italy was short.

 

Ah, now I understand, you were speaking of how the general perception of comics still was in the 1970s, and… yes, there were similar attitudes here, but as I said they mostly faded as criticism progressed.

I was a kid in the 1970s, and a young collector in the 1980s, and the preconceptions were still present, but of course they were pretty varied, and here they were also a byproduct of certain educational methods and a certain culture from the decades between WWI and WWII.

It wasn’t the same thing as in the States, since there wasn’t this "geekness" concept: comics were mostly generically considered by ignorant people as childish and immature reading. But there was another, educated audience, also between teachers and literate people, which kept comics in high esteem, especially classic syndicated strips to which an entire generation, born in the 1920s, was exposed (if you remind, the introduction to the Steranko History of Comics was written by Federico Fellini: he knew little about comics, but he was a first-time reader of Flash Gordon).

 

So this pretty much explains everything: the situation evolved differently from country to country. One of the worst things in the current comics publishing industry, is – in my opinion – fragmentation. Too many publishers, not enough effort to promote and publish works of value.

[50YrsCollctngCmcs]

I had forgotten the Fellini introduction in Steranko's History. Those books were like pillars of wisdom in the wilderness of surburbia in the early seventies. I remember receiving those books as a Christmas present and showing them to my Dad and Uncle. They were amazed that someone had bothered to make a book out of the throw away paper of their youth.

 

Duck fans were really in the wilderness. If you started to talk to anyone about Barks they would look at you like you were an alien! My high school was a little progressive in that it actually displayed my collection of Donald Duck Four Colors my freshman year in the school library during an open house. That was certainly an unusual display in its day.

 

I even created an adapatation of Hamlet called Ducklet in one of my English classes. In another English class I really angered the teacher when I wrote and read an article called, OK Axis Here we Come (the title admittedly stolen from the book AICFAD) defending the comic books as an agent of liberty during WWII. The teacher obviously disapproved of comics and he started yelling at me for writing a propaganda piece that would sway the ideas of others. Sounds like I should have got a good grade on that if I got that kind of reaction!

Edited November 21, 2012 by 40YrsCollctngCmcs

[Yellow Kid]

I was a minor baskektball star when I graduated from high school in 1962, but even that wasn't enough to overcome the stigma of also being known as a comic book collector. One day one of the coolest guys in school gave me a ride home and came in and looked at my comics. He said he thought they were really neat, but that I had to quit talking about them if I ever wanted to get into the best club. By this time Leonard Brown and I were doing a great mail order business. I was building my collection and making money without having to cut every yeard in the neighborhood so I was happy. Besides, my "reputation" led to several students selling me their collections of old comics so as far as I was concerned, there was nothing to change.

 

The next fall I wrote about comics and how THE SEDUCTION OF THE INNOCENT was off base. I even cut panels out of some of my books and glued them in my paper but my professor was not impressed--please don't ask why I didn't just Xerox the pictures instead of ruining my books. She suggested that I should write on something more serious in my next paper.

 

I was also a coin collector and was biten by the gold bug. I traded everything I had to a local dealer for a few $20 gold piecdes.

 

Years later, in the one-panel cartoon called BERRY'S WORLD, a prosperous man sitting behind a big desk was asked the secret of his success, and he said, "I got into comics and gold before they became popular." So did I, but if they had never become popular, I would have still been happy because I was collecting what I liked.

[vaillant]

In another English class I really angered the teacher when I wrote and read an article called, OK Axis Here we Come (the title admittedly stolen from the book AICFAD) defending the comic books as an agent of liberty during WWII. The teacher obviously disapproved of comics and he started yelling at me for writing a propaganda piece that would sway the ideas of others.

This is awesome! (thumbs u

 

I was a minor baskektball star when I graduated from high school in 1962, but even that wasn't enough to overcome the stigma of also being known as a comic book collector. One day one of the coolest guys in school gave me a ride home and came in and looked at my comics. He said he thought they were really neat, but that I had to quit talking about them if I ever wanted to get into the best club.

This is unbelievable!

Well, in 1962 maybe it was believable, even in Italy, but not on your friend’s part, maybe on your teacher’s part.

 

The next fall I wrote about comics and how THE SEDUCTION OF THE INNOCENT was off base. I even cut panels out of some of my books and glued them in my paper but my professor was not impressed--please don't ask why I didn't just Xerox the pictures instead of ruining my books. She suggested that I should write on something more serious in my next paper.

This is BAD.

Edited November 21, 2012 by vaillant

[vaillant]

Now, something has really changed for good, at least in Italy, if some of my friends managed to research and write something like this:

http://eccettotopolino.blogspot.it/

 

"Eccetto Topolino" ("All but Mickey Mouse") indagates and explores the directives of the fascist regime, underlining the cultural clash between fascism and comics.

The title is taken from a famous phrase, which was rumored to have been spoken by Benito Mussolini himself, as his sons were big Disney fans, so the leading italian Disney publications were spared when the USA entered the war, and american comics were prohibited.

It’s a book on comics which reads like an history text, or a history text which reads as a comic book, your choice.

 

 

[50YrsCollctngCmcs]

Now, something has really changed for good, at least in Italy, if some of my friends managed to research and write something like this:

http://eccettotopolino.blogspot.it/

 

"Eccetto Topolino" ("All but Mickey Mouse") indagates and explores the directives of the fascist regime, underlining the cultural clash between fascism and comics.

The title is taken from a famous phrase, which was rumored to have been spoken by Benito Mussolini himself, as his sons were big Disney fans, so the leading italian Disney publications were spared when the USA entered the war, and american comics were prohibited.

It’s a book on comics which reads like an history text, or a history text which reads as a comic book, your choice.

 

 

 

I would like to know more about this book if you would care to elaborate. I have actually read quite a few books over the last year and a half about WWII; it really defining the America of my youth. It all started when I decided to read the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer last June.

 

Anyway, there was a lot in there about Mussolini that I did not know. It just skims the surface though.

[50YrsCollctngCmcs]

Years later, in the one-panel cartoon called BERRY'S WORLD, a prosperous man sitting behind a big desk was asked the secret of his success, and he said, "I got into comics and gold before they became popular." So did I, but if they had never become popular, I would have still been happy because I was collecting what I liked.

 

Rich,

 

I hope you have that cartoon posted over your desk!!

[tb]

A beauty TB! The WDCS run looks to be starting to take shape!

Thanks, but it's still in the early stages. The Mickey Mouse Magazines were a piece of cake in comparison.

[worldsbestcomics]

 

Wanted to share this photo with the rest of you.

 

Congratulations. That is a beautiful book and I'm glad it ended up in an amazing collection.

[AJD]

tb:

 

Here's my latest somewhat more modest pickup from ebay:

 

 

 

[AJD]

Here's a couple for vaillant.

 

Australian Disneys in the late 1960s often featured Italian stories translated (usually pretty well) for an Australian audience. here's the title page from one of them. I don't know what the Italian title was, but the English version is a play on the title of a famous Australian book 'Robbery Under Arms'

 

 

This one had a cover that might have been locally drawn:

 

 

 

Vaillant: do you recognise these stories?

[BB-Gun]

tb:

 

Here's my latest somewhat more modest pickup from ebay:

 

 

Just in case you wanted to cut up the cover to see the animation. Those later FC stories by Barks are more like extended WDCS stories. Not as spectacular as FC 29 but more fun per page.

Edited November 28, 2012 by BB-Gun

[50YrsCollctngCmcs]

tb:

 

Here's my latest somewhat more modest pickup from ebay:

 

 

Just in case you wanted to cut up the cover to see the animation. Those later FC stories by Barks are more like extended WDCS stories. Not as spectacular as FC 29 but more fun per page.

 

This was also the period when Barks tried a more realistic drawing style which was really apparent in Dangerous Disguise. I have not read Big Top Bedlam in many years; I will try to do so over the Christmas holiday.

[vaillant]

@AJD: Love the Donald Duck, I seem to recall the story.

 

About the italian stories, what an impression to see them in Australian editions! Before the internet spreading of shared images it wasn’t common to see them translated, except for german or french editions which occasionally we saw at seaside locations.

 

The I.N.D.U.C.K.S. database comes to the rescue. (thumbs u

 

The first story is "Zio Paperone e le difese automatiche" (Uncle Scrooge and the automatic defenses), a 1967 story by Michele Gazzarri and Massimo De Vita originally published on our magazine sized publication "Almanacco Topolino":

http://coa.inducks.org/story.php?c=I+AT++127-B

 

The second story appears to be unindexed, art is by Giulio Chierchini (I love his work!), I’m sure I read it, but I don’t recall its title. Would be great to index.

Also, that Uncle Scrooge does not seem to appear in the list of Australian publications: http://coa.inducks.org/country.php?c=au

[vaillant]

I just received my VERY FIRST Golden Age issue of Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, with one of my favorite stories written and drawn by Carl Barks: "Three Dirty Little Ducks". I also love the Donald Duck feature with the Seven Dwarves, and the beautiful page with the War Insigna.

 

 

I am satisfied with the grade, only thing is that, being from 1944, this is one of the issues with the "dreaded single staple" for the war shortages, and in this case I have seen the cover paper around the staple is delicate, so I fear to detach the cover by just handling it…

[Scrooge]

Great choice for your first one.

[AJD]

@AJD: Love the Donald Duck, I seem to recall the story.

 

About the Italian stories, what an impression to see them in Australian editions! Before the internet spreading of shared images it wasn’t common to see them translated, except for german or french editions which occasionally we saw at seaside locations.

 

The I.N.D.U.C.K.S. database comes to the rescue. (thumbs u

 

The first story is "Zio Paperone e le difese automatiche" (Uncle Scrooge and the automatic defenses), a 1967 story by Michele Gazzarri and Massimo De Vita originally published on our magazine sized publication "Almanacco Topolino":

http://coa.inducks.org/story.php?c=I+AT++127-B

 

The second story appears to be unindexed, art is by Giulio Chierchini (I love his work!), I’m sure I read it, but I don’t recall its title. Would be great to index.

Also, that Uncle Scrooge does not seem to appear in the list of Australian publications: http://coa.inducks.org/country.php?c=au

 

It's this one. The Italian title is 'Paperino e l'isola delle perle'. One thing I've wondered is why the Beagle Boys have Australian 'slouch hats' in this story (see here). Were they added locally, or did they have them in the Italian original? (And why?)

 

I have some more Italian stories reprinted in Australia. I'll dig them out next time I set the scanner up.

Edited November 29, 2012 by AJD

[Duffman_Comics]

I'm getting an "untrusted site" warning on AJD's inducks links (I am using Firefox).

 

Anyone else having a problem?

 

Oh, and I didn't realise the Welsh were so fluent in Italian

[vaillant]

It's this one. The Italian title is 'Paperino e l'isola delle perle'. One thing I've wondered is why the Beagle Boys have Australian 'slouch hats' in this story (see here). Were they added locally, or did they have them in the Italian original? (And why?)

 

I have some more Italian stories reprinted in Australia. I'll dig them out next time I set the scanner up.

 

Great! I think very likely the Beagle Boys may have had them in the original, considered also the story takes place in Australia. Story is by Gian Giacomo Dalmasso (b.1907 - d.1981); the old school of italian Disney writers were learned people, often very culturally aware, and they used to put a lot of care in documentation, detail, etc.

Unfortunately I cannot check, since the story originally appeared in an Almanacco Topolino, and I have little issues of this title (which was magazine sized and very likely had a lower print run than our main Disney title, Topolino, where the majority of the new italian stories appeared). So I also assume I never read it, or maybe I read it in a reprint.