Lars Bylund, Floyd Gottfredson e... VADEMECUM

Chi è Lars Bylund? Cos'è VADEMECUM? Cosa centra Floyd Gottfredson con questi nomi?

Queste sono le tre domande che, chi segue il blog da tempo, si potrebbe fare leggendo il titolo.

Bene, Lars Bylund fu un disegnatore svedese affiliato allo studio Ateljé Dekoratör di Stoccolma e, negli anni '30, disegnò alcune strisce e tavole a caratteri disneyani (a destra un esempio).

Alcune delle strisce a noi note di Bylund (quelle che prenderò in esame) avevano lo scopo di promuovere il dentifricio "VADEMECUM", venivano pubblicate settimanalmente sul quotidiano "Hufvudstadsbladet", il giornale svedese più diffuso in Finlandia, e sono state ristampate nel 2009 su Ankkalinnan Pamaus, un'interessantissima fanzine avente una tiratura dalle 250 alle 300 copie (€ 4 al numero), curata dall'esperto collezionista Timo Ronkainen (timoro sul DCF).

Sempre Ronkainen ci ha fornito alcune strisce; dapprima le si credeva indipendenti l'una dall'altra, ma, la traduzione (in inglese) di esse, fornitaci anch'essa da Ronkainen, ci ha fatto comprendere che si trattava di una storia unica.

Qui pubblichiamo per la prima volta in Italia e nella maggior parte del mondo la storia completa con le traduzioni in Italiano.

I disegni di questa storia sono degli scopiazzamenti (non ricalchi) dalla Gottffredsoniana "Mickey Mouse Sails for Treasure Island"; in un prossimo articolo mostrerò il confronto con gli originali.

Buona Lettura!





Esistono altre due tavole di Bylund per il VADEMECUM, ma ho deciso di non pubblicarle qui, le si possono comunque trovare sull'INDUCKS (http://inducks.org/story.php?c=XSC+VMC+1 ; http://inducks.org/story.php?c=XSC+VMC+2)


Ecco a voi la traduzione:

1a striscia

Topolino e Minni fanno le valigie per partire. Minni dice: "Siamo di fretta, ma dobbiamo avere abbastanza vestiti con noi!"

Topolino è un po' irritato, perché Minni ha messo troppa roba nella valigia. "Oh, Non ci sono così tanti vestiti qui. La valigia sembrava più grossa."

Mi: "Oh cielo... Abbiamo dimenticato la cosa più importante! Pensi che la drogheria sia ancora aperta? Corri, va' a prendere del dentifricio, senza di esso non andrei da nessuna parte! Ma ricorda: deve essere VADEMECUM!"

To: "Non preoccuparti, Minni! La valigia è piena perché l'ho riempita con tubetti di Vademecum! Ne ho anche spedita un'intera cassa alla nostra nave!

2a striscia

I nostri amici sono stati in mare per settimane, ma ora, una violenta tempesta li ha colti! La loro nave è nel bel mezzo di un uragano! Stanno annegando!

To: "Hey, Minni! Va' tutto bene! la ciurma ha preso le scialuppe e noi possiamo attacarci a quest'asse e portare a riva questa cassa di tubetti VADEMECUM!"

To: "Terra! Terra! Non preoccuparti, Minni! Presto saremo sulla terraferma e potremo mettere qualcosa sotto i denti!"

To: "Guarda Minnie, Non è magnifico!? Tutti questi fiori e questi frutti! - Un Paradiso naturale!"

3a striscia

Servo: "Maestà! Guardare cosa Dei offrire ! Io scommetere essere molto tenerissimo e delizioso!"

Mi: "Vi prego, Vostra Altezza! Non c'è niente da mangiare in Topolino! Salvate la sua vita ed io vi insegnerò a lavarvi i denti!"

Re: "Molto bellissimo scambio!! Mio nonno usare questo dentifricio, ma le riserve essere da tempo finite ed io essere, per molti anni, senza VADEMECUM vissuto! Quanti voi avere?"

4a striscia

Re: "Isolani! Io chiedere a voi di ascoltare! Topolino e Minni essere ora persone molto onoratissime! Noi stare per mandare loro tanti di quei VADEMECUM per tnere i denti e la bocca molto pulitissimi!"

To: "Ecco a voi! Qui ci sono un sacco di dentifrici! Spazzolate bene due volte al giorno; a mattina ed a sera! Vi manderemo presto più VADEMECUM dalla Finlandia!"

To: "Oh cielo! Come sono ricchi questi selvaggi, Minni! Per tutti questi gioielli gli possiamo dare qualche migliaio di tubetti!"

5a striscia

Topolino e Minni tornano in patria...

Pi: "Hai sentito, Lupo?! Topolino ha portato a casa così tanto oro che per trasportarlo ha bisogno di quattro persone! Penso che potremo accontentarci! AHR! AHR! AHR!"

Mi: "Topolino! Stai dormendo?! Ci sono i ladri! Hanno preso il tesoro di re Kokonut (*) e la scatola di VADEMECUM, che gli stavamo per spedire! Ho tanta paura!"

To: "A me non importa molto dei soldi, ma dei VADEMECUM!"

To: "Mi hanno fatto veramente arrabiare"
----------
(*) In realtà Kokonut è il nome del re in una serie di figurine, il testo originale lo appella "Re dei n***i".

© Disney per le immagini pubblicate.

Interview with Pat McGreal: A Trip to Shambor

Today, I want to propose you the interview I made with Patrick "Pat" McGreal, Disney writer since '90s, with his wife Carol. Patrick has written some well-known fantasy stories as Shambor and Mythos Island, reprinted all over the World.

THE AUTHOR

Patrick McGreal was born on 9th May 1953.

Between 1991 and 1993, he scripted stories for Disney's The Little Mermaid, since then, he wrote stories starring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck for the Danish group Egmont, coadiuvated by his wife Carol since 1996.

THE INTERVIEW

"I have to start off by saying that some of these stories were written quite a few years ago.

Although I’ll try to be as precise as possible, I can’t guarantee that my memory is 100% accurate.” (P. McGreal)

You have used Professor Dustibones in some stories and you have invented his rival Wagstaff and other characters close to him, as Buck Calhoun and Sal, how were these ideas born? how have you invented these characters?

These characters were first used in a story called THE FOSSIL HUNTERS. The movie “Jurrasic Park” was coming out and I thought it would be fun to have Mickey tangle with raptor dinosaurs.

 

The twist would be that these genetically resurrected carnivorous prehistoric beasties had their DNA altered so that they were harmless and friendly vegetarians. In North America, many dinosaur fossils are found in Montana and Western Canada. During the 1980s, I had participated on dino fossil digs in the badlands east of Calgary with the crew from the Edmonton Natural History Museum. This crew and their leader, Phillip Currie, went on to found the Tyrell Museum in Drumheller. The Tyrell is a world-class paleontology museum devoted entirely to the age of dinosaurs. If you ever find yourself in that part of the world, treat yourself to a visit. You won’t be sorry.

They say write about what you know, so I set the story somewhere in the North American badlands, full of hoodoos and other strange rock formations. I needed someone in a position of authority to lead my fictional fossil dig. I believe editor Byron Erickson suggested Professor Dustibones and he sent me reference from some of the classic Gottfredson strips. I m pretty sure it was the first time I ever used Dustibones.

This allowed Mickey to be on hand, helping out his old pal with the excavations. Next, I realized I needed a rival scientist to be competing with Dustibones, a character who would inject some sinister mystery into the story. So I created Professor Wagstaff. I took inspiration from an early ‘30s Marx Brothers movie called “Horse Feathers”. Groucho plays the dean of Huxley College (rival of Darwin College) and his name in the film is… what else?… Professor Wagstaff. Great film. Really funny. Watch it.

In my story, it turns out that Wagstaff isn’t really sinister and he ends up as Dustibones’ collaborator. I also found it necessary to establish the owner of the property where the action took place, so I invented rancher Buck Calhoun and his trusty horse, Sal. Buck was a real western cowpoke and Sal was probably smarter than anyone else in the tale. I used them again and more significantly in two sequels: HOLE IN THE WALL AT HOODOOYADOO and OUR DINOSAURS ARE MISSING. Both Dustibones and Wagstaff also appear in those stories.

The magnificent Cesar Ferioli illustrated all of the above and he did (as usual) amazing work. Ferioli drew the first Mickey story I ever wrote – BIO-DOME MOUSE – and we’ve collaborated a lot through the years. He drew the otherworldly SHAMBOR fantasy adventures, the MYTHOS ISLAND series, a number of episodes of the MILLENIUM epic and – a personal favorite - the Mickey and Donald ON THE ROAD stories, inspired by the old Bob Hope & Bing Crosby “Road” films.

There was a fourth dinosaur story, REVERTING RAPTORS, featuring Buck Calhoun (I’m not sure about his steed, Sal). Dustibones and Wagstaff definitely weren’t in it. A 10 page Mickey yarn dealing with a advertising photo shoot and a lost little girl in California’s coastal redwood forest.

Noel Van Horn, a powerhouse in his own right, drew it.

You also invented, with your wife Carol, Blotman, Rodent, Goofus D. Dawg and Doc. Stat. Could you please talk about them? How were these ideas born?

For the record, my lovely wife Carol had been kicking in ideas all along. In 1997, she became official as far as Egmont was concerned, sharing credit and writing chores. Our collaborative efforts usually work like this: we plot out a story together; Carol writes the synopsis; I polish the synopsis and we submit it to Egmont.

Once the synopsis is approved, I break it down into script form and write the dialog. Carol then sweeps up behind me, filling in the panel descriptions. I do a final polish and send the sucker in. I say we usually work like this because nothing is fixed in stone. Sometimes Carol tackles the dialog and I fill in the panel descriptions. The aim is to deliver the best script possible.

As far as the Blotman stories go… I grew up reading DC and Marvel superhero comics. In the ‘60s, DC introduced the whole alternate universe concept.

We thought it would be neat to apply this line of thinking to the Disney characters. What if the Phantom Blot – an odiously evil character in Mickey’s world - was a heroic crime fighter in a parallel reality?

We obviously designed Blotman as a parody of Batman… complete with a Blot Cave and Blot Signal.

Since, in this topsy-turvy universe, the odious Phantom Blot was the heroic Blotman, it made sense that the most unlikely Disney character should be his rich playboy alter ego. Who else but Goofy?

Thus he became Goofus D. Dawg, a sophisticated millionaire whose opulent mansion sits atop the Blot Cave.

Doc Static sent Mickey into this parallel universe in pursuit of our Phantom Blot.

We needed a super criminal mastermind for the Phantom Blot to team up with, so we created the wicked Doc Stat. In the sequel, the bad Doc Stat comes to our universe and – unknown to Mickey and Goofy - takes the place of our good Doc Static!

The most fun was inventing a parallel universe doppelganger for Mickey. We made this funhouse mirror-image mouse an irritable, irresponsible, slovenly little twerp named Rodent. He eventually becomes Blotman’s crime-fighting sidekick.

What kind of stories do you prefer writing? Why?

We like writing all kinds of stories, from small domestic situation comedies to big sprawling epic adventures. Variety keeps things fresh.

That being said, I loved having the opportunity to write the six or seven lengthy ON THE ROAD stories featuring Mickey and Donald in their “early days”, when they were footloose and fancy free, supposedly before Pluto, the nephews, Minnie or Daisy had entered their lives. These yarns gave us a chance to take the mouse and duck to different exotic locales around the globe and cast their relationship in a new, humorous light.

What Disney character do you like the most?

Donald. That can't be much of a surprise. He's vain, arrogant, temperamental, selfish and cowardly.

But on occasion he’s also humble, self-sacrificing, witty and wise. He’s full of contradictions and flaws. Those qualities in a character make for rich story telling.

In your Little Gyro In Quarkland, Gyro goes to “Quarkland”, could you please talk about how this idea was born?

LITTLE GYRO IN QUARKLAND was the very first story I wrote for Egmont. Funny you should ask about it. I’m not sure, but maybe Byron Erickson wanted to test me out by having me write a short story featuring a second string character. Or maybe I just had an idea for a Gyro tale and went with it. I really can’t remember…

Anyway, Gyro invents a shrinking ray that gets turned on him while he’s on his bed. Both he and the bed begin to diminish in size until he finds himself in a surreal landscape of molecules and atoms and subatomic quarks. The title and the fact that Gyro rides through this strange adventure on his bed is a reference to the great Winsor McKay’s incredible “Little Nemo In Slumberland” newspaper strips from the early part of the 20th Century.

The psychedelic conceit of this story is that Gyro continues shrinking until he finds himself in the Milky Way Galaxy, our own solar system and, finally, back in his workshop. A nod to the concept that wherever you go in the universe – up and out or down and in – you will find yourself a minuscule part of an endless, infinite cycle.

Could you please share your vision of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck?

Well, we’ve kind of covered this. Donald is full of flaws so he’s fun to write. Mickey is more of a straight arrow, so you’ve got to dig to make him more interesting.

Under Byron Erickson’s guidance, we strove to give the mouse more personality foibles. But I’m afraid some readers still find him boring.

Once again, those ON THE ROAD stories allowed us to make Mick a bit more of a scoundrel, consistently manipulating Donald so that the duck always drew the short straw, good naturedly outmaneuvering his pal for the attention of the girl or the promise of wealth. I like that chemistry.

How would you define Goofy and Fethry?

I’ve never written a story featuring Fethry and really know very little about him.

Goofy is a true-blue friend, a bit simple and disorganized but always trustworthy.

He’s a great foil for gags and slapstick comedy. Sometimes he can unintentionally impart a nugget of wisdom that affects the outcome of a tale. There’s a bit of the Buddha to our Goof.

In your The Calisota Cup, you use the name “Calisota” to define the state in which Donald lives. Could you please talk about your idea of Calisota (size, popolation, cities...)?

I had nothing to do with this. Back in the early ‘90s, I was given an assignment to write an Olympics themed story to coincide with the upcoming international games. The script was titled “THE DUCKBALL OLYMPICS”.

In it, Donald and his team played a crazy local sport called ‘Duckball’. Gyro had invented an unpredictable sphere that would fly in any direction once contact was made.

The object was to wrangle the wayward ball and score a goal!

The thrust of the story was Don trying to get the sport introduced into the Olympics and the resulting chaos the game caused. For some reason, the script got sidelined.

Months later, editor Unn Printz-Pahlson stumbled upon the script and liked it.

She renamed it THE CALISOTA CUP and, without much further tinkering, it was drawn and published. You’ll have to ask her what the ‘Calisota’ thing was all about. I think it had something to do with a Carl Barks reference, but I’m not sure…

I’ll always be grateful for Unn’s intervention because I think it’s a funny story.

Your last published story is A Familiar Complaint. Could you please say something about it?

Really? That’s our last published story? We’ve written a lot more since then.

It’s a cute, clever little tale. A Magica de Spell assignment. In traditional lore, sorcerers often have animal assistants, called ‘familiars’. Magica’s is her raven, Ratface. In this tale, Ratface and other familiars meet in secret to discuss their working conditions. It’s a take on the nature of unions and management, a bit socialist (anathema in the U.S. these days) in its leanings, and full of irony.

The questions have come to an end, if you want to tell us something about your biography or about your career, you're absolutely free...

Check out some of the things I’ve done that aren’t Disney related. I’ve written three graphic novels that were published by DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint: I PAPARAZZI, VEILS and CHIAROSCURO: THE PRIVATE LIVES OF LEONARDO DA VINCI.

They are light years away from the adventures of our favorite mouse and duck. I’ve also written some stories recently for Simpsons Comics and that’s a lot of fun.

Interview with Kari Korhonen

Oggi è la volta del grande autore di fumetti europeo Kari Korhonen.

Kari nasce l'8 ottobre 1973 a Espoo, in Finlandia, è un artista di storyboard per le pubblicità tra il '94 e il '98 e, dal '93, scrive e disegna storie di paperi per la casa editrice Egmont.

When did you read your first Disney comic? At what age? Do you remember what comic it was?

At around 4 years old. It was Barks' "You Can't Guess" (Christmas Parade). It was read to me by my dear Father.

Do you prefer writing or drawing stories?

I actually prefer writing. Drawing is hard work, whereas story-construction comes easy to me. Barks once told me that drawing can be taught, story-telling is more difficult. I'm not saying I am good at either, but I believe he was right.

What kind of story do you prefer writing? 

Comedy is King. The classic ten-page story is a challenge. The smaller the story, the harder it is. I don't write action well.

Do you have a favorite story?

Don't know, honestly. Too many to choose from. Not one of mine, to be sure.

For the drawing, have you ever been helped by someone or are you self-taught? Which artists are you inspired by the most?

I am such a fan of so many people. Barks of course, Branca, Scarpa, Vicar, Jippes. Tardi, Uderzo and Walt Kelly. I could go on and on. All old-school, though.

I inked all my own stuff till 2005. Since then I've been working with an inker, Ferran Rodriguez.

In your "Can You Spare A Pot Of Gold", Donald, Gladstone and Scrooge join a contest to win a pot of Gold...

In order to win, they have to find one of the three leprechauns (HDL); Scrooge and Gladstone find them, but Donald finds a real leprechaun, the same who had been caught by Cornelius Coot after the Big Fire of Duckburg...

How was this idea is born? Could you please say something about?

Goodness! That is a golden oldie! That was the second of the 8 stories I was privileged to do with Daniel Branca (bless his ever-loving heart)!

I can't recall the story that well, but I was just back from a tour of Ireland and was, as I am still, fascinated with all things Irish. Somehow the story just came about. That was 15 years ago, so excuse my forgetfulness. Branca at his best, though. I need to dig up our sketches!

In one of your first Disney stories, "Can I Bring You Anything?", you have used Barks' Clerkly... In Italy, he isn't that know, and author Rodolfo Cimino invented another butler called "Battista" ("Quackmore" in America).

Starting from that, what do you think about Italian Disney characters? (Battista, Brigitta McBridge,
Jubal Pomp...)

The story was one of the first long stories I drew, but I'd been skeching and writing for years. Yeah, Clerkly is still my favourite of Scrooge's lackeys. He played a minor role in Barks' "So Far and No Safari". He seemed like an architype of 50's office worker. Somehow that appealed to me. Quackmore is much more of a blatant cartoon character. Also, Clerkly is a spitting image of Byron Erickson, the editor-in-chief who gave me my first job, so that endeared me to him. I did a story in 2006 called "Mr. Clerkly's Christmas" which gives a bit of a back story to the character.

I do love many of the Italian characters. Brigitta (and all Scarpa creations for that matter) was a permanent fixture in my childhood. I never did understand Scrooge, though. I always hoped some girl would be THAT interested in me.

Still about Italian characters, in 2000s, you have written "Donny Duck", an European version of the italian "Paperino Paperotto", what was that about?

The German publishers published two of the great Italian Paperinos in Mickey Mouse in 1998 and they were a hit. Hence, ECN asked me to write new stories for Egmont. At first I wasn't all that excited - the idea of showing beloved characters in earlier years is almost always a mistake. I mean, "Young Flintstones" is no one's favourite cartoon, is it? But then, once I started thinking of Quackville as a separate universe, I really got into it. So far, I've written some 50 stories and hope for more to come.

What do you think about William Van Horn and “his” Rumpus McFowl?

I've been the biggest fan of Bill since he started. A genius as an artist. Rumpus as a character? A bit empty. I could take him or leave him.

What do you think about Huey, Dewey, Louie and the Junior Woodchucks?

A good way from Barks to turn the tables on Donald and the boys. Donald became the child. Worked well. Yet sometimes the kids seem a bit know-it-all.

Which is your vision of Mickey Mouse?

Well, I've done very little Mickey. Some covers and one-pagers. In the fifties Mickey moved to the suburbs and started dressing like Bing Crosby - with the loose-fitting slacks. Not very interesting.

How would you define Goofy and Donald's cousin Fethry?

Dear old Goofy. We all have friends like that, don't we? A Captain Haddock to Mickey's Tintin. Love him dearly. Fethry I've never got a handle on. Nor have many writers. I suppose you had to live through the hippie-years for that.

The questions have come to an end, if you want to say something about your biography or about your career, you're absolutely free...

Unlike the long ramblings in my answers would let you to believe, I usually have very little to say about myself. So if you don't mind, I'll leave it at this. It's been a pleasure, though. Thank you!

Interview with Janet Gilbert

Oggi sono lieto di intervistare Janet Gilbert, moglie di Michael Gilbert (creatore di Doc. Monster), già intervistato per questo blog.

What kind of stories do you prefer writing?

All kinds, really! It's as much fun to write a short little one-pager as it is to work on a longer story

Which Disney character do you like the most?

Donald! But the nephews come in a close second. Then there's Daisy and Neighbor Jones and Oonand Gyro and Grandma Duck . . . hard to choose just one!

You have written many stories using characters from Disney TV programmes as Goof Troop,
DuckTales, Darkwing Duck, etc... Is this a personal choice?

I first started writing Disney comic stories back in 1990 for an American digest magazine called
"Disney Adventures". They based most of their comics on the TV shows, so that's what I wrote. I
haven't written any tie-ins since then (unless you count a Donald Twilight parody from earlier this
year!).

Could you please talk about your vision of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck?

The “classic” Mickey from long ago was so cute and spunky. That Mickey is my favorite version. But
Donald's personality is much more “rounded.“ He can be brave, weak, sweet, irritating . . . all the
human emotions rolled up into one sputtering little duck. I love him!

How would do you define Goofy and Fethry?

I've only written a couple of Goofy stories (based on the Goof Troop TV show from long ago) so it's
tough for me to define him. As for Fethry, I'd never even heard of the character until I started writing
for Egmont, and am still not quite sure who he is! A hippie, sort of?

One of your greatest stories ever is "Buon Compleanno, Paperino!”, drawn by
Giorgio Cavazzano, could you please say something about it?

Thanks for your kind words! I'd only been writing Disney comics for about three years when I
received that big assignment in 1993, and I was terrified! There was a very short deadline as well, and
I had to work like heck every day for a month to finish it. It was a real thrill to have Cavazzano draw
the story, his art was just spectacular! In a funny coincidence, he actually drew my very first Disney
comic story called “Mrs. Beakley's Secret Love.”

Another story by yours I like very much is “Once a Loser”, drawn by Vicar. In it, Donald changes city and everything goes as he's always wanted, but... 

Were you inspired by something when writing it?

Thank you! I just wanted Donald to be successful for a change, with everyone looking up to him. But
with great power comes great responsibility (thank you, Mr. Lee) and poor Donald soon learns that
it's nice just to be a lazy bum sometimes. Amen to that!

The questions are over, but if you want to share something about your career or your biography,
you're absolutely free...

Michael and I have been living in Eugene, Oregon since 1987. It's home to the University of Oregon,
whose sports mascot is Donald Duck! So there are lots of "ducky" things in this town, including the
Mallard Apartment Complex and a radio station called KDUK!

And this is the really nice artwork made by Janet Gilbert for the Daily War Drum.

A "thrilling" interview with Stefan Petrucha

Today is the time of the thriller writer Stefan Petrucha.

Stefan Petrucha was born on 27th January of 1959. Since 1980s, he writes stories for Comic-books and, in 1993, he wrote his first Disney story, called “Jurassic Mouse”, which was drawn by Cèsar Ferioli. Stefan is married to Sarah Kinney, another Disney Comics writer.

Stefan has also invented his own fantasy and sci-fi titles as “Counterparts”, “Meta-4”, “In the Dark” and “Squalor”.
He begun his career as a technical writer for the computer industry in the mid 1980s. His work for Egmont is ended. Recently, he drew a Harry Potter's parody called “Harry Potty”.

THE INTERVIEW

                        

What kind of stories do you prefer writing?

Stefan: With Egmont/Disney, the characters are so well known, I tried to focus on things that, at least as far as I knew, hadn’t been done before. I do prefer the characters who have clear flaws, which makes it easier to build stories around them.

What's your favorite Disney story you wrote?

Stefan: I don’t remember the name, but it’s a very short one, and completely bizarre. Mickey and Goofy find a piece of Mickey’s wall behind the couch that comes loose like a puzzle piece. There’s a big void on the other side. Mickey is frantic to plug the gap, but Goofy can’t help himself and starts pulling puzzle pieces out. Soon all Duckburg is crumbling into puzzle pieces, leaving an existential abyss behind. I liked it, anyway!

What Disney character do you like the most?

Stefan: I’ve always had a soft spot for Horace, he’s a bit of a rake, morally dubious at times, but not as bright as he thinks, which lends itself nicely to some very funny situations.

Have you ever tried to draw Disney characters?

Stefan: Nope!

In your "Back In The Box", they're shown many Barks' and not evil characters, is that an idea of yours?

Stefan: The artist, Flemming Andersen, may have stuck in all sorts of evil characters in the scene where the villains bid on the box, but I don’t think that was in my script. I liked that story a lot, since, like my other favorite, the problem come right out of a very human/Donald Duck quality – curiosity.

We can see in "The Goldenfish Rule", "With A Duck-Duck Here" and other stories by you that not antropomorphized animals can speak. In the second case is thank to a meteorite, in the first not. Why is Mickey in the second surprised about that and in the first instead, all Mouseton believe in the Golden Fish speech?

Stefan: Animals don’t generally speak in Mickey’s world, so of course it’s always a surprise. But when an animal does talk, why wouldn’t you believe it?

Could you please talk about your "Steamboat Willies" idea?

Stefan: Mickey has a very rich history and has changed in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Because he’s so incredibly famous, I like to play around with his image. As a result, I’ve done various stories where he’s “met himself” in different forms, from clones (All of Me) to twins (Through a Mickey Darkly). Along those lines, I thought it’d be fun to contrast him with his original “self” from his first B&W cartoon, Steamboat Willy. After that, the story just suggested itself.

Could you please talk about your vision of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck?

Stefan: I have to admit, Mickey has always been the toughest Disney character for me to write. I think the best stories are based on weaker personality traits, so you can show some growth or change in the character. Mickey, well, he’s a pretty nice guy who likes adventure, kind of an everyman. That made it tough for me to put him at the emotional center of a story. Donald on the other hand, has parenting issues, money issues, self-worth issues, arrogance issues, all kinds of things that can get him into odd spots, making it easier to build a story arc. That’s one of the reasons a lot of the Mickey stories I did played more with his image than his personality. My Donald stories are the other way around.

How would you define Goofy and Fethry?

Stefan: Goofy is a hoot – my editors have told me he’s not dumb, he just thinks differently from everyone else. Okay, yes, he does think differently from everyone else, but let’s face it, he’s also not the brightest person in town. That combination lends itself to a lot of fun and surreal ideas. Put Mickey in a room with a glass of water and not much will happen. Put Goofy in a room with a glass of water and he may decide that there’s a microscopic civilization in the water and it’s up to him to save it.

If Horace is a greedy version of Goofy, then cousin Fethry is pretty much Goofy with a political agenda. He’s a true believer, more in love with believing something than with what he happens to believe at the time. From all their personalities, it’s very easy to see what kind of stories would work with them.

The questions have come to an end, but if you want to share something about your career or your biography, you're absolutely free...

Stefan: My work with Egmont is at an end, but I’m still doing a lot of exciting material. In terms of comics, there are the Nancy Drew Graphic Novels from Papercutz. I also have a Harry Potter parody coming out this month – Harry Potty and the Deathly Boring.

But my book writing is really taking off. Also this month, Paranormal State: My Journey Into the Unknown is coming out. It’s based on the hit reality series on A&E, and co-written with the star, Ryan Buell. I’ve also been appearing on a few episodes for the new season, helping the investigators with some research, so it’s like a whole second career. Last but not least, my first vampire novel, Blood Prophecy, is coming out in October from Grand Central Publishing – and it’s already earned a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly. So…. I’ve been keeping busy!

Intervista a Massimo Fecchi

Classe 1946, Massimo Fecchi esordisce nel mondo dei fumetti Disney con la storia Paperino e il potere dei fiori (Macan/Fecchi, 1997) e da allora ne è diventato un tratto amato e ben riconoscibile.

SC: Simone Cavazzuti

MF: Massimo Fecchi

SC: Quando hai “incontrato” il mondo Disney per la prima volta?

MF: Come forse saprai, ho disegnato molti anni, quasi 25, per diversi comics tedeschi (Fix & Foxi era il più noto) e quindi sono arrivato abbastanza tardi alla Disney, nel 1997 esattamente.

SC: Hai avuto qualche “Maestro” che ti ha insegnato a disegnare i personaggi Disney?

MF: No... sono autodidatta. I “Maestri” che amavo di più erano Jacovitti, Lino Landolfi e Uderzo, senza dimenticare Nidasio, una brava disegnatrice del Corriere dei Piccoli. Mi piacevano gli artisti Disney americani: Taliaferro, Barks, Floyd Gottfredson, e Walt Kelly; tra gli italiani: Scarpa e Bottaro. Quando cominciai a lavorare per la Egmont, mi chiesero di disegnare Paperino nello “stile italiano” per l'edizione “pocket” (loro usano anche il Paperino nello stile di Barks per il “quattro strisce”).

Non avendo model sheet, studiai  i paperi degli anni '80 di Massimo De Vita e Giorgio Cavazzano, autori che preferisco e che sono più vicini al mio modo di disegnare. Per il disegno di Topolino, mi attenni al  modello Egmont con i calzoncini corti, ma che disegno molto raramente.

SC: Qual è il tuo personaggio Disney preferito?

MF: Naturalmente il personaggio che disegno più spesso, cioè Paperino, mi piace anche disegnare Ezechiele Lupo e i tre Porcellini, ma le loro apparizioni sono sempre più rare...

SC: Nel tuo disegno, ti ispiri o ti sei mai ispirato a qualcuno?

MF: Adesso no, ma da giovane mi ispiravo a Uderzo e un po' a tutta la scuola francese (...ancora non erano arrivati i giapponesi che ormai hanno imposto un “manierismo” che non sopporto).

SC: Hai mai scritto una storia con personaggi Disney?

 

MF: No, perché ritengo che ci siano già tanti bravi sceneggiatori alla Disney. Se capita, preferisco sceneggiare storie con i miei personaggi.

SC: Non hai mai rifiutato una sceneggiatura? Hai sempre disegnato tutte le storie che ti hanno commissionato?

MF: Non mi è mai capitato di rifiutare storie Disney, mentre alcune volte è successo con gli editori tedeschi... ma erano altri tempi! In quegli anni, rifiutai anche la pubblicazione delle strips di un mio personaggio su un noto quotidiano romano... mah!..

SC: Qual è il tuo genere di storia preferito? 

MF: Preferisco il comico, ma mi piace disegnare ogni genere purché sia ben scritto e sequenzialmente corretto.

SC: Io personalmente ho letto molte tue storie apparse sui Mega. Pensi che i colori del Mega si adattino ai tuoi disegni o preferisci i colori del settimanale Topolino?

MF: I colori del settimanale Topolino mi piacciono e li preferisco a tutte le altre edizioni, compresa la danese.

SC: Cosa ne pensi dei tentativi di continuity (come quello operato da Don Rosa)? I paperi dovrebbero vivere negli anni Cinquanta o negli anni Duemila (come noi)?

MF: Penso che i paperi debbano vivere assolutamente nel 2000.

SC: Credo che le domande siano finite, se hai qualcosa a cui tieni sulla tua biografia e/o sulla tua carriera da dirci, non risparmiare fiato.

MF: La mia carriera? Nessun rimpianto e un solo dispiacere: aver lavorato troppo poco per l'Italia. Intorno agli anni Settanta (erano i miei inizi), mi dissero che il fumetto non avrebbe avuto futuro perché dal Giappone sarebbe presto arrivato un nuovo mezzo che avrebbe messo in crisi la carta stampata... si trattava del VHS! Adesso, lo scontro con il computer si è fatto più serio, ma... “io speriamo che me la cavo”.

© Disney per l'immagine pubblicata. 

Intervista a Luciano Gatto

Luciano Gatto nasce a Venezia il 21 Maggio 1934 (l'anno in cui è stato creato Paperino). L'avvicinamento a Topolino è merito del figlio di un fornaio di quelle parti, un certo Romano Scarpa...  Nel 1956, Gatto riesce a vendere tre racconti brevi (una ventina di tavole) alle Edizioni “Il Ponte”, dirette da Renato Bianconi. Il Direttore non si dimentica di lui e, nel dicembre dello stesso anno, gli invia una sceneggiatura di 12 tavole da illustrare con il personaggio Raviolo Kid. Dopodiché, inizia a disegnare per loro Raviolo Kid, Geppo, Nonna Abelarda, Mao-Duebaffi e Ockey-Papero, ecc... ma soprattutto il suo personaggio PIETRINO. Quasi contemporaneamente, comincia a ripassare a china le tavole di Romano Scarpa; cede il compito a Rodolfo Cimino che lo sostituisce quando, il 18 marzo 1958, il direttore Mario Gentilini gli commissiona l'illustrazione della sua prima storia disneyana, Paperino e il ciliegio rabdomante (Martina/Gatto, 1958). 

Torna a ripassare le tavole di Scarpa insieme a Luciano Capitanio quando Giorgio Cavazzano (subentrato a Cimino nel ripasso) parte per il militare, e continua fino al suo ritorno. Da quella storia in poi, Luciano si afferma come Maestro della Disney italiana, la sua collaborazione con TOPOLINO & CO. non si è mai interrotta, pur disegnando anche per altri editori italiani e stranieri con l'aiuto di vari ripassatori, ed è tuttora produttiva e la principale. Inoltre, Luciano si diverte ad autocitarsi sotto forma di “gattino” nelle sue storie, specialmente nelle ultime vignette. 

SC: Simone Cavazzuti

LG: Luciano Gatto

SC: La prima storia disegnata da Luciano Gatto è Paperino e il Ciliegio Rabdomante, ma prima di allora, tu inchiostrasti 3 storie di Romano Scarpa: Topolino e la nave del microcosmo (Scarpa, 1957), I Sette Nani e il trono di diamanti (Scarpa, 1957) e Paperino e la leggenda dello scozzese volante (Scarpa, 1957). Cosa hai provato ad inchiostrare quelle tavole che sarebbero diventate dei classici del fumetto Disney italiano ed internazionale?

LG: Cosa pensi abbia provato, appassionato da sempre del disegno e soprattutto del mondo del FUMETTO COMICO disneyano e non, nel ripassare a china le storie sopra citate? Non dobbiamo dimenticare un’altra storia importantissima quale Topolino e l’unghia di Kalì (Scarpa, 1958), inchiostrata anch’essa prima di avere commissionata la mia prima storia. Per me era la realizzazione di un sogno poter partecipare a quelle realizzazioni. Si sapeva che si stavano realizzando delle belle storie, ma in quel momento né Romano né io pensavamo avessero nel futuro il successo ottenuto. 

SC: Quando ricevesti la sceneggiatura de Il ciliegio rabdomante, quale fu il primo pensiero che ti venne in mente? 

LG: Da sempre appassionato lettore dei fumetti disneyani, soprattutto attratto dallo stile di Gottfredson, ho pensato che il primo passo per diventare un disegnatore dei FUMETTI DISNEY era fatto, dovevo impegnarmi per realizzare al meglio delle mie capacità, scarse in quel momento, per poter continuare la collaborazione . È stato molto difficile, ero piuttosto grezzo e la fatica per “vedere” i personaggi e poter realizzarli al meglio è stata notevole, ma l’approvazione del direttore Gentilini per le storie che consegnavo era evidente. Dicevo “fatica” e duro lavoro perché i tempi di consegna erano abbastanza stretti e faticavo a starci dentro. Pensa che ho finito il ripasso della mia prima storia in una stanzetta della redazione il giorno stabilito per la consegna, e non è stata l’unica volta. 

SC: Stando a quanto dice l'INDUCKS, delle centinaia di storie che hai disegnato ne hai sceneggiate solo tre. Quale è il motivo di questa tua scelta? 

LG: C’è stato un momento in cui parlando con il direttore Capelli ho esposto brevemente una mia idea e ho avuto il via per la realizzazione, senza alcun scritto e controllo su quanto avrei realizzato ed alla fine sono uscite le uniche due sceneggiature e le due storie complete che ho realizzato: Topolino e la vacanza movimentata (Gatto, 1988) e Paperino e il torneo... tornado (Gatto, Held/Gatto, 1989). Ho scritto solo queste due storie, la terza attribuitami è un errore. Perché solo queste? Per scelta, essendo essenzialmente un disegnatore non ho voluto proseguire in un campo molto difficile e non mio che mi avrebbe distratto dal disegno. Ogni tanto qualche idea mi è frullata per la testa, ma i tempi cambiano e le autorizzazioni diventano molto più complesse, perciò … 

SC: Sinceramente, prendendo in mano una tavola di una tua storia, si percepisce subito lo stile inconfondibile di Luciano Gatto. Da cosa nasce questo stile personale? Ti rifai a qualche Maestro del passato? 

LC: Da cosa pensi possa nascere uno stile personale? Normalmente dal gusto e modo di vedere di una persona che trasforma, rendendolo proprio, quello che hanno fatto, progettato e realizzato altri. Il disegnatore che mi ha più colpito, avvinto come realizzatore dei personaggi disneyani è stato, all’inizio, Gottfredson, al quale si è successivamente aggiunto Scarpa; quest’ultimo non solo perché ho collaborato con lui, ma per la “semplicità, immediatezza di lettura, composizione delle vignette e della tavola” nelle loro realizzazioni, anche le più complesse. Non tutti i disegnatori odierni sanno applicare questi principi di lettura in quello che realizzano. Mi sono ispirato al loro lavoro, non usandolo pesantemente, aggiungendo qualcosa di mio che rende il mio stile inconfondibile, come scrivi tu. 

SC: Quale è il personaggio Disney che ti piace disegnare di più in assoluto? 

LG: Mi piacerebbe disegnare più storie con Topolino, forse perché l’aggancio con il fumetto Disney è avvenuto con le storie di Topolino realizzate da Gottfredson. 

SC: Quale personaggio Disney trovi che ti assomigli di più? 

LG: Non mi vedo in alcun personaggio disneyano, l’unico gatto presente in quel mondo è Gambadilegno, forse un parente ma non mi assomiglia. 

SC: Cosa ne pensi della continuity? Apprezzi il lavoro di Don Rosa e/o pensi che i paperi vivano nel 2000? (come noi dopotutto) 

LG: Bloccare i personaggi in un determinato periodo di tempo è controproducente, di norma si deve inserirli nel presente perché il lettore dovrebbe condividere le loro azioni, ma è possibile anche saltuariamente farli agire in altri periodi temporali. Conosco solo qualcosa di Don Rosa perché non piacendomi la sua realizzazione grafica dei personaggi l’ho abbastanza accantonato. 

SC: Cosa ne pensi delle storie attuali? Preferisci lo stile "classico" o quello "moderno"? 

LG: Parlando da disegnatore, trovo in molte storie odierne un nuovo stile di realizzazione, ispirato dai manga. Anche se ottimi lavori, non sono capace di apprezzarli come meritano, preferendo lo stile “classico Disney”. 

SC: Le domande sono finite, se hai qualcosa da aggiungere a proposito della tua biografia o della tua carriera, hai carta bianca... 

LG: Le domande hanno fatto riferimento alla mia attività per la Disney, vorrei dare in chiusura una informazione a chi ama anche i fumetti NONdisney: cliccando la seguente stringa potete trovare degli albi di nuovi fumetti che abbiamo prodotto, in questi ultimi tempi, io e Carlo Panaro: http://stores.lulu.com/elgatongrigio, se qualcuno è interessato…

La bellissima illustrazione di Gatto per il blog

© Disney per i personaggi presenti nell'immagine pubblicata..