Funny Books: Ducks and Covers! Disney's Donald and Scrooge...

 

Redartz:  Some of the first comics I ever read, and loved, were Walt Disney books featuring the adventures of Donald Duck, his nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie, and Donald's financially obsessed Uncle Scrooge McDuck. These stories grabbed my youthful  imagination, and held me fast even through the teen years and on into adulthood. Indeed, there were times when I stopped buying superhero comics, or dropped Archie comics, yet still maintained interest in these Disney Ducks. And much of the reason for that was the gargantuan influence of Carl Barks. 

Carl Barks was the writer /artist for Donald Duck for decades, and was the creator of many beloved Disney characters, particularly Scrooge McDuck himself. Barks' storytelling skills are the stuff of legend; going way beyond the limited 'gag strips' that were found in some "funny animal" books. Barks told humorous tales, cautionary tales, morality tales, and usually with a hefty dose of adventure. How could any kid resist titles like "Ghost of the Grotto", "The Cave of Ali Baba", or "The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan"? 

And the cast of characters Barks weaved into his 'Duck Tales': the Terrible Beagle Boys, Magica DeSpell, Gyro Gearloose, Flintheart Glomgold, just to name a few. Barks gave each character a unique voice and personality, and gave the world of Disney's Ducks a level of characterization rivaling that used later by Marvel. And that characterization certainly applied to the main cast: manipulative Scrooge, bemused Donald, and the nephews (who generally seemed the most rational and capable of the whole family). 

But there was much more to Carl Barks than just his writing. His artwork is equally legendary; not for nothing was he known as "The Good Artist" (for years there were no credits for Disney creators, but his rendering stood out from the rest earning him that sobriquet). Barks was unparalleled at giving emotive expression to his characters. 

  

He also excelled at , well, basically everything. He could beatifully render dramatic scenery, 

 

 

 animals, 

 bizarre monsters, 

 and intricate architecture.

 There weren't many humor books in which you found artwork that you could pore over and admire, regardless of the story. Barks' work, in that regard, puts him among the greats of the comics genre: Eisner, Kirby, Wood. And I'm not overstating things here; Barks' work has stood the test of time. Each generation rediscovers these great stories. In the bronze age, we had Gold Key and Whitman. In the 80's Gladstone Publishing kept them in the comics shops. Still later Disney itself published the books, and today we have Boom! and Dark Horse.

Don Rosa's first Duck cover

 

And what's more, there's more to it than simply representing the genius of Barks' work. Another artist/writer, Don Rosa, took on the Duck reins (where would one put reins on  a duck?) in 1987 and brought a whole new tradition of excellence to books like Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge and Walt Disney's Comics and Stories. Like Barks before him, Rosa worked with intricate storylines and equally intricate artwork. I've come to love Rosa's work too, to the extent that I'm currently awaiting delivery of a copy of Rosa's magnum opus: "The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck"; a two-volume biography of the famous curmudgeon extrapolated from the whole history weaved by Barks. "Life and Times" won an Eisner for best story some years ago, and I'm finally going to enjoy it. 

 

 

 

Which brings me to one final point: the availability of the Disney Duck stories. One great strength of Gold Key was the variety of formats they used to present these comics. The regular comic series were supplemented by Digests, Giants, and large format collections. This practice has continued to the present day, as we have unprecedented access to finely bound collections of Barks (and Rosa's) works. 

 

 

To sum up: my love for the Disney ducks quite literally continues even today; a common reading thread that took me from childhood to grandparenthood! And chances are many among you are also fans of these books. Which is one way of saying it's time to hear from you; what are your thoughts about Donald, Scrooge, their creators, comics, casts, and all the rest? And while you compose those thoughts, here's some covers from the whole range of Duckdom...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Funny Books: Funny Books, Funny Cartoonist-Fred Hembeck...

 

Redartz:  What is it that brings us here to visit and debate each week? Quite simply, it's a fondness for discussing popular culture, be it comics, television, film or whatever. Waaaaaay back in the latest 70's, long before the availability of these convenient comics blogs, there arose a commentator. And not just a commentator; he was (and is today) a cartoonist, writer, humorist, and storyteller. His name is Fred Hembeck. 

I first discovered Fred on the "Daily Planet" editorial pages of DC comics . His little comic strips featuring (and having some fun with) the company's cast of four color characters never failed to elicit a laugh from this reader. So when I saw the Hembeck name on some new magazines from Eclipse and Fantaco (on the shelf of my local comic shop, of course) I grabbed them up.

 

 

These books not only had comic strips, they also had 'interviews' with various comic characters (with the unmistakable persona of Fred himself doing the interviewing). There were cover reproductions, with Fred redrawing classic comic covers in his unique style. There were stories of Fred's comic fan history (often quite lengthy). And always, the material was covered in a lighthearted, conversational manner. Listening to (reading/watching?) Fred tell of his childhood comics was an exercise in nostalgia. He was describing things I (and many of you, probably) had thought and/or experienced. Kind of like a comics blog, but on paper and with only one speaker (no commenters). 

 

 

A bit later, Fred was tapped by Marvel to give us all "Fantastic Four Roast", in honor of the FF's 20th. anniversary. Several years ago I did a post on this book over at Doug and Karen's Bronze Age Babies. For anyone interested, here's the link:

 http://bronzeagebabies.blogspot.com/2016/05/fire-up-grill-for-fantastic-four-roast.html

That story was a gem. And Hembeck later did more work for Marvel, including Spectacular Spider-Man 86, and even later both destroying and selling the Marvel Universe.  His work  in the years since can be found in many places, having done much more for numerous publishers and publications. 

 

 

 

 

One of those publications is what prompted today's topic. "The Nearly Complete Essential Hembeck Archives Omnibus", published by Image Comics. A copy sat on the shelf at a bookstore last weekend when my wife and I stopped in to use Christmas gift cards. Not having been aware of this volume, and remembering Fred from years ago (those earlier volumes being sold off with the rest of my books years ago), that book was my pick for the day. And a good pick it was. The book lives up to it's name; it's gigantic. Omnibus is right, for those of you familiar with Marvel's various Omnibi. It's going to take a good while to read it all, so I've many weeks of light, amusing reading ahead. 

 

 Here's a few pages to give you a taste of Fred's trademark humor. Sorry about the scans, but have you ever tried putting an omnibus in a scanner?

 

 

So for any of you who also enjoy Fred's work, or are just now discovering it, let's hear your thoughts. And just in case you might be reading this, thanks Fred! You've got a way with words and pictures that makes the reader feel like an old pal visiting with you for a chat. Well done...

 

Follow the Leader Episode 138: "Everything Archie", and Definitive Artists!

Redartz: Greetings to one and all!  Today I'm using my role as host to hijack the "Follow the Leader" (not to worry, it's a friendly hijacking). For some reason, this week I've been on an Archie kick, and so it seemed natural to throw a bone to all the other fans of the residents of Riverdale. But in the spirit of "Follow the Leader", let's keep it open- anything Archie-related is fair game. So, the tv cartoons, the comics, old or new; toys, music, whatever. And to set the tone, here's an array of some Archie Comics covers from all eras. Hope you enjoy...