Ducks and *Details* and Destinies

[David A Gerstein]

	Dear Folks,

	I finally figured out how to download the really *old* digests
from ftp.  I noticed raging debates that went on before I started
corresponding, and thus have a few comments for you.

	Fethry Duck appeared in *many* mid-1960s stories that Whitman
published.  In those stories he talked like a *beatnik*!!!  If stories
with him are used here in the future, I hope this won't be done.  By
the mid-'70s Fethry was so uncommon here that when the kids' textbook
series "Disney's Wonderful World of Learning" originating from Italy
was published here, the volume "hosted" by Fethry claimed that this
was Donald in a disguise!!!

	A few German character names for you:

	Sylvester Shyster = Baldwin Beutelschneider
		["Beutelschneider" = bundle-cutter = embezzler]
	Bolivar/Bornworthy = Bernie
	Eli Squinch = Ernst Kropp
	Horace Horsecollar = Rudi Ross
	Clarabelle Cow = Klarabella Kuh
	Eega Beeva = Gamma
	The Beagle Boys = Panzerknacker
	Flintheart Glomgold = Mac Moneysac
	Grandma Duck = Oma Doretta Duck
	The money bin = Geldspeicher
	Ludwig Von Drake = Primus Von Quack
	The Phantom Blot = Der Schwartze Fantome (spelling?)
	Gladstone Gander = Gustav Gans (which translates to Gus Goose!)
	Gus (Gustave) Goose = Franz Gans
		[The original movie poster for "Donald's Cousin Gus"
		says, "Introducing Gustave Goose", giving that as his
		official studio name at the time, Gus being a nickname.
		When Gladstone used the poster as a cover, they 
		altered this.]
	Magica De Spell = Gundel Gaukeley
	Rockerduck = Klaas Klever
	Captain Churchmouse = Kapt'n Kluese
		[the version in Murry stories is a different character
		in Germany, called Kapt'n Kirchmaus.  Shows you what
		happens when Murry changes characters so liberally..]
	Spooks the Gorilla = Bobo

	Publicity drawings of the whole gang done by Adolf Kabatek for
the German comics' "fun pages" show Minnie with two nieces.

	The name "Ezra Scrooge McDuck" is absolutely a mistake... it
derives from the name of Grandma's landlord, "Ezra Scrooge," in
"Vacation Parade" #1's GD story.  No relation!  No relation!  The same
argument could be used to say that Scrooge is the last name of "Ezry"
in "Old California."

	Grandma Duck's real first name in English is, I believe, in
the November, 1950 issue of WDC&S's "Grandma Duck" story.  I don't
remember the name offhand, but it was a Victorian name;  I've heard of
people having it, but never met someone with it.  (Note:  I'll ask my
folks if they can get the issue from one of my boxes back home and
give me the name via phone).  Might be something weird.
	* GOSH *  Does Don Rosa need that name for his Life of
Scrooge for some reason?  Please tell me if you do, Don!!!!!

	The name of the "donkey" in the Donald newspaper strip is
Basil Burro (perhaps a relation of Benny :-)  Donald also has a cat
in the earlier dailies, named Tabby (and Barks used him by name in
WDC&S 65, although making him white rather than black-and-white).

	Gladstone mentions in the DDA #23 letter page that Br'er
Rabbit won't be featured in WDC&S for a while.  This isn't due -- as
it may imply -- to Disney's feelings about Southern dialect;  just to
the fact that most WDC&S issues are going to be filled with only a
Duck story and a Gottfredson Mickey story for the next year.
	(I was nervous, so asked John Clark about that)

	Fred Milton's "The Big Sneeze" may be used by Gladstone, but
nothing is definite yet.

	The Life of Scrooge by Don Rosa will begin in US #285, not USA
as was implied by the DDA letter column mentioned above.  Say, Don...
when will "Guardians of the Lost Library" be printed here????

	And also... Don, do you really feel that Uncle Scrooge (gulp)
*died* in 1967?  We've all gotta go sometime, but do you feel that *no
one* can add to the canon if their stories have elements that are any
more "recent"?  Well, okay, if you're thinking in real time, maybe he
could have died, but do you view the duck world as being firmly
entrenched in "real" time?  Well, maybe so... I'm confused.

	Also:  The Gladstone WDC in Color album series info is
slightly wrong in the don-rosa list;  I believe that the cover
descriptions for #6 and #7 are accidentally switched there.

	The *official* name of Donald's St. Bernard for new stories,
as Disney and Gladstone have agreed on and made law, is Bolivar.  In
Europe, Egmont has it as Bornworthy.  I am writing a story about him
now for Egmont and working on a foreign one for Gladstone, so I'm
calling the dog by both names accidentally!

	The cartoon in which Mickey and Minnie are married is 1932's
"Mickey's Nightmare" -- the title explains it all.  Storks bring
thousands of baby mice who look *just* like Morty and Ferdie initially
did -- in fact, the comic "Mickey's Nephews" (1932) is essentially the
comic version of that film, using many of the same gags but making it
logical by using a non-nightmare story and real relatives that didn't
involve marriage. (Gottfredson said in MMIC that he was inspired to use M&F by
adapting them from the orphans in "Orphans' Benefit," but since that
was 1934, I knew something was wrong!  I saw "Mickey's Nightmare" on
the Disney Channel last summer.  It's been colorized, seemingly using
Gladstone Album #3 as reference for the brats' clothing.)

	The stories I dialogued that were scheduled for US 285 and
WDC&S 591 may be bumped ahead an issue because the proofs have not yet
come from Denmark and things are getting tight.  More on that when
John Clark tells me.

	By contrast, "The Hoard at the Rainbow's End" (H84133,
Verhagen) was moved sooner, from DDA 26 to DDA 25!!!!  I think you
guys will like how this story came out, but please don't blame me for
the fact that it starts a little slowly and has a rather unsatisfying
ending... I didn't choose it, Gladstone had me do it.  In the long
run, though, I had a *great* time working it all out, particularly in
dreaming up Oriental-style names and places.

	And "Bugged by Humbug" is still going to be in WDC&S 589.

	Your friend,

	David Gerstein

	"Tastes like it was enriched with chocolate bars and bananas!
I'll throw away the Goldilocks script and eat *all* the porridge!"
	<David.A.Gerstein at Williams.edu>