Returned

[Don Rosa]

Back from Northwest Spain...
I browsed through the Digests that awaited me along with piles of other
e-mail -- if I missed any direct questions, please repost them.
The only thing I should reply to is the one or two members who were puzzled
or irritated by my saying that "Ludwig Von Drake, Fethry and Moby Duck were
officially dead in the Duck Universe". Since I work only for the Egmont
weeklies,  I neglected to realize that I needed to be more specific.
Those three characters are officially dead in the Egmont comics. The Egmont
digests are an entirely different Universe to the Egmont publishers (even
though I've mentioned to them that I don't know how many of their readers
notice that), so their digest / pocket books employ a different set of
characters and a different art style, even if it is material produced by
Egmont in the "Italian style", neither of which are allowed inside the
larger "comic book" style publications. This is not a statement of my
preferences... yes, I very adamantly and chauvinistically stick to my
interpretation of Barks' Universe and nothing will change that... but even
*I* don't agree with this ban completely since I sneak Ludwig into my
stories when the editor is not on his toes. But my point was to tell the
person who was excited about seeing the mini-series of comics based on
those three characters that he should not expect to see them turning up in
the Egmont weeklies in any stories. The mini-series was put together of
reprints of old stories by the Norwegian branch, but it's the central
office in Copenhagen who manages the creation of the new stories. When I
found out about the Norwegian series myself, I inquired about whether this
meant I could now do stories with Ludwig, and I was told, no, Ludwig and
the other two are still officially "non-characters" in the Egmont comic
book Duck Universe, and the main office looked, perhaps, askance at that
Norwegian series.
If readers dislike this situation, I guess they can feel free to disagree
with Egmont about it -- if someone succeeds in getting them to change their
editorial position, great by me! -- I can continue to ignore Fethry and
Moby, and use Ludwig when I wish. (Lugwig is a fine character as far as I'm
concerned -- his usage on TV in 1961-62 when I was a tad was pleasant
enough, and Barks did use him once so a Barksian-precedent has been set for
me. Also, he allows me to marry off $crooge's sister Matilda who, on my
Duck Family Tree, is his wife. However, Egmont would not allow me to use
Ludwig on the Tree they commissioned me to draw for them from my private
notes. But notice that Fethry *is* on that Tree I did because, at the time,
Egmont had yet to decide he was "nonexistent" and insisted I include him.
So, you see, they do change their minds from time to time. (But, I warn
you...... that was pre-Byron. If you think *I* am strict about my ideas of
what the Disney Universe should be, you don't know editor Byron Erickson,
and I admire him for his steadfastness to his own ideals. A man after my
own heart, and who glommed it well over 10 years ago.)

Anyway, yeah, I'm back from the comic con in Spain. It was a bit dreary
since it rained nearly the whole time I was there, proving that the rain in
Spain does not fall mainly where Prof. Higgins claims. Still, the
exposition was quite impressive -- this was a government sponsored show
(the major city of A Coruña, check your maps) and they had 10+ artists on
hand and a giant and lavish display in a 2 block long expo center downtown
of over 700 original comics pages. There were 12-foot tall comic character
statues all over downtown, and a large outdoor shopping mall of dealers on
the city's main street. Lots of reporters and TV crews and all that. CNN
was there, too.
Even though the rain prevented me from doing my usual sightseeing hikes,
Saturday night made the trip worthwhile! I got to be one of the guests of
honor at a *state dinner* given by the mayor in the banquet hall of the
city hall. Now, in America this would be okay, but in Spain this was like
being dined by a king in a palace! The city hall *is* a palace by American
standards -- a huge, beautiful, ancient, multi-spired spired
"cathedral"-lookin' building on the main city square which is, itself,
impressive enough filled with the usual number of fountains, statues and
tourists. We entered the main doors and up through the grand staircase. And
after a reception in a hall filled with suits of armor and flags and many
ancient gifts and trophies given to past administrations, as well as
photographers snapping pictures of everyone,  we (numbering several dozen
folks) were taken through the City "council" chamber with many tiers of
seats of beautifully carved wood figures and designs, and into the banquet
hall which was like something I would expect to see in a mini-Versailles
with the ornate, domed ceiling and tapestries and ancient statuary. We were
seated in a very scientific manner (boy, girl, boy, girl, and never next to
your own spouse) around a single huge oval table laid out with all manner
of decorations and plates and glasses and silverware all etched with the
city's official eblems. And we
were served a "very proper" state-banquet by an army of uniformed, gloved
waiters and head-waiters and major domos, with no single action, even the
laying down of a single plate, being performed by less than 2 people. There
were people for bringing the food and people for setting the food down.
When they served wine and other drinks, it reminded me of when I was an
altar boy helping with the delivery and preparation of the wine and
Communion hosts, needing 3 people for the operation. Then gifts were handed
out and brandy and cigars and.... well, I wish I could have taken my video
camera to help remember it, it was quite an experience (but I think that
would have been a bit tacky, eh?). It was also the first time I've eaten
dinner where I could look out a window behind me and see a uniformed and
armed guard in the darkness patrolling the garden making sure my digestion
was not disturbed.
And there was no Spanish Inquisition, but I never expect that, anyway.
Nobody does.