DCML Digest Issue 11

[Don Rosa]

> From: "Matthew Williams" <kingofduckburg at apptechnc.net>
> Subject: Yet More Universe Talk/Reply to Don Rosa
> Now that I've heard that you set all of your
> stories in the fifties, references to the time period really jump
> out at me.

I just realized there's another interesting (?) anecdote on this topic. A
current situation...
As you might know, I'm currently doing a story of the Three Caballeros in
Brazil. The story opens with Donald's arrival in Rio and the three compadres
meeting on Sugar Loaf Mountain to discuss their plans for adventure.
Naturally I have Donald arriving on a Boeing Stratocruiser prop-plane, circa
1949 vintage.
But when he rides the cablecar to the top of Sugar Loaf I encountered a
problem!
That cablecar system was renovated, I deduce, about 1960. I found numerous
pics of pre-1960 cablecars in my 60-year NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC set and
elsewhere... but nobody ever bothered to print a picture of the pre- or
post-1960 cablecar *stations*.
I searched high and low for such pics. I had fans actually *in* Brazil
search Portuguese language websites for me. I'd already sent a Rio fan
"agent" to photograph the current stations which he was told were built in
the 1940's, but my research ultimately proved that to be false. He then
directly consulted all the official government reference and publicity
departments, but none of them could (or were willing) to provide pics of the
pre-1960 cablecar stations.
So... I have a dilemma: should I draw the pre-1960 cablecars with the
post-1960 stations? Even if I could draw it all pre-1960, that will surely
confuse the Brazilian readers who don't know what the old car system looked
like, and I *know* the story will see print there since my strange work is
becoming as popular in South America as it is in Finland (i.e.: "very").
(That's why I get a free tour of Brazil next month! Hoo-hah!) But it's more
important to me to be true to my own intentions, as close as I can. So, it
looks like I'll have pre-1960 cars arriving in post-1960 stations.
But I'll offer a deal: if anyone can find me useful pics of pre-1960 Sugar
Loaf cablecar stations, I'll do them a color drawing of whatever Duck they
choose. Maybe that will get some extra research done that I can no longer
spend time on whilst I work feverishly towards my next,
already-delayed-due-to-research-time, paycheck. Eh?
Again... you never realize all this nutty extra work is going on in my
stories, eh? It's what keeps the job interesting for me!