WDC &S sales & Barks

[Rob Klein]

Regarding Timo Ronkainen's questions about Walt Disney's Comics and Stories
(WDC & S) sales figures relating to Barks' work:

These are topics we have covered very thoroughly,  previously on the this
list, - so, I am hoping that the members who provided the information were
watching when these questions came up yesterday.  Then, we will be provided
accurate information.  I believe Don Ault and David Gerstein are at least
two of the people who have knowledge of this information, but I am sure
there are several other list members that can provide it.  I believe Mike
Barrier covered some of these questions in his book, based on his interview
with Chase Craig (Western Publishing Editor during the early 1950s).

I am only responding to the question (using my now poor middle-aged
memory), for the unlikely case none of the members with more substantial
and more accurate information respond.

I seem to remember that WDC & S was, indeed, the best selling comic book of
all time, and its peak years were the very end of the 1940s, and the first
few years of the 1950s.  I believe the peak sales figures were the very
high 2 millions to the very low 3 millions.  I am not quite sure of that
(so, please don't hold me to it). I believe we might find the actual
figures in print in Barrier's book, or in some magazine article from the
1970s or 1980s.  I believe I was quoted a similar figure by Malcom Willits
and Don Ault on separate occaisions.  Don Ault's recent interview of Chase
Craig (now over 90 years old), produced mainly general comments about
Western's policies, his own editorial work, and his and Western's relation
to Carl Barks.  He did not remember much, if anything, regarding specific
incidents or situations.  

I've seen reference to the fact that hundreds (if not thousands) of  annual
subscribers to WDC& S wrote letters to Western Publishing in 1950,
threatening to cancel their subscriptions if the editors didn't again start
printing lead stories by the "Good Artist".  This occured after Barks
started drawing so many longer stories to fill the new annual giant comics
and also expanded the number of regular Donald Duck issues to bi-monthly. 
Western relented, and put Barks back on his old monthly schedule on the
10-pagers.
I don't believe I've ever seen a reference to the difference in sales
between months with and without Barks stories.  I imagine the differences
were substantial by the END of 1950, but perhaps not as large as one might
guess.  At that time, subscription sales formed a very significant
percentage of total sales.  I also imagine that a reasonably high
percentage of the WDC newsstand purchasers would rather have had a Barks
story in the comic if they had the opportunity, but would still purchase
the comic even without, as they were Disney and funny animal fans.  

As 1950 was 2 years BEFORE I purchase newsstand copies I cannot use my own
experience as an anecdotal example.  But I CAN say that when I inherited
all the 1940s (and year 1950) Disney comics from my older cousins (with
whom I dwelt), I also accepted the 1950 NON-Barks comics (as I was also a
fan of the Mickey Mouse continuity stories and other features of the
magazine).  This, despite the fact that my love of Barks was by far the
main reason I was attracted to that magazine.  I helped my father in his
store, and was given 25 cents (Canadian) per week.  In those days that
money would buy 2 and one half regular comic books, or one giant book.  The
Canadian dollar was worth approximately 1.04 US in those days.  I bought
only Disney comics (almost all) new, and an occaisional Warner Brothers, or
Walter Lantz or MGM used, for 5 cents or 3 for a dime.  When we traveled to
USA (Chicago) or Holland to visit relatives, I would buy the local Disney
comics there (My parents would just give me the money), as I would be
missing my issues at home.  The US issues were the same.  I was almost as
glad to have those non-Barks issues  - even though I am an EXTREME Barks
fan.  I believe this was true of many of the kids at that time.  I know
that there were, however, a significant amount of comic fans who had only
limited money to spend, and read ALL types of comics; who only bought
Disney comics among their EC and superhero comics, when the stories were of
EXCELLENT quality.  They are the buyers who wouldn't have bought the 1950
WDC & S with non-Barks stories.  I imagine there would have been a drop-off
in newsstand sales for those months (but the extent of that difference
wouId depend much upon the percentage of subscription to total sales.  I
doubt that many subscribers gave up their subscriptions in time to affect
monthly sales during 1950 months which issued a non-Barks lead story.

I hope someone will come up with the actual figures.

Regarding Daniel's comments on the early-mid 1960s story advertising on the
covers:  

I hope someone with accurate information on this subject will inform us. 
It is too bad no one mentioned that to Don Ault before he interviewed Chase
Craig a few months ago.  Even with his poor memory for specifics from 40-50
years ago, he MAY have remembered whether Barks or editorial staff wrote
those story trailers.  Although a few of them seem to use "Barksian
Phraseology", I suspect that they were all written by editorial staff. 
That was the general policy most of the time.  It is too bad we didn't
think of this question to ask Carl, himself, before 1996 or so.  Although
he became reticent to answer the same questions over and over in later
years; the answer to this question is straightforward, and should have been
something that he COULD have remembered, even after 35-40 years.   

Rob Klein