NAPLES COMICON

[Don Rosa]

> From: Kai Saarto <ksaarto at mbnet.fi>
> Subject: Re: Naples report (photos)
> Excellent stuff Harry, thank you! Maybe Don could tell us more about
> what happened there? It sure looked fun, wish I could have been there.
> Don, did you possibly get any ideas of using Pompeii in duck-story? I'd
> love to hear more, Harry's report whetted my appetite.

Well, I will leave any detailed reports, if anyone wants them, about my
activities at the convention to other DCML members like Harry, Blasco, and
especially Luca Boschi who was one of the organizers of the whole affair.
They are much better at telling what was going on -- I'm too caught up in
the whirl of activity and too-much-attention, always in a fluster of trying
to be everything to all the people who deserve my every ounce of attention,
but never succeeding even 5%, and always worried that I end up just seeming
as rattled and unfocused as I feel.
But there were a few interesting aspects that I wrote of in a message to
Byron Erickson in Denmark when he wrote and asked if I was home yet... I
reported one event to him that had a Danish "connection", and I told the
story of the robbery since it was like something that might happen to
Donald. It will be very simple for me to copy-over part of that message to
the ML, since you've inquired. Here:
----------------------------
This was about the best trip ever. The convention was in the city's castle
overlooking Naples and the Bay and Vesuvius and Capri. A HUGE castle and the
convention occupied the main floor with massive stone hallways and 20-30
foot ceilings. Since Paperino and Paperone are the most popular comics in
Italy and Magica is the darling of Naples, the entry hall to the convention
held
the display of my art -- there was a 2-story
color blow-up of that cover of Magica I did for "Forget It!", and every page
of "A Little Something Special" plus the script plus all the various Lo$
covers and more all individually framed around the halls and room. After
that there was a massive display of original art of all types including
things like the world's oldest page of comic art (a Yellow Kid) and a "Krazy
Kat" Sunday hand-colored by Herriman as a gift for someone.
The other guests like Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada and millionaire
cartoonist Jim Lee surely thought they were on the Bizarro World as they
were supplanted as the superstars that
everyone wanted to see and touch by a mere Donald Duck artist!
But we arrived in Naples 6 days before the convention to see the area.
During the first walk through the city from the hotel, in the first 5
minutes, about 20 steps into the Spanish section, a pursesnatcher on a
motorscooter stole my wife's purse. He really did a professional job! Riding
his scooter with one hand, goodly speed, he slashed and grabbed the purse
with the other hand, apparently using a sharp knife, but never even touched
my wife's coat! Anyway, no big deal, we just went back to the nearby
hotel and made some calls to freeze a credit card, and that was all
there was to that... until the police got involved.
The hotel desk clerk called the police and they suggested we go to the
police station to fill out a report, even though I didn't see any
point to it. But they put us in the back seat of a police car (very
uncomfortable, no room, hard plastic seats, no door handles, etc.) and
drove us through twisty streets in the dark and dropped us off at a
station across town... then left. There was one person at the station
(in street clothes -- a detective? A suspect?) who spoke one word of
English and gave my wife an English language report to fill out. When
she was done, he simply motioned that we could leave. But I didn't
know where we were or how to get back to the hotel! The guy spoke his
one word -- "taxi?" But I said "WE DON'T HAVE ANY MONEY! WE WERE
ROBBED!" and he shrugged. I was gonna wait for another polizia car to
return, but I had no idea when that would happen and it was getting late...
and we were all but crowded out of the tiny polizia station by a small herd
of transvestites who came in to report some mischief done to one of their
members, no pun intended.
So I tried to find my way through the dark
streets without a map back in the direction I thought the hotel was...
and we got lost quickly. It was rather scary, especially after already
being robbed once! Finally a police car passed and I stopped them and
we tried to explain to more non-English speaking police... but after a
long delay where they must have called the station, another Polizia car came
and took us back to the hotel. That filled the entire first
afternoon/evening of the trip! Not a good start! But it was much
better after that! We stayed away from the police and walked around
with the pickpockets and cutpurses where we were safer.
I was so much the center of attention that it was reported in headlines in
the next
day's newspaper, I assume by someone at the polizia station who notifies the
press of "celebrity crimes" (since we didn't tell anyone). The headlines
said things like "Consort of Don Rosa Robbed in Naples" and "Don Rosa Visits
Naples, Is Victim of Beagle Boy on Scooter" and like that. Heh heh.
One sidetrip with a Danish "connection" I need to tell you about -- one day
I was given a special VIP
trip to Vesuvius. The Italian Park service wanted to use me and Magica for
publicity so they held a press conference and a (copy) art display of my
stuff and of Magica's history at a restored villa in Herculaneum. The press
conference was really huge and lasted an hour or so while the Park director
talked about the Park (I guess)... I just sat there. Then they held a big
buffet lunch for everybody who wanted to attend. Next they took us on a hike
into the crater of the old volcano, where the general public is not allowed,
for a musical/theatric performance...
then a ride up to the summit of Vesuvius while all the other Park visitors
had to hike those steep few miles. I had many press conferences or special
tours or such all week, but the reason I mention this one is that in the
crowds on the very rim of Vesuvius there was a tourgroup of *Danish* college
students who recognized me and swarmed me for autographs. I should send you
the unedited tape of this trip, but I'm SO sure you'd want to sit for 5+
hours and watch it.
------------------------
(That ends my report to Byron.)
But while I won't go into more reporting of my activities at the show, I
want to mention one other person: ML member Blasco Pizapia, who is a Disney
Duck artist living in Milan, but who grew up in Naples, offered to be our
personal guide and translator while we visited, and I naturally accepted.
One *great* benefit of being who I am is that when I visit Europe, wherever
I go there are Duckfans who will be best pals and be delighted to be (free!)
guides and translators for us ignorant Americans who can't communicate with
anyone... no other tourist has such a gift as being treated like this -- and
one of the greatest benefits is that this always results in being invited to
an "average European home" for "a homecooked European meal" just like a
member of the family... and that's something that NO other tourist gets, and
I appreciate it deeply!
But this trip I met Blasco, who instantly became one of the best friends
I've ever had, right up there with local bwah, ol' Dan Shane. I can never
repay his hospitality, constant loyal help, and all the time (and $!) he
spent driving us around Naples and being our guide/translator in Pompeii, at
Vesuvius and on the Isle of Capri, as well as my helper during the entire
convention!!! And also a homecooked meal at his parents' home! It couldn't
have been better!!!
Anyway, to answer your other question, I plan to soon do a Naples adventure
with $crooge & Magica, similar in spirit and scope to the Helsinki adventure
I did, and I hope Blasco will be my collaborator on that project! I will
incorporate some of the things I saw, and I'll try to use the pursesnatching
story as well.
But I'd still like to see the expression on the pursesnatcher's face when he
picked up (stole?) the morning newspaper and found out whose wife he robbed.
"Mama mia!"