Keskustelujen arkisto

Francois Willot <(Email removed)>:
> Sorry for my lateness, Dave...

No prob. No need to be a slave to such things. (Madness lies
therein!)

> I *thought* it [D 92281, ONE OF A KIND, drawn by Rodriques] was a Duck
> Tales story. Because $crooge's major-dom (present in the first and
> second pages of the story) is drawn exactly like the major-dom in
> "Duck Tales". I assume it was not your original intention?

It made no difference to me. Likely it was as simple as Egmont's
character reference was the same in both instances.

> DCR> Sorry you didn't like it, but I'm glad to hear it nonetheless. It
> DCR> makes your likes more believable!
>
> I'm glad that you took my criticisms that way! (I'm not that much
> negative about the story, though. And I don't like Rodriques art!)
>
> Here are some remarks about several stories you did (most of them are
> *old* stories, but I have nothing more recent!). Note that the
> following is only my personal opinion:

Sure. What else could it be?

> the fact that I don't like a few things in the scripts doens't mean
> that the entire story is bad.

Okay. I understand. You're just highlighting the things that
struck you personally.

> D 93395 DD Wings
> [paraphrasing -- Only likes. No dislikes mentioned.]
>
> D 95026 DD The Best Ever
> I'm not very fond of Xmas stories, but this one was OK. [...] the end
> is quite "conventional" (DD & the nephews "happy");

Hmmm... That would be a unique challenge: A Christmas story with a
sad ending. Maybe if I get another shot at doing a Christmas
story, I could try to write such a thing. I'm not sure I'm that
clever, though.

> D 95137 DD Bulldozer Blues
> I was a bit disapointed by *this* story. I found that parts of the
> scenario are not realistic enough: how comes Donald's machine is so
> powerful? It's supposed to be a toy for children.

I'm at Eileen's (my girlfriend), not at home where I could check,
and my memory is like a sieve when it comes to old stories, but I
think the idea was that the bulldozer was atomic-powered or some
such, and that it was incredibly powerful, though small.

The characters, including Donald) who *thought* it was a toy were
mistaken. Surely everyone was continually surprised by what it
could actually do. "You can't judge something by its looks" is
more or less the moral of the story, I guess. Which fits with my
overall theme (I've discovered in retrospect) that one should
think twice about what one thinks.

> D 9344 DD The Fraternal Order of C.L.A.M.S.
> The only thing I don't like is in the 10th page, when Donald use
> seaweeds for his car (too implausible).

But you find a giant Blue-Clawed Tire Biter who terrorizes a
stretch of beach plausible? Or a collection of sentient clams who
run away from Donald to escape becoming chowder plausible? <grin>

Personally, I liked using thick belts of seaweed as tanklike tread
for Donald's car (after it's savaged by the Tire Biter).

Frankly, one of the silly joys of writing Duck stories is the
comic visual exaggeration that one can (try to) get away with.

Oh, well. I guess our votes just cancel each other out. We'll have
to wait for someone else to chime in some day.

> D 92193 DD Tour de Jour
> [Paraphrasing -- Only praise.]
>
> That's all. I hope my mail doesn't sound too negative!

Not at all. Thanks for taking the time and trouble of writing!

It would be incredibly boring for folks to only read endless
praise.

Daniel van Eijmeren <(Email removed)>:
> are there people who can give me advice on programmes which have the
> ability to shrink images (height and width) without the automatic
> distortion?

As Kriton mentioned, Paint Shop Pro (download from
http://www.shareware.com/) is an excellent, sophisticated and easy
to use graphics manipulation program. Besides the resample
feature, you can resize to any width or height and retain the
exact aspect ratio of the original. All the graphics, for
instance, at http://members.aol.com/dcrawson/comics.htm were done
this way. Originally they were often larger than full screen size.
Also, you can batch process (that is, give one command to change)
a whole list of files from one format to another (e.g. "*.bmp" to
"*.jpg").

The French find it both irrational and amazing that American and Englis=
h
people use inches. It's so complicate. The use of inches is indeed
irrational, but meters are not a "logical" unit either. Why should one
meter be 1/10,000 of the distance between the north pole and the
equator? And why should we use powers of 10? Just because we have 10
fingers? The only rational way would be to use powers of *2*. But
numbers would be very *long*, and calculations a bit more long.

Paolo Castagno (aka Luna Storta):

>Yesterday I bought a book issued some years ago for Eurodisney's=20
>opening, and it's featuring a story from Romano Scarpa, but with=20
>no code at all, the title is "Avventure a Eurodisney", does=20
>someone of you knows something more about it? Has it been=20
>published somewhere else with a code?

This story was produced by Disney Europe (for the openning of
Eurodisneyland). It was published in France by Dargaud (and I think in
the US). I don't know if Scarpa inked it (probably not?)- but the write=
r
is Jacques Lelie'vre (a French author who is in charge of the "games"
and "puzzles" in several magazines published by Disney-France).

John Lustig:

> I'm glad you enjoyed it. That story, though, was actually
> drawn by Branca. (He did a great job too.) In terms of it being
> "recent," well...actually I wrote it back in 1992. It's funny how
> things pop up in different countries so many years apart.
>=20
> Recent or not. I'm delighted to know that you liked the story.

Here's a short list of all the stories published in France (after 1993)
and written by you, from my database:

D 92041 o:14 ? VR JLu US Tfr:L'=E9trange amn=E9sie=20
[App:US,MDS,HDL]
| I:[DcD says ink:Victor A. Rios
(Vicar)] [DcD says art:Victor A. Rios (Vicar)] =20
| [/title:EPS:Thanks for the
Memories
| [/ori:AA 94-18 02-05-94=20
| Rfr:PM 290=20
| Rnl:94-46=20
| Rde:94-44
D 92212 f:14 ? VR JLu DD Tfr:La paix... de gr=E9 ou de
force ! [App:DD,HDL,Jones]
| I:[DcD says ink:Victor A. Rios
(Vicar)] [DcD says art:Victor A. Rios (Vicar)] =20
| [/ori:AA =20
| Rfr:PM 289
| Rgl:DDA 36
| Rnl:96-39=20
| Rde:93-40
D 92226 f:11 ? DBr JLu US Tfr:Le robot r=E9calcitrant=20
[App:DD,US]
| I:[DcD says ink:Daniel
Branca] =20
| [/ori:AA =20
| Rfr:JM 2203
| Rgl:USA 40
| Rnl:97-23=20
| Rde:93-44
D 92568 o:11 ? VR JLu DD Tfr:Un =EAtre nouveau s'=E9vei=
lle=20
[App:DD,HDL]
| I:[DcD says ink:Victor A. Rios
(Vicar)] [DcD says art:Victor A. Rios (Vicar)] =20
| [/title:EPS:No Time for Nappin
| [/ori:AA =20
| Rfr:PM 277=20
| Rnl:96-01=20
| Rde:94-06
D 94111 o:10 ? VR JLu DD Tfr:Donald chez les snobs=20
[App:US,DD]
| I:[DcD says ink:Victor A. Rios
(Vicar)] [DcD says art:Victor A. Rios (Vicar)] =20
| [/title:EPS:The Swell of
Success
| [/ori:AA 95-37 11-09-95=20
| Rfr:JM 2312 =20
| Rde:95-40
D 95020 o:10 ? VR JLu DD Tfr:Sans rime ni raison=20
[App:DD,DA,HDL]
| [/title:EPS:Lustig:Snow-Smitte=
n
| [/ori:AA 96-02 08-01-96=20
| Rfr:JM 2332 =20
| Rde:96-05
D 95154 o:12 WVH JLu DD Tfr:Coup de foudre !=20
[App:DD,DA]
| [/title:EPS:Romance at a Glanc=
e
| [/ori:AA 96-37 09-09-96=20
| Rfr:PM 303
| Rgl:WDC 611 =20
| Rde:96-48

(Pay no attention to the "DcD says [...] (Vicar)"; it's just that my
programs *believe* that the credits given in the Disney Comics Database
are not the same, while they are...).

As you see, your stories are mainly published in Picsou (PM) and the
Journal de Mickey (JM).

You're right about D 92226 being by Branca (it's even in my database), =
I
don't know why I said Vicar!

Francois

Meeses & Quacklings-

MARK SEMICH:
>... in the letters column of the latest issue of Gladstone's
>WDC&S (#622), the magazine is refered to in the past tense(!!)
>("Mickey Mouse Weekly sounds like it was a great magazine").
>
>Does anyone know whether or not MMW is still being published
>in England?

I'm sorry that I cannot answer your question about MMW, but I'm
glad you zeroed in on that particular letter in WDC#622. Is it
just me, or did Gladstone's reply to that gentleman's letter
seem a bit heavy-handed? I'm sure there are restrictions on
Gladstone by Disney concerning it's policies about what is
acceptable to reprint, but the reply seemed so... angry. As
though Gladstone is fed-up with requests for repinting
Gottfredson's stuff. At this point, I'm just glad Gladstone is
printing ANYTHING that seals with Mickey Mouse, though I must
confess I am among those who still want to see those *banned*
comics available somewhere (...thanks Marco).

JONATHAN MARKOFF:
Concerning a realation between the "Red Wasp" [hero] and
the abbreviation "WASP" [ethnicity]. Hmmm. I'm sure some
would draw a correlation between the two considering the
Red Wasp is indeed a *White Male in America* (that is if
you accept that Duckburg is in America).

My dictionary defines "Wasp, WASP, wasp" as "A person of
Caucasoid, northern European, largely Protestan stock whose
members are held by some to constitue the most privileged
and influential group in U.S. society; broadly, a white U.S.
citizen of nonspecific ethnic or religious identity: "The
Wasp had come to take power." (Norman Mailer).

Hmmmm. By that definition the Red Wasp should probably
be a villian instead of a Duckburgian hero.

>All jokes aside, though, "The Red Wasp Mystery" is a neat
>story, IMHO.

I was glad to make it available. ;-)

>**SPOILER****SPOILER****SPOILER****SPOILER****
>
>The Red Wasp's existence seems strange; he's not given a
>proper introduction, as if he's always been around, and
>after this story he just disappears.

This is why I'm interested in seeing the tale presenting
the Duckburgian Hero League, myself, since he makes his
comeback!! The Red Wasp is sort of an anomaly in a
primarily anthropomorphic animal-driven premise.

>***END SPOILER****END SPOILER****END SPOILER****

>If only Gladstone would print more than just 8-16
>pages of MM per month!

Agreed!

Ciao for now,
Rich

DANIEL

Thank you for your esteem, but I didn't actually mean to retire
completely from contributing to the List, just be more cautious,
both technically and diplomatically.

>there's of course also the possibility of getting an emailbox at
>www.hotmail.com. To save modem-costs, you can write
>your letters in plain text while being offline and then select
>and paste it when you're online.

That's exactly what I've been doing since the beginning of
January, when the local provider went berserk (still is).
I tested some 5 different net-addresses, and the one I'm
currently using (iname.com) turned out the best because it
gives me troubles sometimes, while the others (including hotmail)
gave me troubles all the time... with two of them I wasn't even
able to receive the List's Digests because they were automatically
filtered out as spams... (and no, no way of changing the settings)

I'm new to both the Internet in general and this Mailing list,
and I'm experiencing technical troubles I never even suspected
could exist, after some 10 years spent dealing with computers,
and just now start to understand how difficult it is, sometimes,
to get oneself perfectly understood without the help of facial
mimics and gestures (emoticons are rather limited in this respect,
it seems to me).

I can't help the sensation of being regarded as the proverbial
bull in the china shop, sometimes. :-)

In fact, WRT your posting to HARRY on V#49

>Why does the on-topic / off-topic discussion return from time
>to time, while there was already an agreement on it as early
>as 1995 or maybe 1996?

That's my fault, I guess. When I referred to off-topic subjects
in my reply to Harry, I wasn't complaining, but asking for
*instructions* on how to deal with such instances in the future,
e.g. submitting lists/indexes of stories/authors etc. to other
List members.
I must have formulated my message very badly, since I didn't
have a reply to *that* question... :-)

>Personally, I don't mind about most of the off-topic messages
>I see. Quite the contrary, because it learned me many things I
>otherwise never would have known.

My feelings, entirely.
In fact, I was just dying to replying to a message DWIGHT DECKER
sent in some time ago, so I'll just do it... :-)

DWIGHT

The "official" English line in "Asterix and the laurel wreath" was,
nearly exactly as you remembered it,

"Have pity of a poor gladiator in reduced circumstances".

"I'm a bit short" would have been great, too, but how did the
original French go ? (The whole line, I mean... it wasn't just
"tres diminue", I guess).

HARRY [to LUNA STORTA on "Joe from Singapore"]

>Maybe the Italian translation put "Tabby" (or the Italian
>equivalent of that) in there. But what did the
>English original say? (Anyone?)

The 2 Italian versions I got (TL #8 and ZP #23) used, respectively,
"Zenzero" (Ginger) and "Figaro" (well known cat name in the Disney
universe). In a Dutch version (Beste verhalen...#10) the cat is
called "Tobber" (I guess...).
"Tabby" is actually the name used in the original version, or so
we're led to believe from Gladstone's CBL in color version...
Was that changed ?

Tabby, the one of Fethry's acquaintance, is called "Malachia",
in Italy, and although it is clearly a different "brand" of cat,
I tend to acknowledge Paolo's "discovery" of "Joe from Singapore"
as the first appearance of a Donald's cat called Tabby...
After all, Donald himself turned from yellow to white... ;-)
On the authors side, however, I believe the cat "belongs" to
Hubbard and Kinney, who gave him a personality and a definite
(and rather nice, IMO) appearance.

MARCO [to DANIEL]

>I never heard of a Barks story about the Aswan Dam.
>Was that something comparable to Scarpa's Colossus
>of the Nile? Could you post a description of the story?

Don't know whether that story was actually ever drawn...
Barks said he "junked" it because it would have been
published in US #35, and he feared it could have been
too soon after "Pipeline to Danger" (US #30), another
Sahara Desert story.

More information on this (but not much) are to be found
on the CBL in color album WDC #6. Let me know if you need
a transcription.

>Already with the "Flying Dutchman" Barks did a U$ story on a
>subject very close to another one by Scarpa (the "Flying
>Scotchman" - BTW surely better than the Barks story IMHO).

I read somewhere that "The Flying Scotsman" had been once
voted the *Best Disney Story Ever*, but don't know by whom...
If I were in the jury, I'd agree, anyway... ;-)

It should really be reprinted (Luca ?), and I would surely
love to see a sequel done, too...
It's a pity only a few people know why it's raining sardines
in Tegucigalpa, every 3rd of May... :-)

(This is no spoiler, BTW... more of an appetizer, I'd say ;-)

Cheers

Eta Beta

email to : (Email removed)
-------------------------------------
"Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his shoes.
That way, when you do criticize him, you'll be a mile away
and have his shoes." -- Unknown
-------------------------------------

--------------------------------
End of Disney comics Digest V98 Issue #50
*****************************************

KRITON:

[on Scarpa's "Colossus of the Nile"]
>
>This is another example of the Ducks inventing a technique before it
>was done in the real world, as was the case with Barks' ping pong ball
>technique.
>

ETA BETA:

>It's a pity only a few people know why it's raining sardines
>in Tegucigalpa, every 3rd of May... :-)
>

I hope now you all will understand my trouble with Disney Comics, and
Scarpa's Disney Comics, in my young age...

I **really** believed that it rains sardines in Tegucigalpa! I could almost
**swear** that I heard it on the radio!!! And else, why should they have
used **exactly** that method to save the Abu Simbel monuments???

It really **was** difficult to distinguish between facts and fiction.

Marco

(who is **very** glad to learn that Eta Beta did **not** disappear from this
mailing list, or else would feel culpable for this!)

http://marcobar.cce.unifi.it/Comics/

Hi, all!

Eta Beta wrote:
>Tabby, the one of Fethry's acquaintance, is called "Malachia",
>in Italy, and although it is clearly a different "brand" of cat,
>I tend to acknowledge Paolo's "discovery" of "Joe from Singapore"
>as the first appearance of a Donald's cat called Tabby...

Speaking with Alberto Becattini (who now shall be welecomed in this
List) some hours ago, we agreed that this the right. The Bark's cat is
ANOTHER Tabby. You must know that it's one of most common name for a cat
(like "Fuffi" in Italy, maybe), and it embodyes a special kind of cat.
Not orange (like in Barks) or white (how in Europe "Malachia" was
colored, since the pages come frome the USA in black and white and
colorists didn't know what to do with characters), but brown, with
something of black (on the ears' top, at least). In Italy we call it
"soriano".

>After all, Donald himself turned from yellow to white... ;-)

Only in Italian comics, from Nerbini and similar...

>Already with the "Flying Dutchman" Barks did a U$ story on a
>subject very close to another one by Scarpa (the "Flying
>Scotchman" - BTW surely better than the Barks story IMHO).

>I read somewhere that "The Flying Scotsman" had been once
>voted the *Best Disney Story Ever*, but don't know by whom...
>If I were in the jury, I'd agree, anyway... ;-)

The guy who told it was Massimo Marconi, storyman and former head of
stories for "Topolino". Many critics and fans agree. Or, at least, they
say (like me) that's ONE of the few very best.

>It should really be reprinted (Luca ?), and I would surely
>love to see a sequel done, too...
>It's a pity only a few people know why it's raining sardines
>in Tegucigalpa, every 3rd of May... :-)

In one of the next-to-come "Maestri Disney", you mean? Maybe. I hope it!
Bye!

someone wrote: >there's of course also the possibility of getting an emailbox
at
>www.hotmail.com.

Just be aware that some folks (such as myself) have bolocked access to people
with hotmail addresses. they are probably the most spam-friendly isp out
there; and after blocking them, my spam e-mail dropped by 30 spams a day!
I of course, can read all hotmail sent to another address like the Disney
mailing list.

MMWriters: someone mentioned wanting to know who wrote the MM red wasp story.
I've only been partially paying attention, if someone can tell me the issue
number (if there was a US printing), there's a chance I may be able to come
up with a writer. - (who do you think was the source of those Mark Evanier
credits on the database, and the Don Christensen credits on Alberto B's
index?) :) Which reminds me, did I ever tell
any about the talk I had with Dick Moores about his Mickey Mouse stories?
Steven Rowe

Hi everyone,

Recently I was in a hotel room watching TV when I managed to catch most of an
old Charlie Chaplin movie set in the Klondike Gold rush. I don't know the
name of the movie because I missed the beginning. What I found totally
fascinating was some of the similarities between the Charlie Chaplin
character and Scrooge's character.

For example in the gold rush Charlie's feet are wrapped in rags; his clothes
are covered in patches, and one of his most prized possesions was a coin tied
to a string which he kept under his pillow.

There was a Soapy Slick type character who cheated prospectors, and a
Glittering Goldie character who got Charlie's affections. She was a saloon
dancer named Gina (I think?) who at one point in the movie lamented "Where
can I find a good honest man?" Of course Charlie was the person she was
looking for.

These traits are also exactly the same as those of Scrooge McDuck.

In the end Charlie became a millionaire through his honesty and hard work, he
got the girl, but not before she had redeemed herself for being so cruel to
him.

I wonder if Carl Barks was influenced by this movie at the time he created
Return to the Klondike??

regards,
Shaun