Keskustelujen arkisto

Any news (or even rumors) about when Disney comics will be published again
in the U.S.?
Is there still any hope realistically? If not, what about a limited edition
collection of Don Rosa's new work not already published in the U. S.?

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Christopher Burton:

<<This touches on something I've been meaning to ask for some time now.
Given all of the international inconsistencies not to mention the
differences in views among various creators, how would you as a Disney
comics fan or creator feel if the Walt Disney Company, in an attempt to
create a more cohesive and "logical" universe (or as logical as a
universe can be when it's peopled with talking ducks, dogs, geese,
etc.), came up with guidelines that standardized some (or all!) of the
very <<things that have been discussed and required the licensees to
follow them?

Though not really an answer to the question and a fairly obvious
statement, I would just like to comment that I don't see Disney ever
doing this. Not only is Disney probably not that concerned with their
comics, they are probably not worried about getting involved with
European artists' styles.

I'm an American Disney comics fan, but am also quite the Disney fan on
the whole, as well. I think if one simply looks at the original Mickey,
Donald, Goofy, etc... films that came out during the 1930's - 50's, one
can see that Disney has not been too concerned with a sense of
continuity. Sheesh....one would have a field day just trying to piece
together twists and turns of the Mickey-Minnie relationship as well as
the Donald-Daisy relationship in these old films. Another good example
of this is to look at Beauty & the Beast. At the end of the movie, the
Beast obviously turns back into a man, but there have been several
direct-to-video Beauty & the Beast "sequels" which have not continued
the story of Belle and the Prince, but have been set in a time when the
Prince is still the Beast. Now, one could possibly assume that we are
simply getting a closer look into the time period before the
transformation in which Belle was at the castle, but to do so throws off
any and all sort of rhythm that there is in the original movie.

My point is that Disney seems to focus on producing enjoyable stories
rather than always following a sense of order. Thus, I think the
current state of affairs of Disney comics in the United States (well,
U.S. artists that is) Europe, Brazil, etc... is perfectly sychronized
with Disney's ideas as a whole, with a focus being on the stories.

European artists, who I unfortunately am not very familiar with, may be
able to tell good stories by focusing on good plots, character
relationships, and jokes instead of continuity. Furthermore, Don Rosa,
because of his particular abilities can give us at times,
duck-historically-based stories that are just as pleasing. Artists who
are not worried about continuity will probably have a tougher time
making good stories if forced to follow strict constraints.
Furthermore, I believe we would lose much if Rosa was forced to let go
of his own style and conform to randomness (besides the fact that Don
would probably revolt.) ;-)

That said, I've got a quick question myself: what is everyone's
favorite story in which Donald is exceedingly good at a particular
profession? and why?

Not necessarily my favorite one, but I enjoy the story with Donald as an
expert cleaner (not sure of the title)....his ego comes into full play
in this fun story.

That's all!

-john crocker (got married on Donald's birthday)

> From: "John Crocker" <John.Crocker at student.oc.edu>
> Furthermore, I believe we would lose much if Rosa was forced to let go
> of his own style and conform to randomness

"Conform to randomness"... Wait, wait, let me get my pad and copy that one
down! That's the best oxymoron I've heard all day! Absolutely classic!
I used to describe my work as having "needless and irritating detail", but
from this point hence I shall proudly claim that my style "is replete with
needless and irritating detail, and will *never* conform to randomness"!
Thanks!!!

> From: manningjet at aol.com
> Subject: RE: 1949 best of Donald Duck # 01
> I have recently inherited this comic book and it is in excellent shape
for
> being 53 years old. Is this a rare comic? Is it very rare ? Is it
worth
> much ? I may be interested in selling it.

Two points:
One -- I wish I could implant this idea into the brains of every amateur
seller on eBay, but the expression "good condition for its age" is really
meaningless, particularly to collectors. I have seen 60-year-old comic
books that are in mint condition even though they were never in a stupid
mylar sleeve with a dumb acid-free backing board. Some kids are just very
careful with their stuff, and some stuff just gets lucky during the passage
of time in an attic or dry basement or dark closet. And naturally there are
comics from last March that are now in tatters. Simply because a comic (or
anything) is old does not mean it *should* be in bad shape. (Well, unless
it was made of foam rubber or something which deteriorates on a set
schedule, but anyway...) So, old comics (or, again, anything) must be
judged and described as if they were just printed yesterday... you must
describe it as if it should be perfectly mint, but which way is it *not*
so?
Two -- If that "1949" comic you have is not in such great shape, don't
fret! THE BEST OF DONALD DUCK #1 is a 1965 comic that is reprinting a 1949
story. You imply that it's not in perfect shape... if it's in really good
shape, it's worth about $10 to a dealer. If it's got some little tears and
creases and such, it's worth very little.

Rob and Nancy McCallum:

No news as to when Disney comics may resume publishing in the U.S., but,
incredibly, the negotiations between Diamond and Disney are still going on.
Three years, now; we seem to be living our own version of "Bleak House"?

And while it's sad to say, Don Rosa is right: the idea of a special edition
or a limited series doesn't change the fundamental problem. A license must
still be negotiated before the project, large or small, can happen, and such
negotiations have become very expensive (mainly in legal fees ? you can't
avoid involving lawyers) and time consuming (largely over lots of legal
haggling, which ratchet up the fees).

Our one real hope for Disney comics in the U.S. again rests with the
negotiations between Disney and Diamond. And keep in mind that Diamond has
already put in three years, and the attendant costs, to pursue this goal. As
the stakes haven't materially changed since the early stages, it's hard to
figure why Diamond would have stuck it out this long if they didn't mean to
ultimately win through.

Gary

From: UNDBKB at aol.com (Barry Branvold)
>>>>I don't know about the other 999 some fans, but I would love to see
that book
published.
Byron Erickson, are you still "lurking" out there?
Could Egmont produce such a book in English?

Nope. It's the same deal. For Egmont to publish as much as a Disney match
book cover *in English*, it would require them to negotiate (and pay!) for
an entirely new license, that for publishing English language editions.
Di$ney has every angle covered -- they don't simply license publishers per
country, but *per language*. And Egmont is the world's largest publisher --
again, as I said of Disney, for Egmont to negotiate and purchase a license
for publishing Disney comics in English, simply to publish and sell a Don
Rosa book to a thousand (or two thousand, or ten thousand) collectors
through American comic shops would be an utterly laughable idea to them.
They are used to selling millions of copies of weekly comics with virtually
no effort.
We need to steel ourselves to the very real likelihood that the world will
never again see Disney comics in the English language.

Former long-term editor of "Donaldisten", P?l Jensen,
turned 50 a couple of days ago. This even landed him
on the front page of "Aftenposten" (major Norwegian
newspaper) with photo and report inside. Admittedly,
his partial fame in Oslo is not entirely due to his association
with Donald, Ducks and Barks, but perhaps more so
to his patient and also long-lasting fight against
unnecessary car traffick in Oslo. He spends an immense
number of hours at downtown Oslo or at the university
campus, talking to all sorts of people, selling not only
self-authored but also self-produced (in the technical
sense) pamphlets and various paraphernalia, including
"buttons" to wear with anti-car slogans and pro-Donald
messages.

One must admire P?l for this Sisyphosian uphill struggle.
I am also on his side in the fight to keep wolves alive in
Norway (farmers wish to shoot everyone of them, from
helicopters). Long live Zeke Wolf. Lastly, I know that
Jensen has also authored a full novel (remind me to ask
you to lend me your copy, ?ystein; I still haven't read it).

It is a matter of definition whether the verb "flourish"
should be used or not, but, ok, I try it out in my mouth,
like it, and go for it: Under P?l Jensen's reign, the fan-magazine
"Donaldisten" flourished. From about 1975 onwards
it was produced rather frequently (other list members would
be able to give us more precise information), with a
reasonable mix of articles and contributions, holding
a reasonable quality level. Some of the articles were in
the "Jon Gisle" tradition (author of famous and influential
book "Donaldismen", 1973, translated also into Danish
and Swedish). As such "Donaldisten" resembled and
resembles the Swedish NAFS(k)uriren, which has been
brought over the last few years to what I deem is excellent
quality, and the German "Hamburger Donaldist", later
turned "Der Donaldist", also a wonderfully readable
magazine.

P?l: Long Live!

Nils Lid Hjort

DON:
> Nope. It's the same deal. For Egmont to publish as much as a Disney match
> book cover *in English*, it would require them to negotiate (and pay!) for
> an entirely new license, that for publishing English language editions.

Helsinki Media in Finland has been publishing "language tutorial" books
with Barks gag stories in English. Mostly one pagers, I think.

Couldn't they theoretically publish a similar thing with new Rosa
stories? Of course, for the American audience to buy it, they couldn't
market it with a title such as "Don Rosa Teaches English"...0

--
Mike Pohjola
mikep at iki.fi +358-50-5238399 http://www.iki.fi/mikep

Hello, DCML,

During a vacation trip to Norway last year, I, as a deprived American,
was astonished to see the popularity, and availability, of Disney comics
during my travels. Upon my return home, a little surfing brought me to
DCML, through which I was astonished yet again to discover the
proliferation of new Disney comics in other parts of the world. My
primary reason for joining DCML as a reader was to stay informed of the
progress of negotiations to bring English Disney comics back to the US
market. In the meantime, I have thoroughly enjoyed, and have been
enlightened by, all the various discussions that comprise this
newsletter.

I'm heartened to know that discussions between Diamond and Disney still
continue, while discouraged not to see much progress. In the meantime,
I thought I'd ask a question or two for those of us in the US who might
be interested in obtaining some of the foreign editions. I don't recall
seeing this issue addressed recently.

1. Are there any retail outlets in the US that sell foreign editions of
Disney comics (similar to dealers that sell foreign newspapers)? My
geographical point of interest would be the Boston area, but other
individuals might be interested whether anything exists in the New York
or other metropolitan areas.

2. Are there any mail order and/or on-line distributors, US or foreign,
from which one might purchase either, a.) foreign Disney subscriptions,
or b.) anthologies or collections of recent Disney stories? With regard
to b.), if I can't read a Don Rosa collection in English, I'd be
interested in seeing it (reading it might be another matter) in another
language, especially LO$ stories.

3. Where can I find the subscription addresses for the various Disney
publishers around the world? Has anyone collected them in one place
on-line? Is it economically reasonable for a US reader to subscribe to a
foreign edition?

4. If I were to consider subscribing to a few titles, which ones might
one recommend as being of consistently worthwhile quality to do so,
regardless of language, and assuming new(er) stories rather than
reprints?

Thanks in advance for your input.

Linwood Kemp