As I'm sure everyone here knows, Don Rosa set his Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge stories in the 1950's in emulation of Carl Barks, rather than in the present day as most Disney Comics writers and artists.
However, there are a few Rosa stories that do take place in a contemporary setting. Theres at least two that I now of. One of them is "The Duck Who Fell to Earth" written in 1991, which has satellites floating in space after allot have assumingly already been in space, a TV station reporter using a satellite camera for his news broadcast and Donald referring to a 1949 model plane as a "dinosaur".
Theres also "From Duckburg to Lillehamer", a story about the 1994 Winter Olympics. I believe this was one of Rosa's least favorite stories, as I remember reading that he was kind-off forced by Egmont into writing it, and in writing it, not having it taking place in the 50's and having it be about said contemporary event. I remember Rosa also saying that his memory must have blocked out the process of making of the story as he didn't like it that much. Whats really odd about the story is that the Mayor of Duckburg in said story was the same Mayor which appeared in other Rosa stories and in at least one Barks story (a Dog character with a moustach, round ears, top-hat and carnation) set in the 50's!
Am I missing any others?
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Topic: Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
(20 messages)
ToonArt14
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 1 -
2014-09-25 at 01:09:24
Skritter
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 2 -
2014-09-25 at 11:29:33
Well there were 12 satellites launched into orbit between 1957-58 alone with at least half of them being successful and a further 7 successful placements in the 60??s. So I would not assume "The Duck Who Fell to Earth" to be as contemporary as you think.
Roger North
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 3 -
2014-09-25 at 11:35:29
I think The Duck Who Never Was might have been set in 1994 since there is reference of Donald being sixty. I think skritter might be right about The Duck Who Fell To Earth not being comptemporary.
Dkenny78
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 4 -
2014-09-25 at 14:31:18
The whole concept of Donald being sixty in 'The Duck Who Never Was' was a joke. If I remember correctly, it had to do him filling out his date of birth on an employment application and it being misread. It was a very clever way to get the whole media event of 'Donald Duck's 60th Birthday' into a story with a version of the character that is very clearly not biologically sixty, much in the same way that 'A Little Something Special' celebrated Scrooge McDuck's 50th 'birthday' not as his actual 'birthday' but as the 50th anniversary of the year he arrived in Duckburg.
Roger North
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 5 -
2014-09-25 at 19:24:09
You may be right about that dkenny but I don't know.
Dutch Duckfan Down Under
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 6 -
2014-10-02 at 21:41:35
WARNING: extreme fannish attention to detail follows!
I actually find this interesting, and a while back I'd tried to put together a chronology of all his stories in relation to each other and Barks stories, and regarding real dates whenever mentioned. I've also looked at pop culture references (even lack of pop culture references!), dates he puts in newspapers, character development, sayings. I've gotten stuck around 1996 with the stories.
The idea was to make a logical chronology of his stories, from the ducks' perspective, which often meant being logical to a fault where it's not actually logical anymore, and outright ignoring some things for the sake of coherency.
The two stories said to take place in the present day: From Duckburg to Lillehammer and The Starstruck Duck, have been reassigned to similar events in the 50s even when it's contradicted in the text. (FDtL: 1994 Olympics in Norway to 1952 Olympics in Norway, TSD: opening of the Disney/MGM theme park in 1989 to opening of Disneyland in 1955)
There's a level of detail in his stories that actually make this a fruitful endeavor for many stories. I like that. There's also a chance for me to experience his stories in another way.
There's one story so far that can be dated completely: The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut. There's a newspaper dated August 31, 1953 in the present-day section. As for the flashback it takes place over the course of one night. Roosevelt mentions having his picture taken in a steam shovel earlier that day, which according to different sources was either on November 15, 26, or 30, 1906.
One of things that struck me most is how late A Little Something Special is supposed to be. It's this grand culmination of Scrooge villains plotting against him for the ultimate revenge, and it takes place in... 1952. Not even five years after the scenes in The Recluse of McDuck Manor (Christmas 1947).
Other surprisingly late stories are The Last Lord of Eldorado (by virtue of referencing The Son of the Sun, which references so many Barks stories, and The Treasury of Croesus), The Curse of Nostrildamus (there's a Brutopian Sputnik, placing it in the space age... even though that arguably started with the Rocket Race to the Moon), The Duck Who Fell To Earth (as mentioned above), War of the Wendigo (with its environmental theme), and The Once and Future Duck (various reasons).
The story I've actually got set as the last is, spoiler of spoilers, The Crocodile Collector. There's a reference by one of the nephews that they were in Rwanda, one of the world's smallest countries. Rwanda didn't become independent from the Belgian colonial Congo Free State (as seen in Tintin in the Congo) until 1962.
The conclusion of the story is that Donald and the nephews get rich from crocodile gold, which, if slightly unethical, is a nice ultimate happy ending.
The one story I'm having the most trouble with? The Paper Chase, a one-pager he didn't write. Papers didn't cost 35 cents in those days! Not for decades! :P
I should finish this. Only 19 more stories to go!
I actually find this interesting, and a while back I'd tried to put together a chronology of all his stories in relation to each other and Barks stories, and regarding real dates whenever mentioned. I've also looked at pop culture references (even lack of pop culture references!), dates he puts in newspapers, character development, sayings. I've gotten stuck around 1996 with the stories.
The idea was to make a logical chronology of his stories, from the ducks' perspective, which often meant being logical to a fault where it's not actually logical anymore, and outright ignoring some things for the sake of coherency.
The two stories said to take place in the present day: From Duckburg to Lillehammer and The Starstruck Duck, have been reassigned to similar events in the 50s even when it's contradicted in the text. (FDtL: 1994 Olympics in Norway to 1952 Olympics in Norway, TSD: opening of the Disney/MGM theme park in 1989 to opening of Disneyland in 1955)
There's a level of detail in his stories that actually make this a fruitful endeavor for many stories. I like that. There's also a chance for me to experience his stories in another way.
There's one story so far that can be dated completely: The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut. There's a newspaper dated August 31, 1953 in the present-day section. As for the flashback it takes place over the course of one night. Roosevelt mentions having his picture taken in a steam shovel earlier that day, which according to different sources was either on November 15, 26, or 30, 1906.
One of things that struck me most is how late A Little Something Special is supposed to be. It's this grand culmination of Scrooge villains plotting against him for the ultimate revenge, and it takes place in... 1952. Not even five years after the scenes in The Recluse of McDuck Manor (Christmas 1947).
Other surprisingly late stories are The Last Lord of Eldorado (by virtue of referencing The Son of the Sun, which references so many Barks stories, and The Treasury of Croesus), The Curse of Nostrildamus (there's a Brutopian Sputnik, placing it in the space age... even though that arguably started with the Rocket Race to the Moon), The Duck Who Fell To Earth (as mentioned above), War of the Wendigo (with its environmental theme), and The Once and Future Duck (various reasons).
The story I've actually got set as the last is, spoiler of spoilers, The Crocodile Collector. There's a reference by one of the nephews that they were in Rwanda, one of the world's smallest countries. Rwanda didn't become independent from the Belgian colonial Congo Free State (as seen in Tintin in the Congo) until 1962.
The conclusion of the story is that Donald and the nephews get rich from crocodile gold, which, if slightly unethical, is a nice ultimate happy ending.
The one story I'm having the most trouble with? The Paper Chase, a one-pager he didn't write. Papers didn't cost 35 cents in those days! Not for decades! :P
I should finish this. Only 19 more stories to go!
ToonArt14
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 7 -
2014-10-02 at 23:23:50
Quote from user: Dutch Duckfan Down UnderWARNING: extreme fannish attention to detail follows!
I actually find this interesting, and a while back I'd tried to put together a chronology of all his stories in relation to each other and Barks stories, and regarding real dates whenever mentioned. I've also looked at pop culture references (even lack of pop culture references!), dates he puts in newspapers, character development, sayings. I've gotten stuck around 1996 with the stories.
The idea was to make a logical chronology of his stories, from the ducks' perspective, which often meant being logical to a fault where it's not actually logical anymore, and outright ignoring some things for the sake of coherency.
The two stories said to take place in the present day: From Duckburg to Lillehammer and The Starstruck Duck, have been reassigned to similar events in the 50s even when it's contradicted in the text. (FDtL: 1994 Olympics in Norway to 1952 Olympics in Norway, TSD: opening of the Disney/MGM theme park in 1989 to opening of Disneyland in 1955)
There's a level of detail in his stories that actually make this a fruitful endeavor for many stories. I like that. There's also a chance for me to experience his stories in another way.
There's one story so far that can be dated completely: The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut. There's a newspaper dated August 31, 1953 in the present-day section. As for the flashback it takes place over the course of one night. Roosevelt mentions having his picture taken in a steam shovel earlier that day, which according to different sources was either on November 15, 26, or 30, 1906.
One of things that struck me most is how late A Little Something Special is supposed to be. It's this grand culmination of Scrooge villains plotting against him for the ultimate revenge, and it takes place in... 1952. Not even five years after the scenes in The Recluse of McDuck Manor (Christmas 1947).
Other surprisingly late stories are The Last Lord of Eldorado (by virtue of referencing The Son of the Sun, which references so many Barks stories, and The Treasury of Croesus), The Curse of Nostrildamus (there's a Brutopian Sputnik, placing it in the space age... even though that arguably started with the Rocket Race to the Moon), The Duck Who Fell To Earth (as mentioned above), War of the Wendigo (with its environmental theme), and The Once and Future Duck (various reasons).
The story I've actually got set as the last is, spoiler of spoilers, The Crocodile Collector. There's a reference by one of the nephews that they were in Rwanda, one of the world's smallest countries. Rwanda didn't become independent from the Belgian colonial Congo Free State (as seen in Tintin in the Congo) until 1962.
The conclusion of the story is that Donald and the nephews get rich from crocodile gold, which, if slightly unethical, is a nice ultimate happy ending.
The one story I'm having the most trouble with? The Paper Chase, a one-pager he didn't write. Papers didn't cost 35 cents in those days! Not for decades! :P
I should finish this. Only 19 more stories to go!
How thats pretty impressive! I myself have been writing a timeline of the Barks/Rosa Duck Universe, from pre-histroy up to 1947, when Scrooge McDuck returned to public life. I just started working out how to date the individual Barks-Rosa stories as well, so that part of the timeline isn't even half finished. Still, heres what I worked out so far in regards to the stories themselves.
As to when said stories with Donald and Uncle Scrooge take place, I myself have a decade long time-frame of roughly 1948-1958. Some Duck fans like to have some of the stories take place in the 1960's, but this is pretty problematic considering Huey, Dewey and Louie would be in their twenties, yet they still look like children and are still under Donald Ducks guardianship!
As for the Donald Duck stories written before Christmas on Bear Mountain, most would take place roughly when they were published. I have HD&L moving in with Donald in 1944 or 1945, so some of the stories written before would have to take place a bit latter as a result.
First of all, the following Barks stories all take place before Son of the Sun, and in no order so far; The Secret of Atlantis, The Golden Fleecing, The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone, Deep Down Doings, Land Beneath the Ground, The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan, The Mines of King Solomon, The Flying Dutchman, The Prize of Pizarro, The Status Seeker, Crown of the Mayas and Rug Riders in the Sky. Another Barks story referenced in Son of the Sun, the Old Castles Secret, I have taking place in 1948, the same year it was published. The Don Rosa story The Treasury of Croesus also takes place before Son of the Sun.
We know Return to Plain Awful takes place some time after Son of the Sun, so that's easy. In Return to Xanadu, Return to Plain Awful is referenced. Then The Crown of the Crusader Kings takes place after Return to Plain Awful, as the Crown of Genghis Khan is noticeably absent. As the stories sequel, The Old Castles Other Secret, takes place in 1955, we know from the January 3 date in Crown of the Crusader Kings that the latter story takes place from late-1954 to January 1955. We can assume that The Old Castles Other Secret takes place soon after in early in 1955.
Now things get a little problematic. With all this, all the above mentioned Barks and Rosa stories, save for Crown of the Crusader Kings and the Old Castles Secret, would have to take place before at least mid-1954. However this could be changed if one ignores the Plain Awful reference in Return to Xanadu. As you said, The Last Lord of Eldorado takes place some time later (I myself have it 1955 or 1956), then after that The Black Knight, then one year after the Black Knight, the Black Knight Glorps Again.
The Three Caballeros Ride Again would have to take place in October or November of 1957, due to the reference to the Disney Zorro TV series with Guy Williams, which premiered on October 10, 1957. We can assume the Magnificent Seven minus Four Caballeros takes place at least a year later.
With Gyros Thinkbox in June of 1952, we know Gyros First Invention takes place at least one or two months before. Christmas for Shacktown would then take place in December of 1951. The Gilded Man would have to take place in 1950 or 1951, as the mailmen in Guyana reference "HIS majesty's mail", so we know King George VI is still alive.
Speaking of 1952, A Little Something Special also takes place this year. I have it sometime between June and October of 1952, even though we know from the Duckman Pettho website that the Invader of Fort Duckburg takes place in April of 1902. The reason for the "between June and October" dating is that it has to take place after Gyro's First Invention. We also now from A Little Something Special that the Second Richest Duck and the Midas Touch have to take place either in 1950 or 1951.
Heres the last one for now; Last Sled to Dawson takes place in 1954, based on the year the ledger books have on them. With Soapy Slick established as a villain, North of the Yukon would have to take place in 1950. While I think there is a reference in the latter story to 1898 being 67 years ago, we can have it be 55 or 52 years ago instead, giving us a year of 1950 or 1953. Back to the Klondike would have to take place between 1948 and 1951 as well.
I actually find this interesting, and a while back I'd tried to put together a chronology of all his stories in relation to each other and Barks stories, and regarding real dates whenever mentioned. I've also looked at pop culture references (even lack of pop culture references!), dates he puts in newspapers, character development, sayings. I've gotten stuck around 1996 with the stories.
The idea was to make a logical chronology of his stories, from the ducks' perspective, which often meant being logical to a fault where it's not actually logical anymore, and outright ignoring some things for the sake of coherency.
The two stories said to take place in the present day: From Duckburg to Lillehammer and The Starstruck Duck, have been reassigned to similar events in the 50s even when it's contradicted in the text. (FDtL: 1994 Olympics in Norway to 1952 Olympics in Norway, TSD: opening of the Disney/MGM theme park in 1989 to opening of Disneyland in 1955)
There's a level of detail in his stories that actually make this a fruitful endeavor for many stories. I like that. There's also a chance for me to experience his stories in another way.
There's one story so far that can be dated completely: The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut. There's a newspaper dated August 31, 1953 in the present-day section. As for the flashback it takes place over the course of one night. Roosevelt mentions having his picture taken in a steam shovel earlier that day, which according to different sources was either on November 15, 26, or 30, 1906.
One of things that struck me most is how late A Little Something Special is supposed to be. It's this grand culmination of Scrooge villains plotting against him for the ultimate revenge, and it takes place in... 1952. Not even five years after the scenes in The Recluse of McDuck Manor (Christmas 1947).
Other surprisingly late stories are The Last Lord of Eldorado (by virtue of referencing The Son of the Sun, which references so many Barks stories, and The Treasury of Croesus), The Curse of Nostrildamus (there's a Brutopian Sputnik, placing it in the space age... even though that arguably started with the Rocket Race to the Moon), The Duck Who Fell To Earth (as mentioned above), War of the Wendigo (with its environmental theme), and The Once and Future Duck (various reasons).
The story I've actually got set as the last is, spoiler of spoilers, The Crocodile Collector. There's a reference by one of the nephews that they were in Rwanda, one of the world's smallest countries. Rwanda didn't become independent from the Belgian colonial Congo Free State (as seen in Tintin in the Congo) until 1962.
The conclusion of the story is that Donald and the nephews get rich from crocodile gold, which, if slightly unethical, is a nice ultimate happy ending.
The one story I'm having the most trouble with? The Paper Chase, a one-pager he didn't write. Papers didn't cost 35 cents in those days! Not for decades! :P
I should finish this. Only 19 more stories to go!
How thats pretty impressive! I myself have been writing a timeline of the Barks/Rosa Duck Universe, from pre-histroy up to 1947, when Scrooge McDuck returned to public life. I just started working out how to date the individual Barks-Rosa stories as well, so that part of the timeline isn't even half finished. Still, heres what I worked out so far in regards to the stories themselves.
As to when said stories with Donald and Uncle Scrooge take place, I myself have a decade long time-frame of roughly 1948-1958. Some Duck fans like to have some of the stories take place in the 1960's, but this is pretty problematic considering Huey, Dewey and Louie would be in their twenties, yet they still look like children and are still under Donald Ducks guardianship!
As for the Donald Duck stories written before Christmas on Bear Mountain, most would take place roughly when they were published. I have HD&L moving in with Donald in 1944 or 1945, so some of the stories written before would have to take place a bit latter as a result.
First of all, the following Barks stories all take place before Son of the Sun, and in no order so far; The Secret of Atlantis, The Golden Fleecing, The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone, Deep Down Doings, Land Beneath the Ground, The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan, The Mines of King Solomon, The Flying Dutchman, The Prize of Pizarro, The Status Seeker, Crown of the Mayas and Rug Riders in the Sky. Another Barks story referenced in Son of the Sun, the Old Castles Secret, I have taking place in 1948, the same year it was published. The Don Rosa story The Treasury of Croesus also takes place before Son of the Sun.
We know Return to Plain Awful takes place some time after Son of the Sun, so that's easy. In Return to Xanadu, Return to Plain Awful is referenced. Then The Crown of the Crusader Kings takes place after Return to Plain Awful, as the Crown of Genghis Khan is noticeably absent. As the stories sequel, The Old Castles Other Secret, takes place in 1955, we know from the January 3 date in Crown of the Crusader Kings that the latter story takes place from late-1954 to January 1955. We can assume that The Old Castles Other Secret takes place soon after in early in 1955.
Now things get a little problematic. With all this, all the above mentioned Barks and Rosa stories, save for Crown of the Crusader Kings and the Old Castles Secret, would have to take place before at least mid-1954. However this could be changed if one ignores the Plain Awful reference in Return to Xanadu. As you said, The Last Lord of Eldorado takes place some time later (I myself have it 1955 or 1956), then after that The Black Knight, then one year after the Black Knight, the Black Knight Glorps Again.
The Three Caballeros Ride Again would have to take place in October or November of 1957, due to the reference to the Disney Zorro TV series with Guy Williams, which premiered on October 10, 1957. We can assume the Magnificent Seven minus Four Caballeros takes place at least a year later.
With Gyros Thinkbox in June of 1952, we know Gyros First Invention takes place at least one or two months before. Christmas for Shacktown would then take place in December of 1951. The Gilded Man would have to take place in 1950 or 1951, as the mailmen in Guyana reference "HIS majesty's mail", so we know King George VI is still alive.
Speaking of 1952, A Little Something Special also takes place this year. I have it sometime between June and October of 1952, even though we know from the Duckman Pettho website that the Invader of Fort Duckburg takes place in April of 1902. The reason for the "between June and October" dating is that it has to take place after Gyro's First Invention. We also now from A Little Something Special that the Second Richest Duck and the Midas Touch have to take place either in 1950 or 1951.
Heres the last one for now; Last Sled to Dawson takes place in 1954, based on the year the ledger books have on them. With Soapy Slick established as a villain, North of the Yukon would have to take place in 1950. While I think there is a reference in the latter story to 1898 being 67 years ago, we can have it be 55 or 52 years ago instead, giving us a year of 1950 or 1953. Back to the Klondike would have to take place between 1948 and 1951 as well.
Don Rosa
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 8 -
2014-10-03 at 07:29:13
I am quite astounded by this! And flattered!
I know you do this just for fun, but don't make yourself too crazy. While I enjoyed (very much!) setting my Duck stories in the past, I was never certain in what order they took place, or exactly what year they occurred (except for a few). I just generally thought of the time frame as being "a conglomeration of years in the mid 1950s". I never tried to be precise. But I'm amused that anyone would try to fit it all into an exact timeline. I appreciate that! It's something I would try to do if I was reading me.
You are correct that I regarded my "From Duckburg to Lillehammer" as taking place at the 1952 Norway Winter Olympics, but I really felt compelled to include the name "Lillehammer" to please the Norwegian editor who requested the story. Also correct that I was envisioning "The Starstruck Duck" as taking place during the building of Disneyland in Anaheim in 1955.
But I was especially careful with my "Crocodile Collector" such that I even went to the U of L library to look at old encyclopedia. That story took place in Ruanda-Urundi, also referred to as just Ruanda. If my correct script is used (which it often is not) the name I used would be "Ruanda" with a 'u', not the post-1962 "Rwanda" with the 'w'. Ruanda was a separate territory in the 50s. To accompany that story I even copied a 1950 map of Africa out of a book to clearly show the Duck's travels across the continent showing the names of 1950's nations. But naturally the editors chose not to print that in order not to confuse kiddies, and the map was lost. I tried to find it for recent deluxe-edition Rosa books, but it's nowhere in my files.
Then there's the weather satellite in "The Duck Who Fell to Earth". I would never, ever, ever, never, EVER violate my personal mandate that my stories were set in the 50's. Not ever! (Unless it got a laugh.) (In other words, I relented that time for the sake of a cheap gag. I shunta.)
The other reaction that I had reading the above messages was the distressing idea that apparently some readers (or at least one) never understood what was going on in "The Duck Who Never Was", and still isn't sure when it is clearly explained. Sad.
I know you do this just for fun, but don't make yourself too crazy. While I enjoyed (very much!) setting my Duck stories in the past, I was never certain in what order they took place, or exactly what year they occurred (except for a few). I just generally thought of the time frame as being "a conglomeration of years in the mid 1950s". I never tried to be precise. But I'm amused that anyone would try to fit it all into an exact timeline. I appreciate that! It's something I would try to do if I was reading me.
You are correct that I regarded my "From Duckburg to Lillehammer" as taking place at the 1952 Norway Winter Olympics, but I really felt compelled to include the name "Lillehammer" to please the Norwegian editor who requested the story. Also correct that I was envisioning "The Starstruck Duck" as taking place during the building of Disneyland in Anaheim in 1955.
But I was especially careful with my "Crocodile Collector" such that I even went to the U of L library to look at old encyclopedia. That story took place in Ruanda-Urundi, also referred to as just Ruanda. If my correct script is used (which it often is not) the name I used would be "Ruanda" with a 'u', not the post-1962 "Rwanda" with the 'w'. Ruanda was a separate territory in the 50s. To accompany that story I even copied a 1950 map of Africa out of a book to clearly show the Duck's travels across the continent showing the names of 1950's nations. But naturally the editors chose not to print that in order not to confuse kiddies, and the map was lost. I tried to find it for recent deluxe-edition Rosa books, but it's nowhere in my files.
Then there's the weather satellite in "The Duck Who Fell to Earth". I would never, ever, ever, never, EVER violate my personal mandate that my stories were set in the 50's. Not ever! (Unless it got a laugh.) (In other words, I relented that time for the sake of a cheap gag. I shunta.)
The other reaction that I had reading the above messages was the distressing idea that apparently some readers (or at least one) never understood what was going on in "The Duck Who Never Was", and still isn't sure when it is clearly explained. Sad.
Majd
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 9 -
2014-10-03 at 12:00:50
Whoa, I never thaught I'll see Don Rosa posting here !! I really hope you'll reply to my future post about Disney comics in 3rd world country's :D
ToonArt14
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 10 -
2014-10-03 at 13:38:38
Wow! THE Don Rosa on these message boards. That's pretty sweet, and your welcome for trying to date yours and Bark's stories.
Very interesting information on From Duckburg to Lillehamer, The Starstruck Duck, The Crocodile Collector, as well as The Duck who Fell to Earth. I remember you mentioning something about that gag in the Second Gemstone Barks-Rosa collection (which I own along with the First one) and how anachronistic it is was. Oh well, we can easily ignore the gag and say that the story took place around the late-1950's.
So heres my timeline of the Barks-Rosa stories so far. I'm working with the longer stories and adventure stories for now, and even though there still may be some I missed, heres what I have so far. Any constructive criticism is more than welcome.
June, 1948: The Old Castle's Secret
April, 1949: Lost in the Andes
August, 1949: Voodoo Hoodoo
November, 1949: The Terrible Beagle Boys
March, 1950: Only a Poor Old Man
August, 1950: The Money Well
August, 1950: W.H.A.D.A.L.O.T.T.A.J.A.R.G.O.N.
September, 1950: The Second Richest Duck
March, 1951: Back to the Klondike
June, 1951: Tralla La
August, 1951: The Midas Touch
September, 1951: The Money Champ
October, 1951: The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone
December, 1951: Christmas for Shacktown
January, 1952: The Gilded Man
February, 1952: From Duckburg to Lillehammer (Oslo)
March, 1952: Statuesque Spendthrifts
April, 1952: Gyro's First Invention
June, 1952: The Think Box Bollix
July, 1952: The Golden Helmet
September, 1952: The Mines of King Solomon
October, 1952: A Little Something Special
December, 1952: The Golden Fleecing
March, 1953: The Secret of Atlantis
May, 1953: The Status Seeker
June, 1953: The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan
August, 1953: Land Beneath the Ground
September, 1953: North of the Yukon
December, 1953: Crown of the Mayas
January-February, 1954: The Treasury Of Croesus
March, 1954: The Flying Dutchman
May, 1954: His Majesty McDuck
June, 1954: The Prize of Pizarro
July, 1954: Rug Riders in the Sky
August, 1954: Last Sled to Dawson
September, 1954: The Son of the Son
October, 1954: Return to Xanadu
December, 1954-Janaury, 1955: The Crown of the Crusader Kings
January, 1955: A Letter from Home
February, 1955: Return to Plain Awful
May, 1955: The Guardians Of The Lost Library
Thursday, June 9, 1955: The Duck Who Never Was
May, 1956: Treasure Under Glass
May, 1956: The Last Lord of Eldorado
August, 1956: The Black Knight
October, 1956: The Lost Charts Of Columbus
March, 1957: A Cold Bargain
June, 1957: The Black Knight Glorps Again
October, 1957: The Three Caballeros Ride Again
November, 1958: The Magnificent Seven (Minus Three) Caballeros
Very interesting information on From Duckburg to Lillehamer, The Starstruck Duck, The Crocodile Collector, as well as The Duck who Fell to Earth. I remember you mentioning something about that gag in the Second Gemstone Barks-Rosa collection (which I own along with the First one) and how anachronistic it is was. Oh well, we can easily ignore the gag and say that the story took place around the late-1950's.
So heres my timeline of the Barks-Rosa stories so far. I'm working with the longer stories and adventure stories for now, and even though there still may be some I missed, heres what I have so far. Any constructive criticism is more than welcome.
June, 1948: The Old Castle's Secret
April, 1949: Lost in the Andes
August, 1949: Voodoo Hoodoo
November, 1949: The Terrible Beagle Boys
March, 1950: Only a Poor Old Man
August, 1950: The Money Well
August, 1950: W.H.A.D.A.L.O.T.T.A.J.A.R.G.O.N.
September, 1950: The Second Richest Duck
March, 1951: Back to the Klondike
June, 1951: Tralla La
August, 1951: The Midas Touch
September, 1951: The Money Champ
October, 1951: The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone
December, 1951: Christmas for Shacktown
January, 1952: The Gilded Man
February, 1952: From Duckburg to Lillehammer (Oslo)
March, 1952: Statuesque Spendthrifts
April, 1952: Gyro's First Invention
June, 1952: The Think Box Bollix
July, 1952: The Golden Helmet
September, 1952: The Mines of King Solomon
October, 1952: A Little Something Special
December, 1952: The Golden Fleecing
March, 1953: The Secret of Atlantis
May, 1953: The Status Seeker
June, 1953: The Lost Crown of Genghis Khan
August, 1953: Land Beneath the Ground
September, 1953: North of the Yukon
December, 1953: Crown of the Mayas
January-February, 1954: The Treasury Of Croesus
March, 1954: The Flying Dutchman
May, 1954: His Majesty McDuck
June, 1954: The Prize of Pizarro
July, 1954: Rug Riders in the Sky
August, 1954: Last Sled to Dawson
September, 1954: The Son of the Son
October, 1954: Return to Xanadu
December, 1954-Janaury, 1955: The Crown of the Crusader Kings
January, 1955: A Letter from Home
February, 1955: Return to Plain Awful
May, 1955: The Guardians Of The Lost Library
Thursday, June 9, 1955: The Duck Who Never Was
May, 1956: Treasure Under Glass
May, 1956: The Last Lord of Eldorado
August, 1956: The Black Knight
October, 1956: The Lost Charts Of Columbus
March, 1957: A Cold Bargain
June, 1957: The Black Knight Glorps Again
October, 1957: The Three Caballeros Ride Again
November, 1958: The Magnificent Seven (Minus Three) Caballeros
Don Rosa
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 11 -
2014-10-03 at 14:12:01
That's wonderful! I'm printing that out and saving it.
Y'know, there are those who are very annoyed at my preference to set my stories in the past, and even more annoyed at my predilection to a limited continuity, even though it's a VERY loose continuity and not on the level that they imply... just as you are proving above. Some also try to shoot holes in my timeline as compared to Barks, as if they could. But they can't since I do it for my own amusement, certainly not theirs... so if they don't like it, they should just not read my stories. Why do they torture themselves? I don't know.
But a few insist that my timeline is rubbish because I am treating Barks' stories of the late 50's and into the 60's as if they already took place in my early-mid 50's period. Or that the Nephews would be teenagers or adults by Barks' late 60's stories if they existed in Barks' mid 1940s stories. They prefer to insist that these are fairytale beings who are immortal, living forever in a fairytale world. What's that all about? Weird.
My personal view is SO simple -- I just pretend Barks' stories ALSO all take place in the mid 50's. In the 40's he was telling tales of the future, in the 60's he was telling tales of the past. Simple as that. These are normal beings in a normal world.
If I was telling a story of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, I would set it in Victorian Times, as most all modern Holmsian chroniclers do. But there are some writers who update Holmes to the present, as in "Sherlock", and those are very enjoyable stories as well. There's no reason one is good and one is bad.
And anyway, it's all my own interpretation. If some people don't like it, fine. They can and should ignore me entirely.
They want to insist all Duck stories follow THEIR interpretation. Me, I think each writer can interpret the work as he/she wishes. I wonder how they see *my* attitude as too strict?! Go figger...
Y'know, there are those who are very annoyed at my preference to set my stories in the past, and even more annoyed at my predilection to a limited continuity, even though it's a VERY loose continuity and not on the level that they imply... just as you are proving above. Some also try to shoot holes in my timeline as compared to Barks, as if they could. But they can't since I do it for my own amusement, certainly not theirs... so if they don't like it, they should just not read my stories. Why do they torture themselves? I don't know.
But a few insist that my timeline is rubbish because I am treating Barks' stories of the late 50's and into the 60's as if they already took place in my early-mid 50's period. Or that the Nephews would be teenagers or adults by Barks' late 60's stories if they existed in Barks' mid 1940s stories. They prefer to insist that these are fairytale beings who are immortal, living forever in a fairytale world. What's that all about? Weird.
My personal view is SO simple -- I just pretend Barks' stories ALSO all take place in the mid 50's. In the 40's he was telling tales of the future, in the 60's he was telling tales of the past. Simple as that. These are normal beings in a normal world.
If I was telling a story of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, I would set it in Victorian Times, as most all modern Holmsian chroniclers do. But there are some writers who update Holmes to the present, as in "Sherlock", and those are very enjoyable stories as well. There's no reason one is good and one is bad.
And anyway, it's all my own interpretation. If some people don't like it, fine. They can and should ignore me entirely.
They want to insist all Duck stories follow THEIR interpretation. Me, I think each writer can interpret the work as he/she wishes. I wonder how they see *my* attitude as too strict?! Go figger...
Dutch Duckfan Down Under
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 12 -
2014-10-05 at 18:35:10
ToonArt14: It's great to see that I'm not the only one who loves to search for these things!
I myself will not try to date the Barks stories, because there you do run into problems. I think it defies logic somewhere to say a story took place too long before it was written, so when Flintheart Glomgold first appears in 1956's The Second-Richest Duck before the 1952 of A Little Something Special, not to mention Magica DeSpell, who doesn't appear for another decade, I try to leave Barks alone as much as I can. I place them within the Rosa stories when I get to making the timeline, but Barks himself simply didn't care for this kind of thing and I'll leave it at that. (There's also the problem of where to stop.)
I try to contain the timeline as much as I can as well, but considering some stories with HDL take place in the late 40s and others in the late 50s (culturally, the B-movie inspired stuff), you're still left with teenage nephews. I try to explain this away as 'they age, visibly, in their behavior and responsibility, into young adults, just not physiologically, but then the drawings are only abstract representations of the "real" adventures, so you can chalk it up to artistic freedom'. Or something. :)
I do maintain that there's a line of visible character development between 'early' and 'late' stories, though.
Don Rosa: ZOMG it's Don Rosa!!!!!111 Legend!!!! (:P, ;), etc.)
Haha, no but really, it was your stories that got me into all this. I will try to act normal so you won't feel embarrassed. :)
You mentioned that you pretend all Barks stories take place in the 50s. If only this held up to scrutiny! There's Donald's Victory Garden in the eponymous early 10-pager pointing to the war, and the likes of The Great Wig Mystery and The Beauty Business pointing in the other direction. I like to keep it open as some big mystery until I've figured something out. For now, it's just "whatever", and a lot of handwaving it away.
I did not know that about Ruanda! Shame, really, I thought DD getting rich was a nice way to end things. Nice to hear about some firsthand research.
And as for the 'if you don't like this interpretation, ignore' attitude towards your timeline, I can say I took that to heart.
I created my own.
While this sounds like the most redundant thing ever, I'm just totally ignoring you, like you said. I use a very basic interpretation of Scrooge's past as in Barks for 'fan-fiction' I write for myself and my own creativity. I've long left the constraints and conventions of normal Disney comics in those, so it's hard to even call it that. But it's still got Scrooge, because 'trying to become the richest duck in the world between 1898 and 1947' is an excellent framework for historically-oriented stories. (See? You got me into that as well, with your Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck chapter 11 and your Guardians of the Lost Library and your Sharpie of the Culebra Cut!) Luckily, research is a lot easier in the digital age!
It??s funny that you mention Sherlock. The most famous interpretations ("Sherlock", Basil Rathbone??s 1940s movies, the original stories) are all set in the time they were made. Except for some of the original stories, which were still being written in the 1920s, and were set in the 1880s-1900s. So he thought like you do, evidently. Similarly, there were Sherlock Holmes fans in the 40s trying to figure out the chronological placements of those stories, based on hints the author left in the work, even though he never really had a timeline in mind.
Sound familiar?
I might see you in Germany next week.
Finally, a few notes on ToonArt14??s timeline. (I??m not publishing my own until I??ve finished it.)
Put WHADDALOTTAJARGON much earlier. It??s at the very end of the ??rascal nephews?? era, but before any Scrooge stories in which they act responsibly.
It??s also important to put Statuesque Spendthrifts, A Christmas For Shacktown, Gyro??s First Invention and The Think Box Thollix early (and, optionally, the Gladstone story in which he first appears). I see these as Gyro??s beginnings, before any invention he delivers in other comics. So place it before From Duckburg to Lillehammer, which makes use of Gyro inventions.
Personally, I like to think that the DD+HDL adventures like The Golden Helmet or Lost in the Andes take place in the age before Scrooge, because they never seem to mention him. Of course, this doesn??t line up entirely with what we see in WHADDALOTTAJARGON (Don, what a title to type!), but I try to keep to it as much as possible, to create a sort of order.
It generally looks okay, really.
Some small placings in my own timeline that you might want to look at:
Gladstone reads real Dell comics in Nobody??s Business. The latest ones I??ve been able to discern are Four Color 517, or 581 (that??s November 1953, or August 1954).
Cash Flow mentions the cha-cha, which didn??t become a craze in the US until 1953.
His Majesty, McDuck seems to feature disproportionate retribution against foreign menaces the Beagle Boys, a policy that didn??t start until 1955. However, Attaaack! features a more reluctant army.
The Starstruck Duck: Summer, 1955.
The Money Pit: I believe there??s a 1955 coin in Scrooge??s bin.
Return to Xanadu: is a late one. It features a lot of Barks treasures on display.
The big bar brawl of Dawson City can comfortably be dated to May 9, 1897, by the next day??s newspaper in The Billionaire of Dismal Downs.
From Duckburg to Lillehammer: does it take place at the actual Olympics? Barks??s story took place in the qualification round.
The Treasure of the Ten Avatars: somewhere in India, post-decolonization since that happened in 1947/48. Anything I should look out for, Don?
Attack of the Hideous Space-Monsters: something tells me it??s one of the very last adventures. Scrooge has conquered every corner of the globe by now. It??s also inspired by the B-movie era. There??s also something to be said for the scale of the adventures ever growing, to the point where the now only space and time are the limits. (See also: The Once and Future Duck.)
A Little Something Special: Scrooge??s foes have been after him for years now. It??s also 1952. This will be tricky. :) Are we to assume that Scrooge met Glomgold and Magica mere months after he came out of retirement?
The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut: when in November 1906 did Roosevelt have that picture taken, anyway?
Trash or Treasure: I like to think it fits in July 1955, only because Scrooge hangs a July 1927 calendar on his wall, and in 1955 the days of the week would match (also in 1949 and 1966, there's a cop who is very aware of candid camera TV shows, which didn't become a thing until 1948).
Finally, I??m going to try and link some things together as if they were ??fads??, like Super Snooper comics, and oolated squiggs (what the %#@* is an oolated squigg, Don?), which appeared in both Oolated Luck and Trash or Treasure and seem to be too disgusting to have been around for long.
I might even link all the Jones stories together, even if there is a Barks story where Donald moves *back* next to Jones.
I myself will not try to date the Barks stories, because there you do run into problems. I think it defies logic somewhere to say a story took place too long before it was written, so when Flintheart Glomgold first appears in 1956's The Second-Richest Duck before the 1952 of A Little Something Special, not to mention Magica DeSpell, who doesn't appear for another decade, I try to leave Barks alone as much as I can. I place them within the Rosa stories when I get to making the timeline, but Barks himself simply didn't care for this kind of thing and I'll leave it at that. (There's also the problem of where to stop.)
I try to contain the timeline as much as I can as well, but considering some stories with HDL take place in the late 40s and others in the late 50s (culturally, the B-movie inspired stuff), you're still left with teenage nephews. I try to explain this away as 'they age, visibly, in their behavior and responsibility, into young adults, just not physiologically, but then the drawings are only abstract representations of the "real" adventures, so you can chalk it up to artistic freedom'. Or something. :)
I do maintain that there's a line of visible character development between 'early' and 'late' stories, though.
Don Rosa: ZOMG it's Don Rosa!!!!!111 Legend!!!! (:P, ;), etc.)
Haha, no but really, it was your stories that got me into all this. I will try to act normal so you won't feel embarrassed. :)
You mentioned that you pretend all Barks stories take place in the 50s. If only this held up to scrutiny! There's Donald's Victory Garden in the eponymous early 10-pager pointing to the war, and the likes of The Great Wig Mystery and The Beauty Business pointing in the other direction. I like to keep it open as some big mystery until I've figured something out. For now, it's just "whatever", and a lot of handwaving it away.
I did not know that about Ruanda! Shame, really, I thought DD getting rich was a nice way to end things. Nice to hear about some firsthand research.
And as for the 'if you don't like this interpretation, ignore' attitude towards your timeline, I can say I took that to heart.
I created my own.
While this sounds like the most redundant thing ever, I'm just totally ignoring you, like you said. I use a very basic interpretation of Scrooge's past as in Barks for 'fan-fiction' I write for myself and my own creativity. I've long left the constraints and conventions of normal Disney comics in those, so it's hard to even call it that. But it's still got Scrooge, because 'trying to become the richest duck in the world between 1898 and 1947' is an excellent framework for historically-oriented stories. (See? You got me into that as well, with your Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck chapter 11 and your Guardians of the Lost Library and your Sharpie of the Culebra Cut!) Luckily, research is a lot easier in the digital age!
It??s funny that you mention Sherlock. The most famous interpretations ("Sherlock", Basil Rathbone??s 1940s movies, the original stories) are all set in the time they were made. Except for some of the original stories, which were still being written in the 1920s, and were set in the 1880s-1900s. So he thought like you do, evidently. Similarly, there were Sherlock Holmes fans in the 40s trying to figure out the chronological placements of those stories, based on hints the author left in the work, even though he never really had a timeline in mind.
Sound familiar?
I might see you in Germany next week.
Finally, a few notes on ToonArt14??s timeline. (I??m not publishing my own until I??ve finished it.)
Put WHADDALOTTAJARGON much earlier. It??s at the very end of the ??rascal nephews?? era, but before any Scrooge stories in which they act responsibly.
It??s also important to put Statuesque Spendthrifts, A Christmas For Shacktown, Gyro??s First Invention and The Think Box Thollix early (and, optionally, the Gladstone story in which he first appears). I see these as Gyro??s beginnings, before any invention he delivers in other comics. So place it before From Duckburg to Lillehammer, which makes use of Gyro inventions.
Personally, I like to think that the DD+HDL adventures like The Golden Helmet or Lost in the Andes take place in the age before Scrooge, because they never seem to mention him. Of course, this doesn??t line up entirely with what we see in WHADDALOTTAJARGON (Don, what a title to type!), but I try to keep to it as much as possible, to create a sort of order.
It generally looks okay, really.
Some small placings in my own timeline that you might want to look at:
Gladstone reads real Dell comics in Nobody??s Business. The latest ones I??ve been able to discern are Four Color 517, or 581 (that??s November 1953, or August 1954).
Cash Flow mentions the cha-cha, which didn??t become a craze in the US until 1953.
His Majesty, McDuck seems to feature disproportionate retribution against foreign menaces the Beagle Boys, a policy that didn??t start until 1955. However, Attaaack! features a more reluctant army.
The Starstruck Duck: Summer, 1955.
The Money Pit: I believe there??s a 1955 coin in Scrooge??s bin.
Return to Xanadu: is a late one. It features a lot of Barks treasures on display.
The big bar brawl of Dawson City can comfortably be dated to May 9, 1897, by the next day??s newspaper in The Billionaire of Dismal Downs.
From Duckburg to Lillehammer: does it take place at the actual Olympics? Barks??s story took place in the qualification round.
The Treasure of the Ten Avatars: somewhere in India, post-decolonization since that happened in 1947/48. Anything I should look out for, Don?
Attack of the Hideous Space-Monsters: something tells me it??s one of the very last adventures. Scrooge has conquered every corner of the globe by now. It??s also inspired by the B-movie era. There??s also something to be said for the scale of the adventures ever growing, to the point where the now only space and time are the limits. (See also: The Once and Future Duck.)
A Little Something Special: Scrooge??s foes have been after him for years now. It??s also 1952. This will be tricky. :) Are we to assume that Scrooge met Glomgold and Magica mere months after he came out of retirement?
The Sharpie of the Culebra Cut: when in November 1906 did Roosevelt have that picture taken, anyway?
Trash or Treasure: I like to think it fits in July 1955, only because Scrooge hangs a July 1927 calendar on his wall, and in 1955 the days of the week would match (also in 1949 and 1966, there's a cop who is very aware of candid camera TV shows, which didn't become a thing until 1948).
Finally, I??m going to try and link some things together as if they were ??fads??, like Super Snooper comics, and oolated squiggs (what the %#@* is an oolated squigg, Don?), which appeared in both Oolated Luck and Trash or Treasure and seem to be too disgusting to have been around for long.
I might even link all the Jones stories together, even if there is a Barks story where Donald moves *back* next to Jones.
Don Rosa
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 13 -
2014-10-05 at 23:20:17
I hope I meet you in Germany. I like the way you think. "A man after my own heart".
Argonaut
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 14 -
2014-10-05 at 23:49:12
Quote from user: Don RosaThey prefer to insist that these are fairytale beings who are immortal, living forever in a fairytale world. What's that all about? Weird.
This always stumps me too. The mental gymnastics required for trying to reconcile stories created by different creators about the same characters in different decades would surely be more exhausting than just saying "stuff it, perma-50s it is", no? Though I do suspect there's always the anxious few looking for a reason to complain about Rosa stories being all... Rosa-y. Rosish? Rosian?
I basically just go with perma-50s for Barks and Rosa, and pretty much everything else I approach on a story-by-story basis. I don't think it's fair to dismiss a decent story just because Scrooge may have a cellphone in a couple of panels, but to say that same Scrooge was also a 19th century prospector is a quick way to dissolve any interest I may have had.*
The key to the charm of these characters is their *relatable* humanity, not some silly trumped-up immortality. I'm perfectly happy even with the suggestion that Scrooge passes away in 1967, and am somewhat baffled by people who cannot handle that idea, as if it actually erases the character from their reality.
*Though this hasn't really affected my feelings for DuckTales, because I'm complicated like that. And an 80s kid, so go figure.
This always stumps me too. The mental gymnastics required for trying to reconcile stories created by different creators about the same characters in different decades would surely be more exhausting than just saying "stuff it, perma-50s it is", no? Though I do suspect there's always the anxious few looking for a reason to complain about Rosa stories being all... Rosa-y. Rosish? Rosian?
I basically just go with perma-50s for Barks and Rosa, and pretty much everything else I approach on a story-by-story basis. I don't think it's fair to dismiss a decent story just because Scrooge may have a cellphone in a couple of panels, but to say that same Scrooge was also a 19th century prospector is a quick way to dissolve any interest I may have had.*
The key to the charm of these characters is their *relatable* humanity, not some silly trumped-up immortality. I'm perfectly happy even with the suggestion that Scrooge passes away in 1967, and am somewhat baffled by people who cannot handle that idea, as if it actually erases the character from their reality.
*Though this hasn't really affected my feelings for DuckTales, because I'm complicated like that. And an 80s kid, so go figure.
ToonArt14
Don Rosa stories set in the "Present Day"
Message 15 -
2014-10-06 at 01:04:25
I always go with perma-50's for the Barks-Rosa Duck stories as well.
I mentioned above that my take on this is that the pre-Christmas on Bear Mountain Barks stories (Ghost of the Grotto for example) take place between 1944, when the nephews went to live with Donald, and 1947, when Uncle Scrooge returned to public life, and that the post-Christmas on Bear Mountain Barks stories take place between the decade long period of 1948-1958. Rosa's stories take place between 1950 and 1958, as his stories take place in the latter as opposed to early stages of Scrooge's relationship with his nephews. The reason I have the stories take place no latter than 1958 is because of Huey, Dewey and Louie. I can see the nephews as 18 years old and still at their size, as they are more mature and all, but into their twenties is pushing it too far IMO. Speaking of the nephews age, I can totally see them being Preschool/Kindergarten age in the earliest Bark's stories, as their look is more childlike in many ways (bigger heads, cheeks and the like).
I agree with Argonaut that for non Barks-Rosa stuff I approach them on a story by story basis. I'm sure theres allot of great modern day set Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge stories, though I haven't read any non-Barks-Rosa Duck stories in a while. Even though I like both the perma-50's and floating timeline interpretations, in a number of ways I prefer the perma-50's for a few reasons; Carl Barks and Don Rosa are my favorite Disney comics and Duck comics artists and I love the Barks-Rosa continuity, and I live in the US where no Disney comics are being published at the moment, so its not like I can really read a modern day Duck story that they may have overseas.
I also kinda prefer the perma-50's because in many ways the Bark's stories were products of their own time. If I myself were to write and illustrate a Donald Duck or Uncle Scrooge comic, I'd probably set it the 1950's in the same Barks-Rosa continuity. Plus it makes the Ducks and their supporting cast seem more real and human in a way. I couldn't see Scrooge, Donald and the boys as immortal at all, as it takes the humanity away from them. I too have no problem with Scrooge having died in 1967, and Donald currently being a senior citizen for that matter.
The best way to see modern day set Duck stories are like a reinvention of the Barks stories, much like, as Don mentioned, the TV show "Sherlock" is a reinvention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's late-Victorian and early-Edwardian set Sherlock Holmes stories. There are tons of other similar comparisons, such as countless movie, tv-show and franchise re-boots. But in the end, everyone will see things differently.
I mentioned above that my take on this is that the pre-Christmas on Bear Mountain Barks stories (Ghost of the Grotto for example) take place between 1944, when the nephews went to live with Donald, and 1947, when Uncle Scrooge returned to public life, and that the post-Christmas on Bear Mountain Barks stories take place between the decade long period of 1948-1958. Rosa's stories take place between 1950 and 1958, as his stories take place in the latter as opposed to early stages of Scrooge's relationship with his nephews. The reason I have the stories take place no latter than 1958 is because of Huey, Dewey and Louie. I can see the nephews as 18 years old and still at their size, as they are more mature and all, but into their twenties is pushing it too far IMO. Speaking of the nephews age, I can totally see them being Preschool/Kindergarten age in the earliest Bark's stories, as their look is more childlike in many ways (bigger heads, cheeks and the like).
I agree with Argonaut that for non Barks-Rosa stuff I approach them on a story by story basis. I'm sure theres allot of great modern day set Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge stories, though I haven't read any non-Barks-Rosa Duck stories in a while. Even though I like both the perma-50's and floating timeline interpretations, in a number of ways I prefer the perma-50's for a few reasons; Carl Barks and Don Rosa are my favorite Disney comics and Duck comics artists and I love the Barks-Rosa continuity, and I live in the US where no Disney comics are being published at the moment, so its not like I can really read a modern day Duck story that they may have overseas.
I also kinda prefer the perma-50's because in many ways the Bark's stories were products of their own time. If I myself were to write and illustrate a Donald Duck or Uncle Scrooge comic, I'd probably set it the 1950's in the same Barks-Rosa continuity. Plus it makes the Ducks and their supporting cast seem more real and human in a way. I couldn't see Scrooge, Donald and the boys as immortal at all, as it takes the humanity away from them. I too have no problem with Scrooge having died in 1967, and Donald currently being a senior citizen for that matter.
The best way to see modern day set Duck stories are like a reinvention of the Barks stories, much like, as Don mentioned, the TV show "Sherlock" is a reinvention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's late-Victorian and early-Edwardian set Sherlock Holmes stories. There are tons of other similar comparisons, such as countless movie, tv-show and franchise re-boots. But in the end, everyone will see things differently.
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