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Quote from user: Mr. MWhat are you opinion about those Little Hiawata stories that still appeare once a while in European Disney comics?
My opinion: "Thank the stars for variety. There are enough Ducks in the weekly."

There were a lot of fans of Little Hiawatha in The Netherlands in the 1960s, due to the funny stories of that character drawn by The Martin Toonder Studio. Many of them were written by Patti Klein (probably a distant cousin of mine, ha! ha!). I can't say that I enjoyed the American stories that were published in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories all that much. They were very much on the same theme and very predictable, and varied very little. But, I could say that about Chip 'N Dale, Scamp, and even The L'L Bad Wolf, for that matter. That latter strip has also always been very popular in The Netherlands. We have produced a lot of good stories with those characters.

Quote from user: Robb_KThere were a lot of fans of Little Hiawatha in The Netherlands in the 1960s, due to the funny stories of that character drawn by The Martin Toonder Studio. Many of them were written by Patti Klein (probably a distant cousin of mine, ha! ha!).
The (Marten) Toonder Studios also made L'il Bad Wolf stories. It's one of those gold mines that should be reprinted in the US, if a publisher pops up someday. <Groan!> The only bad side to these comics is that everbody speaks in "Injun" language, which continued into 1983. The Me going to get some wood! variety.

Quote from user: Robb_KI can't say that I enjoyed the American stories that were published in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories all that much. They were very much on the same theme and very predictable, and varied very little.
There weren't too many, as far as I know. What does strike me about those stories is the extreme Fifties-ness of all the non-Indian characters. One thing that made the Dutch stories less predictable was the invention of the Pafwangs, the Pafcheek tribe. They're a rival tribe who are always at the brink of war with the Rondbuiken (Roundbellies, Hiawatha's tribe). Cold War reference? Many, many times they've started a fight because of nothing. However, the plot is often resolved before they even get to the other tribe. They've never appeared in the US.

Quote from user: GeoXThe concept of "Little Hiawatha fans" is so bizarre to me that my brain cannot even begin to process it.
Indeed, "Little Hiawatha" would seem to be a niche within a niche. To me, "non-Duck/Mouse" means Li'l Bad Wolf, Bucky Bug and the occasional old movie adaptation/spinoff. I wonder if "Little Hiawatha" stories would even be considered acceptable in today's uber-politically correct milieu.

Oh, I was hoping to head off anyone's use of the "pc" term on this thread; it does *not* in my experience advance the discussion of issues of cultural/gender sensitivity in any helpful way. Of course some people/organizations get silly about being overly cautious and avoidant of anything that might conceivably offend. But the "pc" term tends to shut down a discussion that needs to be held openly, precisely to find out how to be respectful without being ridiculously over-cautious.
The question of the image of American Indians in popular culture is as complicated and fraught as the question of the depiction of blacks. I find myself (not righteously indignant but) somewhat perplexed by the fact that some Europeans continue to use the image of the American Indian as a sort of fantasy construct out of old Western movies and American Romantic literature (think of the Indians in the British Peter Pan's Neverland, who are basically in the same category as the mermaids). They all wear feathers, they all have totem poles (cf. the Seminoles with totem poles in Rota's Spanish Fort story!). Sometimes they actually have a "primitive" worldview; in Rota's 1997 "The Talking Totem," while there is one smart, "modern-thinking" Native policeman, the tribe as a whole are all bamboozled by the talking totem pole, in the old "primitive natives worship fake mechanical idol" trope. (I don't mean to pick on Rota, here; I've just read more of his stories because I seek them out for the excellent art.) I think it makes sense that Americans and Canadians have moved away from this Indian-as-fantasy-culture usage. The Indians I know (I'm related to some) have both pride in their particular (Northwest) Native heritage and a great sense of humor, and do not take offense at the Peeweegahs (although they owe more to Longfellow than to observation of indigenous peoples!). Barks' Black Wednesday, on the other hand, should be allowed to fade into the mists of popular-culture history. In a story presumably set in the present, it would be reasonable to expect that the Indian characters would be recognizable as contemporary people, not living in the style of the 19th century, and not a white-people's-fantasy of a primitive, superstitious tribe. And not a cultural mishmash of feathers, totem poles and teepees.

Quote from user: MatildaI find myself (not righteously indignant but) somewhat perplexed by the fact that some Europeans continue to use the image of the American Indian as a sort of fantasy construct out of old Western movies and American Romantic literature (think of the Indians in the British Peter Pan's Neverland, who are basically in the same category as the mermaids).
In defense of Neverland: the entire island is essentially a child's play-acting fantasy. There are mermaids, pixies, mean and dangerous pirates (but not so dangerous that they actually kill anyone), a dangerous crocodile (who is only after the mean pirate captain), Indians and a beautiful Indian princess, a secret hideout inside a tree.... and I'm sure there's more. If there were Vikings on that island, they probably would've been ax- and sword-wielding primitives who loved mead and a good fight. If there were cowboys, they'd do nothing but play with lassos and practice their sharpshooting.

Neverland was never meant to reflect the real world.

Quote from user: Lars JensenNeverland was never meant to reflect the real world.
True. It ws ment to reflect the way kids imagine the Indians to be like.

In something like for example european "Lucky Luke" series you still have Native Americans portrayed in exact fashion (example - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEMF7HVuICU&feature=relmfu ,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6JUMRHP_Z8 ) however here you can make an argument that all western archetypes presented (cowboys, badits, train conductors, undertakers, sherifs, cavalry etc.) are shown as over the top caricatures and dumbdown stereotypes of what their where in real life so It's parody of westerns/legends of the old west in general and how people imagine them today