by John | Oct 24, 2015 | Blog
Given all the strange and salty Last Kiss comics I write, you wouldn’t think I’d also be writing Donald Duck & Uncle Scrooge comics for Disney. But, you’d be wrong.
This Wednesday (Oct. 28, 2015), “The Duck Who Came to Dinner” in Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #724 hits comic shops. What makes this really special is that it was a story started decades ago by Disney legend and one of my personal heroes Carl Barks. Carl scripted seven and a half pages of what I presume was supposed to be a 10-page Donald Duck story. But he never completed it.
Segment of the first two panels of Carl Barks’s handwritten script for “The Duck Who Came to Dinner.”
My editor at Egmont (Disney’s main Northern Europe comic licensee) gave me the go-ahead to finish the script—as well as several other stories that Carl either started or left notes for. Some have been printed in Europe. But this is the first to appear in America. And it’s the story that Carl came the closest to finishing.
I’m happy to say that artist Daan Jippes—who’s a Disney legend himself!—was my artist on “The Duck Who Came to Dinner.”
I think Carl would’ve liked how it came out. But, ultimately, it’ll be up to readers to decide. So check it out—if you can find a copy.
by John | Nov 21, 2012 | Blog
©The Walt Disney Company
This has nothing to do with Last Kiss, but here’s a great scene from a Thanksgiving-themed Donald Duck story written and drawn by the great Carl Barks. Original publication in Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #75, 1946. ©The Walt Disney Company.
by John | Jun 24, 2012 | Blog
[amazon_link id=”1593936826″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]
[/amazon_link]First of all I write comics for Disney. So, of course, I’m going to be interested in Cathy Sherman Freeman’s life—growing up with a father who was in charge of Disney comic books (long before my time.)
Of course, I’d be interested in hearing about her dad (George Sherman), Carl Barks, Del Connell and other legends in my business.
She spent her childhood living just down the street from Disneyland; knew “Uncle Walt”; acted as a child guide for various dignitaries visiting Disneyland; and got to help decide which comic book stories were published? Heck, yes. You bet I’m interested—and jealous!
But I was also predisposed to like this book because I liked Cathy immediately when she wrote to me and asked if I’d be interested in reading the book. Not because she offered me a free copy (although that helped), but because she just seemed so nice, down-to-earth, friendly and chatty.
And that’s exactly the writing voice she has in her book [amazon_link id=”1593936826″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]”A Disney Childhood: Comic Books to Sailing Ships – A Memoir.”[/amazon_link]You feel like you’re reading a letter from a friend. (Assuming, of course, you have friends who lead exciting lives and do great jobs writing about it.)
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by John | Dec 19, 2010 | Blog
(Click above to enlarge. Rough, preview lettering. Art by Daan Jippes. ©Walt Disney Company)
In February, Boom! Studios is publishing a totally new version of a Carl Barks’ plotted story. The story has a new title “Somewhere BEYOND Nowhere”; a new script (by me); and art by the great Daan Jippes. It’s 12 pages long.
Why did I want to do a new version–especially since I scripted the original 2000 version? Well, that’s a bit of a story in itself…
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by John | Dec 31, 2009 | Blog
Since Disney bought Marvel Comics today, I thought I’d reprint a comic I did recently for Comics Buyer’s Guide about the deal. Since I’ve worked for both Disney and Marvel, I couldn’t resist having a bit of fun with the merger. In fact, this art came from a DuckTales story I wrote (and William Van Horn drew) years ago. The dialog, of course, is new!
