Disney comics

One of the most successful paperbacks in the world comes out with its 400th issue this month. Since Lustiges Taschenbuch was first published in October 1967, Ehapa Verlag in Germany has published over 215 million copies of this popular Disney comic. The 250-page books are published 13 times per year with a print-run of approximately 400,000 copies. Over the years several spin-off series have been added, including Christmas and Easter specials, a Ducks-only edition, a Mini version and even an English edition.

The 400th issue comes out on March 9th. To celebrate this milestone, Ehapa is also releasing a four-volume special edition presenting a selection of some of the best stories by the best artists. The four books will be released one per week in the month of March.

Two days ago I posted that Gemstone ended it’s Disney license, but it looks like no final decision regarding Gemstone’s Disney comics has been reached after all. The following statement from Steve Geppi, President of Gemstone, was posted in their Scoop newsletter yesterday:

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Update: In June 2009 publisher BOOM! Studios (boom-studios.net) picked up the Disney comics license in the United States. They have continued to publish Walt Disney’s Comics & Stories, Uncle Scrooge and several other monthly titles. See all their titles at boom-kids.com/series

It looks like Gemstone Publishing will no longer be making any new Disney comics in the United States. The news comes after it was revealed last month that owner Steve Geppi is facing financial problems. Gary Leach, who has been doing art and editorial work for US Disney comics for over two decades, reported on the DCML yesterday that “Gemstone is not renewing the Disney comics license, and won’t be putting out any more issues”. This sad news means the end of Disney comics in the United States, at least those with classic Disney characters like Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse. Gary added that “Disney is looking for someone else to take the license” and he believes that they do have some candidates, although nothing is nailed down at this point.

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D23, Disney’s new community for fans, has daily comic strips with Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse and Scamp on their website.
Head on over to http://d23.disney.go.com/comics.html to view today’s comics. It would be great if they could add an archive and RSS feed, but this is a good start.

Denmark’s Donald Duck weekly Anders And & Co, which was launched in March 1948, turns 60-years-old this month! The popular magazine celebrated its anniversary with a golden cover of the 9th issue and a special competition.

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Amazon currently has a 4-for-3 promotion on books under $10. This is your chance to get a great deal on Gemstone’s Uncle Scrooge and Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories issues. These comics normally sell for $7.99 but with this promotion you can get them for $6 each (if you buy 4). And shipping within the United States is free on orders over $25 with Amazon’s Super Saver Shipping.

It was recently announced that Gemstone Publishing is in trouble due to unpaid bills, so the future of Disney comics in the United States is uncertain. The last issues that came out were Uncle Scrooge 383 and WDC&S 698 in November 2008 and these may very well be the last American Disney comics for a while. Amazon still has many of these great Gemstone comics in stock. Buy any 4 eligible items and get the lowest-priced item free. Check it out.

German Donaldist Jürgen Wollina has released a map of the fictitious town of Duckburg that he has worked on for the last 13 years. Every detail on the map is based on something from a Carl Barks comic book story. Carl Barks wrote and drew thousands of pages of Disney comics from 1942 to 1966 and created Duckburg as well as Scrooge McDuck, the Beagle Boys, Gladstone Gander and many other characters. Donaldists are fans and collectors who research Disney comics and those stories by Barks in particular. More »

Scoop is reporting the release of a great new series by Gemstone Publishing in the United States. The first book in the Donald Duck Family: The Daan Jippes Collection Vol. 1 is out now! It features the first five Junior Woodchucks stories that were written by Carl Barks and drawn by talented Dutch Disney artist Daan Jippes.

Legendary duck artist Carl Barks created 24 pencil-scripts after he retired in 1969. These stories have been completed by Daan Jippes in a style faithful to that of Barks. Jippes started drawing the stories in 1992 and has just recently finished the last few, which have already been printed in Europe. Americans can now enjoy these beautifully crafted stories, featuring Donald’s nephews Huey, Duey and Louie as the Junior Woodchucks, in this new series. You can order the first volume of the Daan Jippes Collection on Amazon for just $8.99.

Ehapa Verlag, publisher of Disney comics in Germany, is reprinting the first 50 issues of the popular Donald Duck Sonderheft in five unique collector’s sets with a limited print-run of only 4,444.

The original 50 issues came out between 1965 and 1977 and the first 40 have never been reprinted since. They contain many classic stories by legendary artist Carl Barks and translated to German by much-praised Dr. Erika Fuchs, who was Micky Maus’ first editor-in-chief. The high-quality sets can be ordered for EUR89.95 ($140) each at entlich-da.de and are available to Disney fans in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The first box is out now.

This Saturday, May 3rd, is Free Comic Book Day. This annual event is a great opportunity to introduce your friends and family to the world of comics as many comic book stores across North America and the world will hand out comics totally free! There will be over 40 different free comics this year, including the annual contribution by Gemstone Publishing, publisher of Disney comics in the United States. This year’s free Disney comic is all about Duckburg’s most famous inventor: Gyro Gearloose. More »