Disney-comics digest #457.

[DAVID.A.GERSTEIN]

      Dear Folks,

      Andreas Bangor discussed my story "Two in One."

> WOW! So that was your story. I like it. It's not often we see anything
> new in a Magica story, but I can't remember seeing her copying herself
> before (lots of other thing though...).

      Actually I was inspired by the very first Branca-drawn story I 
ever saw:  "The Robot Raiders of Magica De Spell" (US 210, 1986).  In 
that one, Magica invented robots that looked like her.  She stole 
the dime, but when she left the bin with it, all her robots (which 
hid around the edges of the bin) started running as well, and the 
Ducks had to split up and chase each one.  A pretty good story -- I 
LOVED it at the time (and it was the first Magica story I had ever 
read).  But as the years passed, I began thinking of how much better 
the tale would have been if those robots had been able to think, and 
if they had actually done something other than merely function as 
props.  Out of that grew "Two in One."

> Also the story has a funny gag (I'm not sure what to 
> call it) at the ending, and that's not too usual nowadays.

      Glad you liked it.  In English:  "But you could use *another* 
shark!  Double the effectiveness, you know!"  "Double?!  Did you say 
DOUBLE?"  "That's what I said!"

> BTW, David. How did you start writing for Egmont, and when will
> we see your next story?

      I began writing letters to Disney Comics' letter columns in 
1990.  I then began to call Bob Foster and chat with him about the 
contents of coming issues.  Finally I submitted a translated, 
rewritten Egmont story to him, which he liked.  He bought three such 
rewrites from me (none of which have yet appeared -- Disney never 
printed them, but Gladstone inherited them and will use them in 
1995).  Then, when leaving Disney for Egmont, he promised to set me 
up there if I ever wanted to do original stories.  So I stopped 
translating (only for a while -- when Gladstone started, I translated 
15 more stories for them!) and began working for Egmont.  "Two in 
One" went back and forth four times until they deemed it acceptable.  
The next one took two bouts with rewriting.  After that, my stories 
have (so far) been making it at the first time, so I must be gaining 
experience!

      My second story is called "Pork-Barrel Politics."  It is based 
on true stories of how pig-training was an easy way to make a mint of 
money in 19th-century English vaudeville.  Donald has read a book 
about those events, so borrows three pigs -- Napoleon, Snowball, and 
Squealer -- from Grandma's farm and commences training them.  You'll 
just have to wait to see what happens, but I promise it ISN'T the 
least bit like you may expect.  And the art is by Vicar.  I'm 
guessing it will be published next spring, but I don't know when.

      And after "Pork-Barrel" I've done two more Donald stories and 
three Mickeys for Egmont.  I absolutely love writing for Mickey, 
although it's harder to come up with something original for him than 
with other characters because the old Mickey-catches-the-crooks saw 
has been used so many times.  So my first three Mickey stories are 
all 8-page humor tales -- I attempted to do Barks-style stories with 
Mickey, and you'll probably notice that a dead giveaway in my Mouse 
tales is that Goofy is not used (yet).  But I'm getting ahead of 
myself here...

> Knut:
> >And it's historically incorrect, as Goofy can't be=20
> >hypnotized according to a lot older story (sorry, don't have the =
> reference=20
> >here, but it's MM who gets visited by his (claimed) Uncle and Ant.
> 
> It's years since I read that story, but yes, you're right. I think they
> claim to be Minnies relatives though. She gets quite insulted when=20
> Mickey is trying to tell her that there is something strange going on.
> In Norway this story is published in one of the big 'Jeg' books.
> 'Vi Mikke & Minni', I think.

      Jorgen:  This story is Gottfredson's "The Gleam" (1941).  One 
of my all-time favorites.

> Anyway, it's not that long since I read the 'Sinister Sorcerer' by=20
> Bill Wright (he is the artist, at least).

      Disney censorship at work again.  The original title was "The 
Black Sorcerer" but Disney made Gladstone change it when they 
reprinted it (in MM 250, 1989).  I don't care for this one so much -- 
Mickey is a rather boring character.

> Ah, yes. Maybe I should put something here too. I've had this in my
> .plan for a while now:
> 
>                          - I'm Mickey Mouse, and this is Goofy.
>                          - Yes, isn't it?=20

      That's from "Island in the Sky," right?  (Can't resist a 
challenge like that! ;-)

      Best,

      David Gerstein