--------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Life and Times of $crooge McDuck - Episode 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- UNCLE $CROOGE #290 -- "The Life and Times of $crooge McDuck - The Terror of the Transvaal" (1887-1889) [Cover 290] COVER: I had been very pleased with the young $crooge in my pencils for this cover. It was just as I like him -- facing unbeatable odds, the entire continent of Africa it seems, and defiantly gesturing "come at me, ya' monkeys!" The tiny hand gesture was my favorite part! But then I hit a snag -- Disney rejected the pose because of that very gesture. It had originally been $crooge's right hand which was gesturing and his left hand making the fist. Look at the cover -- his right hand in that gesturing position, with only 3 digits (plus thumb), viewed from the "pinkie" end of his hand... do you see what that would look like? They said it looked like $crooge was giving an obscene gesture to the animals! So, I just switched hands when I inked it. * *D.U.C.K. SPOILER*: look in the left horn of the critter in the lower right. Also, if you look just below the right horn, though it's almost cropped off, you'll see a mouse-sized Mickey in the crowd of varmints. (There's also a puzzled looking dinosaur in there if you search.) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- CHAPTER VI: My original title for this chapter was "The Prey of the Transvaal Viper", but Byron nixed that on the grounds that (unless I disremember) he thought my other titles seemed to be positive references to $crooge rather than a negative reference to him as a victim. So I went with "Terror of the Transvaal". In part V I show young $crooge finally deciding that the treasure at the end of his rainbow is to be gold, and he has launched his career as an Argonaut. My temptation was great to leap directly to $crooge's glory days in the Yukon Gold Rush, and how he finally hit pay dirt on White Agony Creek, as we all know from Barks' "Back to the Klondike". However, also buried in obscure comments in other tales, Barks stated that $crooge was involved in numerous other gold rushes before the Yukon, so I must patiently deal with those stories first. Besides, that will help show that $crooge's final success did not come easily or quickly... he had many years of hard knocks ahead of him. In "The Loony Lunar Gold Rush" in UNCLE $CROOGE #49, $crooge brags that he "jounced to the African Rand in a bullock cart". Therefore, this chapter deals with the young Scot's years in the gold rush in the Transvaal, which would place it in 1886-1889. Now, I know we've seen various European Duck stories telling of how $crooge and Flintheart Glomgold were partners in the Yukon, or that Glomgold lives in Duckburg and sits beside $crooge at the "Millionaires' Club"; but we Barks fans all know that $crooge's "evil twin" lives in South Africa. And knowing that this chapter would be set in that region, how could I resist having $crooge encounter "Flinty" in the days before either of them had a dollar (or rand) to their name? Yet notice that $crooge never learns Flintheart's name, since his African rival is unknown and unrecognized by him in their later "first" meeting in "The Second Richest Duck" in UNCLE $CROOGE #15. On the other hand, we have no indication that Flintheart doesn't already know $crooge in that tale -- in fact, the cool manner in which Flintheart receives $crooge could be inferred as a sign that Flintheart knew who he was, and knew he was on his way to Africa, having met him on the ship coming over. The only other Barksian reference I could think of to stick in this chapter was in showing the "Kaffir de Gaffir" gold mine which $crooge and Flintheart fight over in "So Far and No Safari" in UNCLE $CROOGE #61. The original Glomgold story ("The Second Richest Duck") had long been one of my very favorite $crooge adventures... even though it's not as good a tale as many others. But if you love the $crooge character, then what could be more exciting than the story where he meets his "evil twin"? I see Flintheart as a match for $crooge (his youthful inspiration) in every way -- they both started from nothing and made their fortunes by "being sharper than the sharpies and smarter than the smarties"... but the difference is that Flintheart didn't "make it square". He's dishonest, and perhaps downright murderous (as opposed to the Beagle Boys who are more good-natured baddies). * INSANE DETAILS TO NOTE: Did anyone want to tell me that water buffalo don't come from Africa? Yes, but I found they were imported from asia to work the mines in the Transvaal. I know that for Disney-style animals, mine are pretty lousy. But then, I try for a more realistic look anyway. For the critters in this story, I didn't look to Ward Kimball for reference, but to Burne Hogarth. You can see $crooge getting his shootin' arns out of his old trunk that appears throughout the series. I plan to use that trunk again in future stories, perhaps to introduce new chapters to the "L & T of $McD". The movie buff in me speaks out again in the first panel of page 9 where I have a disembodied voice-over singing the theme from HIGH NOON as $crooge stalks down the street. But you might note that Gladstone left a word out of the first line of the tune; that's because they say that they'd get into trouble if they didn't stop short of printing a complete line of a copyrighted song. Hm. They seemed to get away with it in "Hah Noon" back in the old MAD comic (which was in my head as I drew this). "Fill your hand!" says $crooge to Flintheart. Recognize that? John Wayne in TRUE GRIT. Speaking of movie references, I believe that's John Qualen in the role of the barfly on that same page. But maybe I'm more realistic (or anal) than those western-movie makers? Count the shots as $crooge empties his two six-shooters at Flintheart. Then he actually has to stop to reload. What a concept for a western story! Yet, as careful as I was with that detail, I then botch the Beagle Boy's prison number in the last panel! Drat!!! My original script for the 6th panel of page 9 said "Zulu warriors", but Disney wouldn't allow the use of "Zulu" for some unknown reason. You can see it in the script page linked below. * MOUSE SPOTTER GUIDE: Well, it was deleted in the Gladstone edition, but if you look in the foreign edition artwork linked below, you'll see poor Mickey on the bottom of the left elephant's lower foot. I have my leetle joke. * *D.U.C.K. SPOILER*: The splash-panel dedication is written on the bedroll on top of $crooge's cart in the top photo. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Pencil Page][Black and White Art] [Next Episode] [Home]