Donald Duck
With a Temper Always on the
Rise
Who is Donald Duck?
Full Name: Donald
Fauntleroy Duck
Birthdate: Egg
hatched June 9, 1934
(Egg laid Friday, March 13, 1934)
Besides in my opinion, being the
greatest
cartoon character ever, Donald is the one in the little blue suit that
is more often in a rage than not. His personality
shows through actions. He gives new meaning to
the phrase: "Actions speak louder than words." His lines are few
and almost indecipherable, forcing his actions to speak the volume of his
parts. His personality makes his character almost unpredictable
and yet so predictable. One can almost guarantee
a rise in temper, but why? We'll just have
to wait and see.
More About Who Donald Duck is
"Whenever the corners of Donald
Duck's eyebrows begin to meet and his webbed
foot begins to stamp, most audiences squirm in pleasant anticipation of
Donald's forthcoming anger. Never in motion pictures has there been such
a funny fury as Donald's."
Richard Tobin, 1935
"Make the duck kinda cocky. And
since he's a duck and likes water, how about giving him a little middy
blouse and a sailor hat?"
Walt Disney to Spencer
"Although he takes many a blow
on the chin, he always dusts off his feathers and rises to take it on the
chin again."
How Nash Came to be Donald
Nash worked as an impressionist
on a Radio show called The Merrymakers and drove a miniature
team of horses around town giving goodies to kids while he was "Whistling
Clarence, the Adohr Bird Man" In 1932, Walt Disney accidentally heard a
reprise of The Merrymakers and said "That man sounds like a duck" Later
Nash was in an audition and Walt Disney heard his impression of a duck,
and said "There's our talking duck!" Walt Disney and Nash worked together
to build Donald's voice adding things like laughter. Clarence "Ducky" Nash
provided the voice of Donald Duck until 1985, when he died of leukemia.
A Word from Mr. Walt Disney
From Extra to Star
Donald Duck came into being in 1934
to fit a voice which had interested
me a couple of years before. He first appeared in a bit in our The Wise
Little Hen, and proceeded to steal the picture. He squawked and strutted
his way into the production until he was practically the star of the film.
He was a character we simply couldn't keep down. And the public took him
to heart completely after his second appearance in Orphan's Benefit. His
towering rages, his impotence in the face of obstacles, his protest in
the face of injustice, as he sees it, even though he brings disaster upon
himself - have kept him an audience favorite from that day to this.
Tidbits of information:
*Donald
made his debut appearance in the 'Wise Little Hen'.
*Donald
has stared in 150 cartoons, 5 feature films and 16 t.v. specials.
*Donald
and Daisy have been together since 1937 when they met on a trip to Mexico.
*Donald
adopted his three nephews Huey, Duey, and Louie.
*Donald's
voice has been translated into at least 8 different languages including
French, Spanish, Japanese and Swedish.
*Donald
Duck is the most prolific of all Disney's characters.
*Donald
Duck was first meant to be a secondary character, but stole the show.
*Donald
Duck's footprints can be found in cement in front of Hollywood's Chinese
Theater.
*Donald
was one of the first to sign up for World War II, but he was the last to
be discharged, 40 years later!
*During
World War II Donald worked his way up to Sergeant.
*His psychiatrist
is Professor Ludwig Won Drake.
*His
uncle is Scrooge.
*Donald
Duck is more popular among adults than children.
This
is because:
Adults see a caricature of the characters of their own beloved offspring;
also, he touches a chord in that part of the grown-up that will remain
forever a child - we would all like, now and again, to behave like Donald,
if only we thought we could get away with it!
Yet, Donald Duck is still quite
popular among children.
Donald Duck in Other Countries:
Paperino:
Italy
Aku Ankka:
Finland
Pato Donald:
most South American countries
Anders And:
Denmark
Batut:
Saudi Arabia
Kalle Anka:
Sweden,
Scandinavia
Donal Bekek:
Indonesia
Donaldus Anas:
Spain
Final Word, Not a Final Appearance
Donald Duck is quite well known
around the world, and is predicted to be remembered long after many of
today's live actors. Why? Because he is the perfect epitome of so many
human characteristics: pest or not, he is just right. As Helen G Thompson
put it in her 1935 Stage article, "I wouldn't change him - not one little
cross-eyed quack." She added a piece of fine poetry:
I'm stuck
On Donald
Duck
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