9 Jun: Meet Donald Duck
The Wise Little Hen’, the Silly Symphonies short from was released on 9th June, 1934 and introduced a new Disney character: Donald Duck.
With his distinctive strangled quacking (born from the unique talents of Clarence Nash – a man who’d spent his childhood mimicking barnyard sounds), Donald’s hot-tempered, accident-prone slapstick sensibilities brought a welcome unpredictability to the sanitised world the studio had constructed around their hero, Mickey Mouse.
But Donald wasn’t just a cartoon character. He soon became a symbol of resilience during World War II, when he starred in morale-boosting shorts like Donald Gets Drafted – and even donned a swastika to parody Nazi Germany in the Oscar-winning Der Fuehrer’s Face.
In this episode, The Retrospectors unpick the particular appeal of Donald’s vain, cocky, and boastful appearances; explain why it took years for him to truly earn his iconic sailor’s outift; and reveal how Duck Tales has its roots in military service…
Further Reading:
• ‘A Duck for All Seasons’ (The Washington Post, 1984): https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1984/06/24/a-duck-for-all-seasons/36253ddd-a547-47ab-9c50-b0ff696f707e/
• ‘50-Year Career : Clarence Nash, Donald Duck’s Voice, Dies’ (Los Angeles Times, 1985): https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-02-21-mn-619-story.html
• ’The Wise Little Hen’ (Disney, 1934): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLFyNRuEkCM