#031 DONALD DUCK SOUTH AMERICAN STORYBOARDS (5)
#031 DONALD DUCK SOUTH AMERICAN STORYBOARDS (5)
$600-1,000
Eyes front, these five storyboards are worth very bit of attention you can give them. More than rare, they are unique and special in so many ways it’s hard to know where to start. They stand entirely alone
Unequivocally, Donald has had one of the most successful careers of any Disney character, and certainly the most varied. He appeared in more films than any other Disney character, even Mickey. His wartime efforts topped the charts with more than ten shorts, including the Academy Award-winning "Der Fuehrer’s Face." His brilliant Oscar-nominated featurette "Donald in Mathmagicland," the most popular Disney educational film ever, was so good it was chosen for the debut episode of "Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color." He went to South America twice to star in the good-will features Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros, and liked it so well down there that . . . well, see for yourself.
Rarer than rare, Donald puts his talents to work for this special project the Studio undertook as an ambassadorial effort for Mexico and South America in conjunction with the features. He wouldn’t have missed it for the world. It’s right up his alley.
Although he likely picked up a lot of lingo from the talkative José Carioca, Donald finds himself in the turnabout position of a Spanish-speaking duck bemused by the English language. Faced with the problem of which restroom to use, he naturally chooses wrong and finds himself back out in the hallway. The first four storyboards, numbered 44 through 47, leave no doubt about what happened or why. The drawings are wonderfully rendered in colored pencil and charcoal on oversize 9 x 8" story sheets with the five-hole punch and corner pinholes, and are so beautifully finished that calling them storyboards or even concepts doesn’t do them justice. The voice-over narration is typed in Spanish with the English translation on strips stapled below the images, and tells us that "Because he" can’t read, he makes hundreds of mistakes, and only learns the simple error by experience." After his restroom adventure, he goes outside where the day has turned dark and stormy and unfriendly, as depicted in drawing 49. The narration says "He learns to read weather by clouds, wind, rain, etc." Great job, Donald. Disney, 1945.