Disney Christmas Story
Disney Christmas Story is an American Disney comic strip that appeared each year in the weeks before Christmas, beginning in 1960.[1] The strip ran Monday to Saturday for the three to four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve, and often promoted the latest Disney release or re-release.[2] The strips were usually not published on the newspaper's comics page; they appeared at the bottom of the page somewhere else in the paper, so that the reader would have to hunt for it, and not-coincidentally pass by some of the Christmas advertising.[3] The strip appeared every year until 1987.
| Disney Christmas Story | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Frank Reilly, Carl Fallberg, Floyd Norman |
| Illustrator(s) | Manuel Gonzales, Chuck Fuson, John Ushler, Floyd Gottfredson, Guillermo Cardoso, Mike Arens, Cliff Nordberg, James Swain, Tom McKimson, Lorna Smith, Larry Mayer, Willie Ito, Tony Strobl, Mike Royer, Steve Steere, Bill Langley, Keith Moseley |
| Current status/schedule | Concluded annual Christmas strip |
| Launch date | November 28, 1960 |
| End date | December 24, 1987 |
| Syndicate(s) | King Features Syndicate |
In 2017, the Christmas stories were collected in a hardback volume, Disney's Christmas Classics, published by IDW Publishing.[4] The collection includes all of the Christmas stories except for 1986's story based on Song of the South.
Development
Unlike most Disney comic strips, Disney Christmas Story actively mixed characters from different Disney films -- for example, in 1962, Ludwig Von Drake saved Princess Aurora from Maleficent's spell, and in 1976, the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio helped Santa Claus foil an evil plot hatched by Captain Hook, the Big Bad Wolf and Honest John to steal his toys and hold them for ransom. The 1963 sequence was the only comic strip appearance of the popular Disney comics character Li'l Bad Wolf,[5] and the 1971 story features a rare comic-strip appearance by the Beagle Boys.[2]
The strip was written by Frank Reilly from its inception in 1960 until 1975, and then by Carl Fallberg from 1976 to 1984. Floyd Norman wrote the 1985 and 1986 sequences, and Fallberg wrote the last story in 1987.[1]
When Norman was given the assignment to write the Christmas Story in 1985, he was bothered by the way that the stories mixed up characters from different films. He recalled in a 2013 blog post, "I couldn't help but find this approach somewhat bizarre. Mickey and Pluto didn't fit in the same world as Dumbo and the seven dwarfs certainly didn't mix well with Jaq and Gus Gus from Cinderella. I decided if I was going to write a holiday story the characters used would have to be consistent... No more of this wacky 'mix and match' approach to Disney storytelling."[6] Norman's first story featured only characters from One Hundred and One Dalmatians, and his second characters from Song of the South.[7]
In 1992, the strip returned as Disney Holiday Story, telling more straightforward tales starring the characters from the most recent Disney animated release. This strip lasted for six years, until 1997.[6] All six storylines were written by Floyd Norman (with Karen Kreider on the first year), and illustrated by Richard Moore.[1]
Disney Christmas Story
| Title | Dates | Characters | Writers | Artists | INDUCKS link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Pan's Christmas Story | 1960 (Nov 28-Dec 24) |
Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, Tinker Bell, the Seven Dwarfs | Frank Reilly | Manuel Gonzales | CS 1 |
| Pinocchio's Christmas Story | 1961 (Nov 27-Dec 23) |
Pinocchio, Geppetto, Jiminy Cricket, Stromboli, Honest John, Gideon & the Blue Fairy | Frank Reilly | Chuck Fuson & Manuel Gonzales | CS 2 |
| Sleeping Beauty's Christmas Story | 1962 (Nov 26-Dec 24) |
Princess Aurora, Prince Phillip, the Good Fairies, Maleficent & Ludwig Von Drake | Frank Reilly | John Ushler | CS 3 |
| Three Little Pigs Christmas Story | 1963 (Nov 25-Dec 24) |
The Three Little Pigs, the Big Bad Wolf & Li'l Bad Wolf | Frank Reilly | Floyd Gottfredson |
CS 4 |
| Cinderella's Christmas Party | 1964 (Nov 23-Dec 24) |
Cinderella, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, Drizella, Gus, Jaq, & the Fairy Godmother | Frank Reilly | Manuel Gonzales | CS 5 |
| Bambi's Christmas Adventure | 1965 (Nov 29-Dec 24) |
Bambi, Flower & Mr. Stork | Frank Reilly | Floyd Gottfredson | CS 6 |
| Snow White's Christmas Surprise | 1966 (Nov 28-Dec 24) |
Snow White, the Seven Dwarfs & the Evil Queen | Frank Reilly | Mike Arens | CS 7 |
| Dumbo and the Christmas Mystery | 1967 (Nov 27-Dec 23) |
Dumbo, Timothy Q. Mouse, Mad Madam Mim, Maleficent & the Seven Dwarfs | Frank Reilly | Mike Arens | CS 8 |
| Santa Claus in Neverland | 1968 (Nov 25-Dec 24) |
Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, the Lost Boys, the Indian Girls, the Mermaids & the Pirates | Frank Reilly | Cliff Nordberg & Manuel Gonzales | CS 9 |
| The Quest for Christmas | 1969 (Dec 1-24) |
The Seven Dwarfs, Who from Planet Galaxia, the Good Fairies | Frank Reilly | James Swain & Manuel Gonzales | CS 10 |
| Santa's Christmas Crisis | 1970 (Nov 30-Dec 24) |
Maleficent, her raven & the Goon | Frank Reilly | John Ushler | CS 11 |
| The Christmas Conspiracy | 1971 (Dec 6-24) |
The Beagle Boys, Gus, Jaq & Mr. Stork | Frank Reilly | Mike Arens | CS 12 |
| The Magic Christmas Tree | 1972 (Dec 4-23) |
Merlin, Mad Madam Mim | Frank Reilly | John Ushler | CS 13 |
| A Castle for Christmas | 1973 (Dec 3-24) |
Mr. Stork, Bambi & Thumper | Frank Reilly | John Ushler | CS 14 |
| Santa's Crucial Christmas | 1974 (Dec 2-24) |
Timothy Q. Mouse, the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket, Robin Hood, Little John, the Three Little Pigs, Gus, Jaq, Merlin & the Big Bad Wolf | Frank Reilly | Tom McKimson | CS 15 |
| Santa and the Pirates | 1975 (Dec 1-24) |
The Seven Dwarfs, Gus & Jaq | Frank Reilly | John Ushler | CS 16 |
| Captain Hook's Christmas Caper | 1976 (Nov 29-Dec 24) |
The Three Little Pigs, Br'er Bear, Missus Bear, Honest John, the Big Bad Wolf, the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio & Archimedes | Carl Fallberg | Lorna Smith & Larry Mayer | CS 17 |
| No Puppets for Christmas | 1977 (Dec 5-24) |
Peter Pan, Gepetto, Stromboli, Honest John & the Fairy Godmother | Carl Fallberg | Willie Ito & Larry Mayer | CS 18 |
| The Day Christmas Was Banned | 1978 (Dec 4-23) |
Prince John, the Sheriff of Nottingham, Mr. Stork, Dumbo, Skippy & the Robin Hood Kids | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Larry Mayer | CS 19 |
| Madam Mim's Christmas Grudge | 1979 (Dec 3-24) |
Mad Madam Mim, Merlin & Wart | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Mike Royer | CS 20 |
| Santa's Magical Christmas Helpers | 1980 (Dec 1-24) |
Pinocchio, the Big Bad Wolf, Br'er Bear & the Good Fairies | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Mike Royer | CS 21 |
| Cinderella's Christmas Crisis | 1981 (Nov 30-Dec 24) |
Cinderella, Lucifer, Anastasia, Drizella, Gus, Jaq & the Fairy Godmother | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Steve Steere | CS 22 |
| The Mysterious Christmas Spell | 1982 (Nov 29-Dec 24) |
Merlin, Wart, the Seven Dwarfs & the Evil Queen | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Steve Steere | CS 23 |
| Christmas Comes to Neverland | 1983 (Nov 28-Dec 24) |
Peter Pan, Wendy, the Lost Boys, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, the Pirates & the Crocodile | Carl Fallberg | Willie Ito & Bill Langley |
CS 24 |
| A Christmas Present for Mister Toad | 1984 (Dec 3-22) |
Ratty, Mole, Honest John, Gideon & the Coachman | Carl Fallberg | Tony Strobl & Steve Steere | CS 25 |
| Cruella's Very Furry Christmas | 1985 (Dec 2-24) |
Cruella De Vil, Pongo, Perdita, Jasper & Horace | Floyd Norman | Willie Ito & Mike Royer | CS 26 |
| A Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah Christmas! | 1986 (Dec 1-24) |
Uncle Remus, Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Bear & Br'er Fox | Floyd Norman | Keith Moseley & Larry Mayer | CS 27 |
| Snow White's Sinister Christmas Gift | 1987 (Nov 30-Dec 24) |
Snow White, the Seven Dwarfs, the Evil Queen & her raven | Carl Fallberg | Keith Moseley & Bill Langley | CS 28 |
Disney Holiday Story
| Disney Holiday Story | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Floyd Norman, Karen Kreider |
| Illustrator(s) | Richard Moore |
| Current status/schedule | Concluded annual Christmas strip |
| Launch date | November 30, 1992 |
| End date | December 27, 1997 |
| Syndicate(s) | King Features Syndicate |
The tradition was revived in 1992 to publicize contemporary Disney feature animated films. All six storylines were written by Floyd Norman (with Karen Kreider on the first year), and illustrated by Richard Moore.[2] These stories only included the cast of the featured movie; there were no special crossovers with other characters.
- 1992: Beauty and the Beast (Nov 30-Dec 25)
- 1993: Aladdin (Nov 29-Dec 24)
- 1994: The Lion King (Nov 28-Dec 24)
- 1995: Pocahontas (Nov 27-Dec 23)
- 1996: Hunchback of Notre Dame (Dec 2-28)
- 1997: The Little Mermaid (Dec 1-27, for the film's re-release)
References
- Holtz, Allan (2012). American Newspaper Comics: An Encyclopedic Reference Guide. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. ISBN 9780472117567.
- Becattini, Alberto (2016). Disney Comics: The Whole Story. Theme Park Press. p. 27-28. ISBN 978-1683900177.
- Korkis, Jim (December 23, 2015). "The Disney Christmas Comic Strips". MousePlanet. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
- Disney's Christmas Classics. IDW Publishing. 2017. ISBN 1684050065.
- Becattini, Alberto (2019). "Disney Beyond Mickey". American Funny Animal Comics in the 20th Century: Volume One. Seattle, WA: Theme Park Press. ISBN 168390186X.
- Norman, Floyd. "The Disney Holiday Stories". Mrfun. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
- A detailed description of Norman's Song of the South story, which was not reprinted in the Christmas Classics collection, is included here: Korkis, Jim. "An Uncle Remus Christmas". MousePlanet. Retrieved 28 July 2019.