Four Color #386
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeIn "Osogood Silver Polish," Carl Barks delivers a classic tale of cunning and greed as the Beagle Boys target Scrooge's money bin with a scheme to siphon off his fortune. When the crooks build next to the bin, Scrooge outsmarts them by secretly relocating his wealth to an old underwater reservoir, only for the Beagle Boys to plot a new sabotage—this time aiming to breach the dam. With Carl Barks handling every aspect of the art and storytelling, the issue showcases his sharp wit and visual flair in a tale where every move is a step in a high-stakes game of one-upmanship.
In "Only a Poor Old Man," Scrooge McDuck finds himself outmaneuvered when the Beagle Boys build a new structure right next to his money bin, plotting to drain it dry. With clever foresight, he hides his fortune in an old reservoir, banking on the dam’s secrecy—until the Beagle Boys learn of the plan and set their sights on destroying the dam to flood their own land with his wealth.
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We Buy Collections ▸Trivia · 7 facts
- Sole creator: Carl Barks wrote, penciled, inked, and lettered every page — including the cover — with coloring handled by the Western Publishing production shop.
- First cover appearance of Uncle Scrooge: This is the first comic book to feature Scrooge McDuck's name as the title and to place him on the cover, alongside Donald Duck and Huey, Dewey, and Louie.
- Lead story 'Only a Poor Old Man' (32 pages): Scrooge's money bin — and his signature habit of swimming through his coins — are formally introduced here as permanent fixtures of the character and the series.
- First major appearance of the Beagle Boys: Though the gang debuted as a cameo in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #134 (November 1951), 'Only a Poor Old Man' is the first story to give them a substantial speaking role and establish them as the central threat to Scrooge's fortune.
- Three additional one-page Barks gag stories round out the issue: 'Osogood Silver Polish' (inside front cover), 'Coffee for Two' (inside back cover, the first in a series of diner gags), and 'Soupline Eight' (back cover) — all submitted on September 27, 1951.
- Extensively reprinted: The lead story has been collected in, among others, The Best of Walt Disney Comics #96172 (Western, 1974), Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck #1 (Western, 1965), Uncle Scrooge #195 (Western, 1982), multiple Gladstone albums, and the Fantagraphics Complete Carl Barks Disney Library hardcover series.
- Television adaptation: Key plot elements from 'Only a Poor Old Man' — particularly Scrooge hiding his fortune in a body of water — were incorporated into the DuckTales (1987) episode 'Liquid Assets.'
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Reprints
Reprinted in Topolino #44 (1952), Topolino #46 (1952), Cuentos de Walt Disney #37 (1952), Kalle Anka & C:o #1B/1954 (1954), Micky Maus Sonderheft #10 (1954), Walt Disney's serier #[1/1954] (1954), Donald Duck #12/1955 (1955), Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck #1 (1965), Die tollsten Geschichten von Donald Duck #4 (1966), Oscar Mondadori [Oscar Fumetto] #170 (1968), Walt Disney's månedshefte #7/1971 (1971), The Best of Walt Disney Comics #96172 (1974), The Rocket's Blast-Comicollector #117 (1975), Donald Duck Best Comics #[nn] (1978), Walt Disney Uncle Scrooge #195 (1982), Walt Disney's Godbiter #39 (1982), The Complete Carl Barks #11 (1983), The Carl Barks Library #3 (1984), The Complete Carl Barks #32 (1985), Uncle Scrooge #1 [Promotional Reprint] #[nn] (1986), Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge #212 (1986), Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge #214 (1987), Gladstone Comic Album #20 (1989), Duckmobiles #[nn] (1991) + 19 more
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