Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #1 [1]

History

The direct predecessor to WDC&S was Mickey Mouse Magazine, which Western Publishing and Kay Kamen had evolved through several incarnations from 1933 onward, gradually shrinking it in format until its final issue (September 1940, #60) arrived in full comic book dimensions — making that last Mickey Mouse Magazine and WDC&S #1, published the very next month, effectively two installments of the same editorial transition. Dell Comics served as the publishing imprint while Western Printing and Lithographing Company handled production under an exclusive licensing arrangement with Disney. The issue's cover was painted by Hank Porter, and its interior was staffed by an ensemble of Disney studio veterans including Floyd Gottfredson (penciler of the Mickey Mouse newspaper strip), Al Taliaferro (the Donald Duck strip's primary artist, credited as the creator of Huey, Dewey, and Louie), and writers Homer Brightman, Merrill De Maris, and Ted Osborne, with Alice Nielson Cobb serving as editor. The contents at launch were entirely reprints — newspaper comic strips from the Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Silly Symphonies syndicated features, reformatted and recolored for the comic book page; no original comics content was commissioned for WDC&S until issue #24 (August 1942).

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published October 1940 by Dell Comics (produced by Western Printing and Lithographing Company) as the direct successor to Mickey Mouse Magazine, which ceased with its September 1940 issue.
• The issue is 68 pages long and carried a ten-cent cover price — standard for the Golden Age comic book format.
• Cover art was by Hank Porter; interior art and story credits include Floyd Gottfredson, Al Taliaferro, Ferdinand Horvath, Tom Wood, Homer Brightman, Merrill De Maris, Ted Osborne, Bob Wright, and Ted Thwaites, with Alice Nielson Cobb as editor.
• All content in issue #1 consisted of reprints from the syndicated Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Silly Symphonies newspaper comic strips, reformatted and recolored for the comic book page — no original comics stories were produced for the series until issue #24 (1942).
• Featured characters include Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, Clarabelle Cow, Huey, Dewey, and Louie; Floyd Gottfredson's Mickey adventure serial (featuring Professor Einmug and his floating island, with Pegleg Pete as antagonist) is a primary story thread.
• The series this issue launched would run for 263 issues under Dell alone (October 1940 – July 1962), then continue under Gold Key, Gladstone, Disney Comics, Gemstone, Boom! Studios, and IDW Publishing — maintaining legacy numbering throughout.
• Carl Barks, who would become the series' most celebrated contributor, did not begin his run of original Donald Duck 10-pagers until issue #31 (April 1943); WDC&S #1 predates his involvement entirely.
• The early issues of WDC&S were later collected and reprinted by Boom! Studios/KaBOOM! in the Walt Disney's Comics and Stories Archives series, with Volume 1 reprinting issues #1 and #2 in full.

Full credits