"The Milkman"

the milkman This story was shelved in the 1950s. It would have appeared in or around "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" No. 215. The intended issue number is difficult to guess, because Western was by this time publishing Barks's stories out of order. Barks's comment in his work records is that "this story was shelved because Donald was too mean to the villain."

Ten-pager listed as "The Milkman", submitted on September 19, 1957. It would have appeared in or around "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" No. 215. The intended issue number is difficult to guess, because Western was by this time publishing Barks's stories out of order. Barks's comment in his work records is that "this story was shelved because Donald was too mean to the villain."

The story concerns Daisy Dairy Company milkman Donald having difficulties with Mr. McSwine, Barks' standard pig villain. McSwine, who's one of the customers, tries to get Donald's job by thwarting his (successful) attempts in being a good milkman. After some time of tight self-control Donald gets so angry that he slams the window down on McSwine's hands, ties a rope around the bottom of his nightshirt and fills it with yogurt and ice-cold cottage cheese. Donald loses his job and McSwine goes down to the hiring boss. Much to his surprise, he finds Donald being the hiring boss: "It seems the other 199 customers on my route thought I was such a perfect milkman I deserved a better job! So you just don't live right, noisy boy!" After these words, at the end of the story, Donald picks up McSwine and throws him out. (Maybe a reason for shelving the story could also have been that Donald's violence turns out to be rewarding?)

The entire story has survived and was first published in Holland in 1974. It made its debut in the USA in "The Carl Barks Library" (1990); and "Walt Disney Comics and Stories" No. 550.

About dairy products, Joseph Cowles wrote in a August 4, 2000 email:

Along with Carl's legion of allergies, he was lactose intolerant. and unable to properly digest dairy products. He loved milk in his cereal, however, and on the occasion of one of my visits was trying as a substitute, Loma Linda soy milk. I don't think he cared very much for it.
Barks submitted this story on September 19, 1957.

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