Al Taliaferro
Encyclopedia
Charles Alfred Taliaferro (August 29, 1905 – February 3, 1969), known simply as Al Taliaferro, was a Disney comics
artist
who used to produce Disney comic strip
s for King Features Syndicate
. Many of his strips were written by Bob Karp
.
He is best-known for his work on the Donald Duck comic strip, but he started his career lettering the Mickey Mouse
strips (March 1931 - July 1932), and drew the Bucky Bug
comics in 1932 as well as Silly Symphonies
pages from 1932 to 1939. Taliaferro co-created a number of characters, including Huey, Dewey and Louie
, Bolivar, Grandma Duck, and arguably Daisy Duck
. He drew Donald Duck
comic strips from 1938 until his death in 1969 in Glendale
, California
.
After his family moved to Glendale, Al studied art at the "Institute of Art" in California. On January 5, 1931 he was hired in Disney Studios as an animator, but soon transferred to the comic strip department. At its height the Donald Duck comic strips was published in 322 newspapers.
While many of Taliaferro's strips were reprinted in Disney comic books, in only a few instances did he do original artwork for comic books. Among these was the Cheerios Premium Giveaway Donald Duck: Counter Spy (1947) and the cover of Walt Disney's Comics and Stories
#107 (August 1949) http://www.comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=7759&zoom=2. Two Children's books with Disney characters he illustrated are Donald and His Cat Troubles(1948) and Donald Duck and the Hidden Gold (1951).
The Taliaferros trace their origins to Northern Italy
and were one the early families who settled in Virginia
in the 17th century. The family name, originally Tagliaferro, literally means Ironcutter in Italian.
Taliaferro was posthumously honored with a Disney Legends
award in 2003.
Disney comics
Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring Walt Disney characters.The first Disney comics were newspaper strips appearing from 1930 on . In 1940, Western Publishing began producing Disney comic books in the United States...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
who used to produce Disney comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
s for King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
. Many of his strips were written by Bob Karp
Bob Karp
Robert Louis Karp was an American comics writer. He began working for the Walt Disney Company in the 1930s, and from 1938 to 1974, he wrote the scripts for the daily Donald Duck newspaper strips. These were illustrated by Al Taliaferro and by Frank Grundeen after Taliaferro's death in 1969.Bob...
.
He is best-known for his work on the Donald Duck comic strip, but he started his career lettering the Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
strips (March 1931 - July 1932), and drew the Bucky Bug
Bucky Bug
Bucky Bug is a fictional character, created by The Walt Disney Company. He first appeared in the initial Silly Symphonies comic strip; he was the first Disney character to debut in comics...
comics in 1932 as well as Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
pages from 1932 to 1939. Taliaferro co-created a number of characters, including Huey, Dewey and Louie
Huey, Dewey and Louie
Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck are a trio of fictional, anthropomorphic ducks who appear in animated cartoons and comic books published by the Walt Disney Company. Identical triplets, the three are Donald Duck's nephews. Huey, Dewey, and Louie were created by Ted Osborne and Al Taliaferro, and first...
, Bolivar, Grandma Duck, and arguably Daisy Duck
Daisy Duck
Daisy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1940 by Walt Disney Productions as the girlfriend of Donald Duck. Like Donald, Daisy is an anthropomorphic white duck, but has large eyelashes and ruffled tail feathers to suggest a skirt. She is often seen wearing a hair bow, blouse, and shoes...
. He drew Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
comic strips from 1938 until his death in 1969 in Glendale
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
After his family moved to Glendale, Al studied art at the "Institute of Art" in California. On January 5, 1931 he was hired in Disney Studios as an animator, but soon transferred to the comic strip department. At its height the Donald Duck comic strips was published in 322 newspapers.
While many of Taliaferro's strips were reprinted in Disney comic books, in only a few instances did he do original artwork for comic books. Among these was the Cheerios Premium Giveaway Donald Duck: Counter Spy (1947) and the cover of Walt Disney's Comics and Stories
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, sometimes abbreviated WDC or WDC&S, is an anthology comic book series that has an assortment of Disney characters, including Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck, Mickey Mouse, Chip 'n Dale, Lil Bad Wolf, Scamp, Bucky Bug, Grandma Duck, Brer Rabbit, Winnie the Pooh, and...
#107 (August 1949) http://www.comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=7759&zoom=2. Two Children's books with Disney characters he illustrated are Donald and His Cat Troubles(1948) and Donald Duck and the Hidden Gold (1951).
The Taliaferros trace their origins to Northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and were one the early families who settled in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in the 17th century. The family name, originally Tagliaferro, literally means Ironcutter in Italian.
Legacy
Animation historian Jim Korkis noted that Taliaferro designed the mascot Litter-Not in 1967 who adorned the public trash receptacles in Glendale into the 1970s and to this day is the official mascot of the Committee for a Clean & Beautiful Glendale.Taliaferro was posthumously honored with a Disney Legends
Disney Legends
Established in 1987, the Disney Legends program recognizes people who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company. The honor is awarded annually during a special ceremony....
award in 2003.
