Romano Scarpa

{{short description|Italian animator and comic book writer}}

{{more footnotes needed|date=January 2013}}

{{Infobox comics creator

| image = ScarpaRome2000.jpg

| caption = Romano Scarpa at an Exposition in Rome in 2000.

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1927|9|27|df=y}}

| birth_place = Venice, Italy

| death_date = {{death date and age|2005|4|23|1927|9|27|df=y}}

| death_place = Málaga, Spain

| nationality = Italian

| area = Artist, Writer

| alias =

| notable works =

| awards =

}}

Romano Scarpa (27 September 1927 – 23 April 2005) was one of the most famous Italian creators of Disney comics.

Biography

Growing up in Venice he developed a particular love for American cartoons and Disney comics, that, at the time, were published in the big format of the Topolino giornale which was then printing now classic Floyd Gottfredson's stories. In the 1940s he opened an Animation Studio in Venice in which he produced his first works: some commercials, a short titled E poi venne il diluvio and another one titled La piccola fiammiferaia (1953, based on Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Match Girl), distributed in Italy together with Robert Aldrich's Attack! (1956).

Right after that he stopped working in animation for a while and dedicated wholly to creating Disney comics. When in 1956 Italian editors had no more new Floyd Gottfredson's stories to reprint, he was given the responsibility to continue Gottfredson's stories about Mickey Mouse. Also influenced by Carl Barks in the late 1950s and up to about 1963 he wrote and penciled stories like Topolino e la collana Chirikawa (1960) or The Flying Scot (1957) that have, later, been translated in many different languages throughout the world. Many of these stories have their backgrounds in movies, for example Topolino nel favoloso regno di Shan Grillà (1961) is based upon Frank Capra's Lost Horizon (1937); not to talk about all the stories starring Snow White or the Seven Dwarfs, obviously based on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). Sometimes the exact opposite happened; the Italian movie Riusciranno i nostri eroi a ritrovare l'amico misteriosamente scomparso in Africa? (1968) is based on Scarpa's story Topolino e il Pippotarzan (1957).

Around 1963, Scarpa stopped writing for 6 or 7 years. In the 1970s, he moved to Spain and started working for a different publisher. Among the last things he made while he was still in Italy, at the end of the 1980s and at beginning of the 1990s, there are the so-called Paperolimpiadi (a long story about the 1988 Seoul Olympic games) and some strip stories, the same kind of stories that he loved when he was a child. One of these, Topolino e l'enigma di Brigaboom (1989) was partially based on Brigadoon (1954).

In the meanwhile he has had time enough for some more animation, so we have Aihnoo degli Icebergs (1972), The Fourth King (1977) and a new TV series, The Adventures of Marco and Gina (Sopra i tetti di Venezia) (2001).

Scarpa mainly worked on Disney comics, but he was also able to work on non-Disney material once in a while, so he did one (Rolf Kauka's) Lupo story and one (Hannah and Barbera's) Yogi Bear story. In the 1950s he also drew some Angelino stories, and Italian character.

Since 1988 some of his comic stories have been published in the US by Gladstone Publishing; it was the first time that this happened to an Italian Disney author. Later, when Disney Comics took Gladstone's place; they published some more of his stories, and in 2003, the same happened with Gemstone Publishing. He has influenced many younger creators (Giorgio Cavazzano was his inker during the Sixties) and many have attempted to imitate his style.

Disney characters created by Romano Scarpa

In his career Scarpa created many Disney characters that are now accepted by some as part of the Disney Universe. Those include, but are not limited to:

Reprints

In 2017 Fantagraphics Books published a collection containing four stories of Scarpa's Snow White comics, titled The Return of Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs, ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-075-1}}.

In 2018 Fantagraphics Books began publishing a hardcover series titled Disney Masters, in which Romano Scarpa has to date (December 2024) had five volumes dedicated to his Disney works.{{cite web |last1=Parkin |first1=J. K. |title=Fantagraphics' 'Disney Masters' line begins in May |url=http://smashpages.net/2018/03/01/fantagraphics-disney-masters-line-begins-in-may/ |website=SMASH PAGES |access-date=14 April 2020 |date=1 March 2018}}{{cite web |last1=McNeil |first1=Jamie |title=Disney Masters: Donald Duck - Duck Avenger Strikes Again by Romano Scarpa and Carl Barks |url=https://theslingsandarrows.com/disney-masters-donald-duck-duck-avenger-strikes-again-by-romano-scarpa-and-carl-barks/ |website=Slings & Arrows |access-date=14 April 2020 |language=en |date=31 July 2019}}

  • Mickey Mouse: The Delta Dimension (2018) ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-096-6}}
  • Mickey Mouse: The Phantom Blot's Double Mystery (2018) ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-136-9}}
  • Donald Duck: Duck Avenger Strikes Again (2019) ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-197-0}}
  • Mickey Mouse: The Man from Altacraz (2021) ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-428-5}}
  • Mickey Mouse: The Riddle of Brigaboom (2024) ISBN {{ISBNT|978-1-68396-880-1}}

Index of comics books published in the United States

This is an index of all Romano Scarpa comics published in the US. Only Duck universe and Mouse universe are listed. Chip and Dale comics are not listed.


border="2" style="border:

! style="background:lightblue;width:100px" | Story code

! style="background:lightblue" | Hero

! style="background:lightblue" | Title

! style="background:lightblue" | Publications

! style="background:lightblue" | Year

! style="background:lightblue" | Pages

! style="background:lightblue" | Trivia

I TL 116-AMickey Mouse"The Blot's Double Mystery"Mickey and Donald #6198876Serialized in volumes 7 and 8
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| I TL 135-A

Donald Duck"Amundsen's Talisman"Donald Duck #279199033
I AT 21-AUncle Scrooge"The McDuck Foundation"Uncle Scrooge #241199025
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| I TL 243-A

Uncle Scrooge"The last Balaboo"Uncle Scrooge #242199035Brigitta MacBridge's first appearance
I TL 183-AMickey Mouse"Kali's Nail"Mickey Mouse #254199050serialized in volume 255
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| I TL 142-A

Mickey Mouse"The Mystery of Tapiocus VI"Mickey Mouse #256199053
S 88227Mickey and Goofy"TV Troubles"Mickey Mouse Adventures #1619919Reprinted in Disney's Colossal Comics Collection 7
S 86081Huey Dewey and Louie"Delay of the Land"Donald Duck Adventures #22199210Published as Donald story
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| E GN 92-03

Uncle Scrooge"The Euro Disneyland Adventure"Disney's Colossal Comics Collection 9199344Done for France
I TL 216-BUncle Scrooge"The Man from Oola-Oola" Uncle Scrooge Adventures #28–29199437
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| I TL 250-A

Uncle Scrooge"The Lentils from Babylon"Uncle Scrooge Adventures #30199571Serialized in volumes 31 and 32
I TL 292-AUncle Scrooge"Colossus of the Nile"Uncle Scrooge Adventures #37–38199645
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| I TL 174-A

Uncle Scrooge"The Flying Scot" Uncle Scrooge #315–316199849
S 77048Uncle Scrooge"The Big Break-in"Uncle Scrooge #320200315
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| S 80107

Uncle Scrooge"One Million Chase" Uncle Scrooge #322200313
F 98235 CMickey Mouse"It's a Wonderful Christmas Story"Christmas Parade #3200514
S 64007Uncle Scrooge"Around the World in Eighty Daze"Uncle Scrooge #341200517
I TL 272-AUncle Scrooge"The Secret of Success"Uncle Scrooge #338200533
I AT 7-AUncle Scrooge"Anti-Dollarosis"Uncle Scrooge #351200625
I TL 430-BPluto and Ellsworth"Foxy Hunters"Mickey Mouse Adventures #1020065
I TL 369-AUncle Scrooge"Being Good For Goodness Sake"Uncle Scrooge #360200630
I TL 206-AMickey Mouse"The Delta Dimension"Mickey Mouse Adventures #11200672
I TL 339-AMickey Mouse"The Incredible Black Comet"Mickey Mouse #292200629
S 86139Uncle Scrooge"The Dollar Stalactite"Uncle Scrooge #362200714
I TL 154-AGoofy"The Great Gawrsh-Durn Champion"WDC&S #681200732
I AO 54051-AMickey Mouse"Memoirs Of An Invisible Santa"Christmas Parade #5200829
I TL 222-AMickey Mouse"The Sacred Spring of Seasons Past"WDC&S #697-8200859
I AT 120-AUncle Scrooge"Last Hero of Banania"Uncle Scrooge #373200820
I AT 106-AUncle Scrooge"The Easter Eggs-Port"Uncle Scrooge #376200821
I TL 348-AUncle Scrooge"Taking the Plunge"Uncle Scrooge #378200829
I TL 552-BDaisy Duck"Witness Persecution"Walt Disney Treasures #2200818
I TL 386-AUncle Scrooge"Lights Fantastic"Valentine Classics #1201032
I TL 167-AMickey Mouse"Lost In the MicrocosmosMickey Mouse Classics #1201033
S 77053Uncle Scrooge"One With the Wind"Uncle Scrooge #333200413
colspan="7" style="background:lightblue; font-weight:bold; text-align:center;" | The following stories were originally produced for Egmont.
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| D/D 2000-021

Uncle Scrooge"Security"Uncle Scrooge #343200512
D/D 2000-022Uncle Scrooge"All You Need is Love" Uncle Scrooge #344200513
bgcolor="#EFEFEF"

| D 2000-188

Uncle Scrooge"The Funny Carrots" Uncle Scrooge #346200516
D 99156Mickey Mouse"History Re-Petes Itself"Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #654200512
D/D 2002-002Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck"The Keeper of Babylon Gardens"Uncle Scrooge #359200612
D/D 2001-017Mickey Mouse"The Transmutant Gifts"Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #685200716
D/E 2000-003Mickey Mouse"A Quiet Day at the Beach"Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #691200810
D 2004-236Goofy"Don't Worry About It"Mickey Mouse #304201110

References

=Citations=

{{Reflist}}

=Sources=

  • Romano Scarpa – Un cartoonist italiano tra animazione e fumetti, by Luca Boschi, Leonardo Gori and Andrea Sani. Alessandro distribuzioni, 1988.
  • Romano Scarpa – Sognando la Calidornia by Luca Boschi, Leonardo Gori, Andrea Sani and Alberto Becattini. Vittorio Pavesio productions, 2001 (in Italian);
  • I Disney Italiani by Luca Boschi, Leonardo Gori and Andrea Sani. Granata Press, 1990.