Carl Barks' first fan foto

When research information is needed concerning facts about Carl Barks and his voluminous amount of work, it's reassuring to know that there is someone you can always count on to come through for you. Who is this you ask? Why it's "Duckdom's" Number One Fan... Malcolm Willits. Universally recognized as the first person to obtain Carl's address from the Disney studio in 1957, Malcolm generously shared this information with the legion of fans who had come to realize that there was something very special about "The Good Duck Artist."

In the course of making graphic reproductions for various articles in this issue of Comic Book Marketplace, I had the oppurtunity to call Malcolm and ask for his asistance. He graciously agreed to loan me one of his precious bound volumes containing lots of rare comic book issues.

But most priceless of all were the two drawings that appeared at the beginning of the book. Carl had "signed" the page for Malcolm upon the occasion of their first meeting on July 25th, 1961, in Seattle Washington. (Incredibly, the other drawing was penned by none other than the esteemed Jack Hannah, Carl's collaborator on "Pirate Gold!")

Click on the book below to see Barks' first fan drawing.