Back in 1991, I bought the 50th Anniversary Edition
I was five years old when the 25th Anniversary Edition was published in 1966 (I bought it much later).
When I was a kid, I loved the Disney Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge titles, with the ducks adventuring in exotic locales, in search of the Mines of King Solomon or the lost crown of Genghis Khan.
There was always a Duck cover, and the first story starred Donald Duck, but it was a slapstick comedy, not an adventure.
1. The Little Bad Wolf, a "Casper the Friendly Ghost" who butted heads with his single father, Zeke, aka the Big Bad Wolf from The Three Little Pigs (1933). Neither father nor son expressed any interest in girls, so that was a glimmer of gay subtext, anyway. But also:
2. The patois-speaking Indian Little Hiawatha,who apparently starred in some cartoons in the 1930s. f Offensive even for a 10 year old in 1971
3. Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio (1940). Who?
4. Scamp, the son of the two dogs who got together in Lady and the Tramp (1955). He was rascally, adventurous, a gender-stereotyped "boy," with sisters who were gender-stereotyped sissy "girls." Offensive even for a 10-year old in 1971.
6. But the worst was the last feature, a serial by artist Paul Murray (1911-1989) that paired Mickey Mouse and Goofy.
They were usually detectives trying to solve a crime with science fiction elements, though there were also outer-space and historical stories.
The problem was, I never could read a serial straight through. Buying comic books was always a gamble, based on what Schneider's Drug Store stocked, what was left by the time I got there, and how much money I had. There was never an opportunity to buy the same title several months in a row, so instead I always arrived in media res, or in time for "the ghost was really your disgruntled assistant" Scooby wrap-up.
November 1968: "The River Pirates," Part 3.
March 1969: "The Secret of Shipnabber's Cove," Part 1.
September 1970: "The Sign of the Scorpion," Part 1
.
February 1971: "The Mystery of the Counterfeit Masters," Part 3
September 1971: "The Viking Stone Mystery," Part 3
July 1972: "Message in a Nutshell," Part 3
April 1973: "The Case of the Talking Tooth," Part 3.
But I never made the leap. Goofy was too tall, gawky, and dopey to be a fantasy romantic partner when I could get Tarzan, Johnny Quest, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., David Cassidy, Peter Brady....
There is plenty of gay subtext in "Pinocchio"
ReplyDeleteThe 1940 cartoon? I'm not familiar enough with it to tell. Are there any same-sex relationships? Maybe between Pinocchio and the talking cricket?
ReplyDeleteHe is corrupted into a jackass on that island where all the boys drink and play pool..
DeleteOne could easily see a common activity, often performed alone but sometimes (especially when young) in groups, indicating puberty (and both the activity and puberty itself being seen as "corrupting") being alluded to, after which the boys are "slaves" to their hormones.
Or just Honest John being a G-rated version of a pimp.
Yeah, the Leap. Like, I refuse to take it with Batman and associated characters. Not them being gay or more likely bi (I'm fond of saying the only romance Chuck Dixon ever wrote is between Oracle and Black Canary. But seriously, the fan base thinks half of that family is gay or bi.) but it's usually in team books. It ends up being incest I object to. And anything involving Damian since he's like, 10. (Tim being gay has some unique issues, but given the events of One Year Later, Tim being straight has some unique issues.)
That may be a bit of a stretch. My usual criteria for a gay subtext is: 1) absent or minimal depiction of heterosexual interest, which would be commonplace for children in movies of the era anyway; 2) a same-sex bond that drives the plot (rescuing, breaking up, and so on) and is permanent (they are planning to stay together at the end), except when the age range makes the bond paternal. For Pinocchio, I can't think of any, but Honest John certainly seems like a human trafficker
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's this odd thing. I will say, pre-Stonewall gay culture was interesting for simultaneously being anti-drag queen because that was too "out there" and reading gay subtext into a lot of works with children.
DeleteIf you can have straight kids, you can have gay kids. It's heterosexist to presume that everyone is born heterosexual, and then something happens in adolescence or adulthood to "turn them" gay. But Mickey and Goofy were adults.
DeleteThere is plenty of gay subtext in Disney's "Pinocchio" Geppeto, single creative man live alone with a fish and a cat. Mrs Gepetto is never mentioned. Pinnocchio the wooden boy he makes is brought to live by the Blue Fairy the only major female character. Pinnochio ignores the advice of Jimminy Criket, his fancy dressed conciense when Honest John the Fox and his "companion" Gideon the Cat convince him to become an actor. They actually sing " the actor's life is gay" .
ReplyDeletePinnochio falls into the clutches of Stromboli, an Italian bear who threatens to set him on fire if he doesn't act in his show. Pinnochio escapes but ends in Pleasure Island with his Lampwick, his cute tough guy friend. They indulge in adult "pleasures" and are punished by being turned into donkeys. Pinnochio escapes again and goes searching for Geppeto who has been swallowed by Monstro the whale ( is the whale some sort of female symbol) I imagine that the adult Pinnochio grew up and ended up hooking up with Italian daddy types.