Great Minds...

Above: 'Dodo and the Frog' by Otto Feuer, from 'Funny Stuff' issue 48, August 1949. Below: cover for the Dutch Donald Duck Weekly issue 27, 2005 by Disney artist Ulrich Schroder (according to Inducks, based on an idea by artist/animator Arjan Wilschut). Schroeder's original concept designs and final art are featured at the bottom.

'Dodo and the Frog' was created by German animator Otto Feuer, and was published in 'Funny Stuff' comic magazine by National Comics, which later turned into DC Comics (after their first magazine 'Detective Comics'). Check the early logo, already present on the covers since 1940. The publisher of 'Batman' and 'Superman' became known as 'DC Comics' but didn't take on that name officially until 1977.

Otto Feuer worked in the 1930's as an animator at the Fleischer and Famous Animation studios, where he was part of the team that created Paramount's first animated feature film 'Gulliver's Travels' in 1939. Like so many animators in those days, he started working as a comic artist in 1943. DC's 'Funny Stuff magazine' started publishing his comic featuring Dunbarr Dodo & Fennimore Frog in 1947. It was written by Woody Gelman and became part of DC's 'Comic Cavalcade' magazine between 1948 and 1954. In October that year Funny Stuff was renamed 'The Dodo & The Frog. Publication came to a halt after issue 92 in November 1957.

Click to enlarge the concept sketches, or hit the link 'Great Minds' in the column right for more stuff.