Tuesday 8 February 2011

ITALIAN THREE PIGS MAGAZINE (1935-37)


In 1935, Italian publisher Mondadori, which had been publishing Topolino [Mickey Mouse] since 1932, put out a new weekly children's magazine titled I tre porcellini [Three Pigs]. The front page of no. 1, dated March 28th, featured an illustrated story based on the cartoon short Three Little Pigs (1933). The panels on the first two rows originate from an American book, by NY publisher Blue Ribbon, featuring the illustrated story adaptation of the cartoon. The last panel, on the other hand, is actually a collage: The left portion of the panel with the two piglets under the bed is again taken from that book and the right portion with the third pig is redrawn from another illustration from the same book, but the central portion with the wolf is apparently original.
Despite the title, I tre porcellini did not predominantly feature the Three Little Pigs; it did not actually feature Disney comics exclusively. While some 'Silly Symphony' comics, including 'The Further Adventures of the Three Little Pigs' from 1936, were serialized, a large body of the featured comics were non-Disneyic. The pigs and the wolf made into its cover for the second and last time with no. 93, dated Dec. 31st, 1936:

Cover images taken from outducks archive