Carl Barks wrote a number of comic book stories in which hypnosis played an important part in setting up the main storyline. However, the ingredient of hypnosis in the story plots often tends to be forgotten, because once the reader gets into the main part of the story, the setup is no longer important, yet many of the stories could not have taken place with the hypnosis setup missing.
This page is about Barks' use of hypnosis in his stories. Some may argue that the ten-pager about Gyro's ingenious think-boxes from
WDCS141 deserves a place on this page, but only the most straightforward stories on the subject have been included. Ten of them are presented in chronological order.

 

 

 

1945

WDCS059 'Colt Taming'
Donald brags to the nephews about his abilities to tame a wild colt. He is soon put to the test...

Comments: Barks lets Donald use hypnosis on a colt, but Donald has not got the necessary mental strength to see it through. In 1958 Barks drew a similar story in WDCS219 'The Little Coyote', where Donald tried to hypnotize a wild coyote.

 

1947

FC0159 Adventure Down Under
Donald is hypnotized into believing that he is a kangaroo and he is drawn to Australia where the kangaroo queen terrorizes the land.

Comments: Donald is being hypnotized by Professor Argus Gimleteye - an example of Barks' brilliant ability to dream up perfect names for the occasion.

 

1948

WDCS091 'The Monkey Party'
Donald attempts to be part of high society and he arranges a garden party in which the nephews are to participate dressed in monkey suits. Not a good idea...

Comments: Donald is using hypnotizer spectacles from a gadget shop. Barks used a similar idea in WDCS145 'The Hypnotizer Gun'.

 

1950

CP2 You Can't Guess
Donald's family tries to discover what he wants for Christmas, because that is the only way for the nephews to get what they want...

Comments: The hypnotist in this story, Orville Orb, has a fairly limited scope; he can only hypnotize people into thinking that they are chickens...

 

1952

WDCS145 'The Hypnotizer Gun'
The nephews are playing with a completely harmless hypnotizer gun but Donald thinks it's real. Perhaps it is?

Comments: Probably the first story about hypnosis a Barks fan would think of. Donald is hypnotized into believing that he is several types of animals.
Barks once commented: This is the sort of story that only Donald can portray convincingly. Mickey could never be 'hypnotized' by such a simple gadget and Goofy could be hypnotized too easily. A good example of Donald's versatility as an 'actor'.

 

1956

U$16 Back to Long Ago!
Scrooge is hypnotized and learns that in a former life he was a Spanish captain who hid a treasure chest. He rushes off to find it...

Comments: Another of Barks' ingenious names: One hypnotist in the story is Mesmer J. Spellcaster. This story contains TWO hypnotists which is usually forgotten; Scrooge and Donald each have a different hypnotist...

 

1957

DD52 The Lost Peg Leg Mine
Under hypnosis Scrooge remembers that he once knew an old gold mine in the desert. He goes there and finds the gold but it is not that simple keeping it!

Comments: In this story Scrooge is actually paying for a session with a hypnotist but for a reason. He expects to get his money back - with interest.

 

1962

WDCS265 Raven Mad
Scrooge is exhibiting his Number One Dime at a bazaar. A trained raven helps Magica get it...

Comments: Magica's primary strong point is her magical powers, but from time to time she also uses hypnosis. In this story a raven is the target. In another story from 1962, U$38 The Unsafe Safe, Scrooge is the victim...

 

1964

U$47 The Thrifty Spendthrift
Donald has bought a special slide projector which hypnotizes people into giving presents. He immediately looks up Scrooge...

Comments: Barks drew a few stories in which other inventors than Gyro made gadgets that could hypnotize people. This is one of them...

 

1965

U$57 The Swamp of No Return
A super teaching machine falls in the wrong hands. Shortly after Scrooge and half of Duckburg run around aimlessly in the swamps.

Comments: The machine works as a hypnotizer gun. The same basic plot had been used in WDCS278 Have Gun, Will Dance from 1963.

 


http://www.cbarks.dk/THEHYPNOSISSTORIES.htm   Date 2004-11-11