theshelvedstoriesfinished

During the time Barks drew his comic book stories the USA was swept with waves of morals codes which were intended to save the young readers from certain topics; no mentioning of death, no excessive violence, no unnecessary pain, no adult themes, no sex, and no showing of crooked lawmen, and many more.
Barks was always very careful not to cross the boundaries, but in a few instances his publishers felt he had. This meant that the four finished stories shown in this page were shelved by the publisher, and that only two of them have survived for publishing.

SHELVED

('The Golden Apples')

In 1952 Barks drew a 10-page story (later known as 'The Golden Apples') intended for WDCS144, but it was vetoed by the editor. It has been since lost. To the best of Barks' recollection it was built around the Greek myth of The Apples of the Hesperides. It took place during an apple festival at which Daisy appeared as a jealous and crusty virago and her temperaments got it rejected.

The myth tells about Hera who received the golden apples - which secures immortality - as a wedding gift from Zeus. The nymph Atalanta, a strong athlete, was immensely popular among the young men for her good looks, but she vowed that she would forever maintain her independence. Thus she challenged all the lovesick youngsters to races in which the losers were to be killed. Atalanta won easily every time until one day when Hippomenes dropped the golden apples on the track during the race. The nymph stopped to collect the fruits resulting in her defeat.

('Bobsled Race')

In 1957 Barks drew a 10-pager (later known as 'Bobsled Race'), which was never published. The plot circled around very heated discussions between Donald and the nephews, but it proved too violent for the editor. It is now lost.

UNSHELVED

CBL 'Silent Night'

In 1945 Barks drew a 10-page Christmas story (later known as 'Silent Night') intended for WDCS064, in which Donald Duck has quarrels with neighbour Jones while he and the nephews are attempting to sing carols.
In the closing scene Donald is tortured with an electric cattle prod. The editor found the story too violent and it was not published until 1990 when it appeared in the CBL (Carl Barks Library).

WDCS550 'The Milkman Story'

The same year another 10-pager intended for WDCS 215 was shelved. It was simply archived as 'The Milkman Story' and it tells a tale about Donald being a perfect milkman. But he becomes extremely violent and revengeful towards a very irritating customer.
The story was finally published in WDCS550 in 1990 after having been published several places in Europe.