For the car, see: Fiat 500 Topolino

Topolino, (from the Italian

Italian language

Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...

 name for Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...

) is an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 digest-sized comic series featuring Disney comics

Disney comics

Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring Walt Disney characters.The first Disney comics were newspaper strips appearing from 1930 on . In 1940, Western Publishing began producing Disney comic books in the United States...

. The series has had a long running history, first appearing in 1932. It is currently published by Disney Italia.

Topolino giornale (1932-1949)

In 1932 the editor Mario Nerbini decided to open a new weekly newspaper for kids, containing illustrated tales with Mickey Mouse. The first number of Topolino was published on December 31, 1932: it contained Mickey's first Italian story drawn by Giove Toppi. In this story Mickey Mouse was chased by an elephant. However Nerbini hadn't bought correctly the publication rights, so when Emmanuel (Disney's representative in Italy) protested, Nerbini changed the title of the comic book into Topo Lino (Mouse Lino), replacing Mickey Mouse with Topo Lino, another mouse. When Nerbini bought the publication rights from Disney and KFS (King Featured Syndacate), he changed again the title into Topolino. Floyd Gottfredson

Floyd Gottfredson

Arthur Floyd Gottfredson was an American cartoonist best known for his defining work on the Mickey Mouse comic strip. He has probably had the same impact on the Mickey Mouse comics as Carl Barks had on the Donald Duck comics...

's stories made their debut into Topolino #7 with a Sunday page featuring Mickey, Minnie and Morty and Ferdie. Topolino published mainly Mickey Mouse Sunday pages; the daily strips were published on the supplement to the newspaper.

Topolino had eight pages and published also non-Disney stories such as Tim Tyler's Luck

Tim Tyler's Luck

Tim Tyler's Luck was an adventure comic strip created by Lyman Young, elder brother of Blondie creator Chic Young. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, the strip ran from August 13, 1928 until August 1996....

(Cino e Franco). In 1935 Topolino published Bobo the Elephant, Mickey Mouse and the sacred jewel and Mickey Mouse and Pluto the racer. In the same year the publishing house Mondadori bought the newspaper; the first issue published by Mondadori was #137.

In 1937 Topolino and I tre porcellini, Mondadori's newspapers for kids, merged into Topolino - Grandi avventure (Mickey Mouse - Great Adventures). The number of the pages of the weekly increased from eight to sixteen. The first page published a story in instalments by Floyd Gottfredson starring Mickey Mouse and his friends; the other pages published American stories such as Tim Tyler's luck as well as Italian stories such as Saturno contro la Terra, a story by Federico Pedrocchi where Rebo (the dictator of Saturn, he later appeared as Donald Duck's enemy in four Italian stories drawn by Luciano Bottaro

Luciano Bottaro

Luciano Bottaro was an Italian comic book artist.Bottaro's characteristic style is highly appreciated in Europe - many countries publish his comics .Influenced by Otto Messmer's Felix the...

) made his debut.

In 1938 the fascism

Fascism

Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...

 forbade the publishing of American stories except Disney stories (Benito Mussolini

Benito Mussolini

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....

's children did like Mickey Mouse). Topolino continued to publish Mickey Mouse stories until to Febbrary 3, 1942 (#477, containing the last episode of Mickey Mouse in love trouble) when they were forced by fascism to stop to publish Mickey's stories. Mickey Mouse was replaced by Tuffolino, a human character very similar to Mickey. Tuffolino made his debut in Tuffolino agente di pubblicità, a remake (starring non-Disney characters) of American story Mickey Mouse, super salesman (1941). Tuffolino and his friends (Milli, Clara) resembled very much Mickey and friends (Minnie, Clarabelle). Tuffolino's stories were written by Pedrocchi and drawn by Pierlorenzo De Vita. The newspaper had to cease all publications in December 1943 (#564).

In December 1945, Mondadori resumed publication of Topolino. Because of the fall of the fascism in Italy, Mondadori could publish again Mickey Mouse stories by Floyd Gottfredson. Topolino began also the publishing of Donald Duck stories by Carl Barks

Carl Barks

Carl Barks was an American Disney Studio illustrator and comic book creator, who invented Duckburg and many of its inhabitants, such as Scrooge McDuck , Gladstone Gander , the Beagle Boys , The Junior Woodchucks , Gyro Gearloose , Cornelius Coot , Flintheart Glomgold , John D...

. In Topolino #713 the first episode of Topolino e il cobra bianco was published; this was the first long Italian story to be published in the newspaper; it was written by Guido Martina and drawn by Angelo Bioletto. In 1949, Mario Gentilini, Topolino 's director, decided to convert the newspaper into a pocket comic book containing only Disney stories. The last issue of Topolino (giornale) was #738; on April 10, 1949 the first issue of Topolino digest

Digest size

Digest size is a magazine size, smaller than a conventional or "journal size" magazine but larger than a standard paperback book, approximately 5½ x 8¼ inches, but can also be 5⅜ x 8⅜ inches and 5½ x 7½ inches. These sizes have evolved from the printing press operation end...

 (libretto) format was released.

Topolino libretto

Topolino #1 was released on April 10, 1949. It had 100 pages and its price was 60 lire. The first issue contained the final of Topolino e il cobra bianco, the first episode of one of Barks long stories, Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse and the man of Tomorrow (the story where Eega Beeva makes its debut), and many stories about minor characters like Brer Rabbit, the Li'l Bad Wolf etc. Topolino was a monthly comic book.

Mickey's Inferno (L'inferno di Topolino) was the second Italian story to be published on Topolino (#7-12): it was the first Italian Great Parody and the first Disney story featuring credits (under the title of the story it is written "verseggiatura di Guido Martina", "verses by Guido Martina"). The third Italian story to be published was Topolino e i grilli atomici (literally Mickey Mouse and the atomic crickets, #13-16). However Topolino published mainly American stories by Carl Barks, Floyd Gottfredson, Paul Murry and others and in 1951 the comic book published only American stories.

In 1952 the comic book became a twice monthly, and Italian stories increased. Italian stories were written mainly by Guido Martina, who wrote the first great parodies of the classics of literature: in 1956 he wrote Paperino Don Chisciotte (a parody of Don Quixote) and in 1957 he wrote Paperin di Tarascona (parody of Tartarin di Tarascona), Paperino e il conte di Montecristo (parody of The Count of Monte Cristo

The Count of Monte Cristo

The Count of Monte Cristo is an adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas. It is often considered to be, along with The Three Musketeers, Dumas's most popular work. He completed the work in 1844...

) and Paperino e i tre moschettieri (parody of The Three Musketeers

The Three Musketeers

The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...

); these story were drawn by skillful artists such as Pierlorenzo De Vita and Luciano Bottaro. These parodies were successful among the readers, so many other writers such as Carlo Chendi, Dalmasso, Missaglia and Scarpa began to wrote parodies. The duo Chendi (writer)-Bottaro (artist) wrote many great parodies such as Dr. Paperus (parody of Dr. Faustus), Paperino il paladino, Paperin Furioso (parody of Orlando Furioso

Orlando Furioso

Orlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...

by Ariosto), and Paperino e il tesoro di Papero Magno. One of these parodies, Paperin Meschino (Martina/De Vita, 1958), revealed why Donald is persecuted by bad luck (Paperin meschino, one of his ancestors (he lived in XV century), was cursed by a witch: "You and all your descendents will be persecuted by bad luck for 1000 years!").

Romano Scarpa

Romano Scarpa

Romano Scarpa was one of the most famous Italian creators of Disney comics.-Biography:Growing up in Venice he developed a particular love for American cartoons and Disney comics, that, at the time, were published in the big format of the Topolino Giornale which was then printing now classic Floyd...

 wrote and drew many masterpieces such as Paperino e i gamberi in salmì, Topolino e l'unghia di Kali (English: "Kali's Nail"), Topolino e la dimensione delta ("Mickey Mouse in the Delta Dimension"), Topolino e la collana chirikawa, Topolino imperatore della calidornia, Paperino e le lenticchie di Babilonia ("The Lentils from Babylon"), Paperin Hood. He also created many new characters such as Atomo Bleep-Bleep (Atomino Bip Bip), Trudy Van Tubb (Peg Leg Pete's girlfriend), and Brigitta MacBridge, a female duck enamoured of Scrooge (though Scrooge doesn't love her back). Rodolfo Cimino was initially Scarpa's inker; later he became a skillful writer. He wrote many stories about Scrooge's treasure hunts. He also created Reginella, an alien female duck enamoured of Donald Duck; unfortunately their love is impossible.

In 1960 Topolino became a weekly. In 1969 Guido Martina created Paperinik (Duck Avenger), the superheroic alter ego of Donald Duck. Paperinik was originally the diabolic avenger of Donald Duck, and he originally committed criminal acts, i.e. stealing Uncle Scrooge's money (only a sack), in order to avenge Donald (Scrooge said to Donald "you aren't able to steal not even a nut from a squirrel"). Later he became a superhero.

Giorgio Pezzin was another skillful Italian writer. He wrote many sagas, i.e. I signori della galassia (The Lords of Galaxy, a sort of parody of Star Wars), C'era una volta in America (Once Upon a time in America, a far west saga that tells the story of the USA through the lives of Mickey's ancestors) and The Time machine saga. In the time machine saga Mickey Mouse and Goofy are sent back in time through a time machine by Professor Zapotec and Professor Marlin of Mousetown's museum in order to resolve the great mysteries of history (i.e. "Why did Napoleon put always his hand in his pocket?").

Massimo De Vita was the son of Pierlorenzo De Vita. He drew many stories. He wrote also some stories, such as the Ice Sword Saga starring Mickey and Goofy in a fantasy word threatened by the "Lord of the Mists". Another skillful artist was Giovan Battista Carpi

Giovan Battista Carpi

Giovan Battista Carpi was an Italian comics artist. He worked mainly for Disney comics, mostly on books featuring Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck, although he occasionally drew Mickey Mouse as well...

, who drew masterpieces such as Paperino missione Bob Fingher (Donald Duck mission Moldfinger) and Paperinik il diabolico vendicatore. He also wrote and drew some stories, such as the great parodies Guerra e pace (War and Peace) and Zio Paperone e il mistero dei Candelabri (parody of Les Miserables

Les Misérables

Les Misérables , translated variously from the French as The Miserable Ones, The Wretched, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, or The Victims), is an 1862 French novel by author Victor Hugo and is widely considered one of the greatest novels of the nineteenth century...

by Victor Hugo

Victor Hugo

Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....

).

Casty is another skillful writer and artist. Two of his stories featuring Mickey Mouse have been published in the USA in Walt Disney Comics and Stories.