LIFE-LIFE IS THE ADVENTURE The physical world-the magnificent illusion-that's the game. The Shell is where the dice are rolled. Where the wheel is spun. Where the cards are shuffled and dealt. Life is where the hand is played. You can see why it's so important that we forget it's all an illusion. If we remembered, every time we held a hand that didn't suit our fancy, we'd fold and request a new deal. What would that do to the game, to the other players? Every hand can't be a winner, right? Sometimes we draw garbage, sometimes we get a pair. Maybe some-one else has a higher pair. Somebody gets three-of-a-kind. A straight. A full house. Once in a while someone draws a royal flush. Get it? Once in a while. Not every player. Not every hand. That's how the game works. Life is about playing the hand you're dealt, to the best of your ability. If you're a really good player, maybe you can win the pot without holding so much as a pair. Sometimes starting out with that royal flush can be a disadvantage. Think of the royals throughout history who inherited their kingdoms. Never had to work for them. Never had to learn, develop muscles, grow strong. One day they discover they're not up to the new challenges, and they wind up leaving their heads on the block. And the guy sharpening the guillotine is the one who began life with low numbers and no face cards.

The Carl Barks Fan Club Pictorial is a quarterly publication of the international Carl Barks Fan Club, featuring pictorial articles regarding the amazing worldwide influence of Carl's stories and artwork on literature, the arts, education and literacy. For seven decades the work of Carl Barks has been translated into every major language, published by the millions, and enjoyed by billions of adults and children of all cultures. The characters he created have become household names, his stories treasured works of literature. Yet it was not until his retirement in the 1960s that Carl's name was made known to the public, for during the twenty-three years of his comic book cartooning career, his work was presented to the public as that of Walt Disney-specifically, that of The Walt Disney Company. An American of humble beginnings from rural Oregon, Carl Barks became the single most prolific, most published, most read author and most viewed artist in history. This series of pictorial books explores every aspect of his work and its ongoing global impact. Today Carl's oil paintings of scenes featuring the characters he created and wrote about are eminently collectible, selling at auction for very high prices."

The Carl Barks Fan Club Pictorial is a quarterly publication of the international Carl Barks Fan Club, featuring pictorial articles regarding the amazing worldwide influence of Carl's stories and artwork on literature, the arts, education and literacy. For seven decades the work of Carl Barks has been translated into every major language, published by the millions, and enjoyed by billions of adults and children of all cultures. The characters he created have become household names, his stories treasured works of literature. Yet it was not until his retirement in the 1960s that Carl's name was made known to the public, for during the twenty-three years of his career, his work was presented to the public as that of Walt Disney-specifically, that of The Walt Disney Company. An American of humble beginnings from rural Oregon, Carl Barks became the single most prolific, most published, most read author in history. This series of pictorial books explores every aspect of his work and its ongoing global impact.

RECALLING CARL by Joseph Robert Cowles, is a compilation of essays, articles and images regarding the work of the world's most prolific best-selling storyteller and master cartoonist, Carl Barks. For some twenty-three years, Carl wrote and drew Disney comic book stories of Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge (whom he created) and other denizens of his mythical Duckburg, USA. These stories have been reprinted many times in every major language worldwide, making Donald and his fellow waterfowl the best known and perhaps most loved fictional characters of all time. However, Carl Barks was an unknown name throughout most of his career, as his work was attributed to Walt Disney. It was not until he retired from cartooning and with permission of the Disney organization turned his talents to creating oil paintings of the Disney-owned characters (based primarily on scenes from his comic book stories), that Carl was able to sign his own name to his work. Joseph Robert Cowles, author of REMEMBERING CARL, is one of the several young "Duck Fans" who were privileged to meet "The Good Artist" while he was still producing comic book stories. This dissertation springs from recollections of the friendship that developed between Barks and Cowles, insights regarding his craft that the old master shared with his young fan, and the potential for the work of "The Good Artist" to become the most valuable motion picture franchise of all time.

Authorized biography of Jeraldine Saunders, author of the book Love Boats and creator of The Love Boat television series.