Donald endures in hearts of Duck fans.

Byline: Scott Maben The Register-Guard

CORRECTION (ran 10/07/04): An Oct. 13 party for children in honor of Donald Duck's 70th birthday will be held at 4 p.m. at the Adell McMillan Gallery in the Erb Memorial Union on the University of Oregon campus. An item on F2 in Sunday's paper listed an incorrect location for the party.

Call him temperamental or cantankerous, star-crossed or incoherent, Donald Duck has endeared himself to generations of fans of the cast of Disney characters.

The University of Oregon, whose mascot's resemblance to Donald is no mere coincidence, will salute the hot-headed but good-hearted duck this month in an exhibit of Disney artwork and in other events coordinated by the UO Cultural Forum.

The festivities are timed to celebrate the feisty fowl's 70th year in films. Donald made his acting debut on June 9, 1934, in a Silly Symphony movie called "The Wise Little Hen." He has appeared in nearly 130 cartoon shorts and feature films, including 1942's "Donald Duck Drafted," the 1959 educational classic "Donald in Mathmagic Land" and this year's direct-to-video release "Mickey's 'The Three Musketeers' ' with pals Mickey Mouse and Goofy.

An exhibit of more than 20 reproductions of Donald Duck story sketches, animation drawings, visual developments and model sheets on loan from the Disney archives will open Thursday at the Adell McMillan Gallery in the UO's Erb Memorial Union.

The pieces to be displayed range from a model sheet - a depiction of the character's movements - from "Little Hen" to a frame from "Fantasia 2000."

The entertainment giant rarely lends original artwork, especially older works, because of their value and fragile condition, a Disney archivist said.

The exhibit was the idea of Linda Archuletta, the Cultural Forum's visual arts coordinator and a senior majoring in art history.

"It's a blast," Archuletta said. "It's a lot of fun, but it's also a lot of work, especially working with such a big company."

Oregon's mascot, the exuberant and often mischievous duck hamming it up at football and basketball games, will appear at all of the birthday bashes.

The university has had a web-footed mascot since at least the 1920s, when a live duck named Puddles surfaced at football and basketball games. A duck emblem was in use by 1933, and by 1936 it was starting to look more like Donald, catching the attention of Disney officials.

In 1947, Oregon Athletic Director Leo Harris shook hands with Walt Disney himself on an agreement to allow Oregon to use Donald as the mascot. The deal was put in writing in 1974 in a licensing agreement giving the university limited use of Donald at athletic venues.

In 1991, the agreement was expanded to allow wider use of the likeness on sweatshirts, glassware and other merchandise.

The frenzied "charging duck" pumping his fists inside a large, eight-sided letter 'O' was a ubiquitous campus logo for years. It was eventually replaced as the UO marketing machine grew and felt confined by Disney's restrictive contract, which forbids the school from selling items with the Donald Duck logo beyond the Oregon border.

In 1995, a simple 'O' became the athletic department's primary logo, and the university as a whole adopted it in 2002 to streamline the school's brand. But each year, Disney and the UO still negotiate a trademark licensing agreement for use of the Donald Duck likeness.

The Oregon duck - the university must be careful not to refer to him as Donald - has vigorously defended his title over the years.

In 1978, Mallard D. Drake, the creation of a student cartoonist for the Oregon Daily Emerald, formally challenged Donald's claim as mascot. In a campuswide vote, students backed Donald 3 to 1.

Attempts to introduce a second duck to share his spotlight have met resistance as well. The athletic department paid a local marketing firm to design a sleeker duck logo in 1995. Students and alumni didn't take to it, and the duck quietly flew off into the mist.

Likewise, fans have shunned the muscle-bound mallard known as Robo-Duck that was unveiled at Autzen Stadium two years ago.

More than six decades since he first waddled across campus, the tantrum-prone but lovable Donald Duck remains the favorite incarnation of Oregon's mascot.

HONORING THE DONALD

The University of Oregon celebrates Donald Duck's 70th birthday this month:

Oct. 7-29: Exhibit of reproductions of Disney drawings and animation stills at the Adell McMillan Gallery in the UO's Erb Memorial Union. The exhibit will open with a reception at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Oct. 13: Birthday party at 4 p.m. at the Moss Street Children's Center.

Oct. 16: Special viewing of the Donald Duck exhibit in the McMillan Gallery, 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., along with continental breakfast in the EMU Ballroom lobby, for students and their families - part of Family Football Day and Homecoming.

Oct. 19: Donald Duck birthday bash at the EMU amphitheater with prizes, cake and music by KWVA-FM, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

DUCKY TRIVIA

Donald wooed longtime sweetheart Daisy despite his short fuse, unintelligible speech and odd apparel - a sailor suit with no pants.

His middle name, revealed in a World War II draft cartoon, is Fountleroy.

Favorite expressions: "Oh, yeah?" "Hiya, toots!" "Aw, phooey!" "Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!" "Nothin' to it!"

His nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie went on to their own show biz career, starring alongside Donald's Uncle Scrooge McDuck in the Disney series "DuckTales" that debuted in the late 1980s.

Clarence "Ducky" Nash was Donald's original voice. He was succeeded by Disney artist Tony Anselmo.

Carl Barks, the Disney illustrator credited with giving Donald his fiery temper and comical personality, died in Grants Pass in 2000 at age 99.

Moving from the screen to the printed page, Donald debuted in a daily comic strip in 1938.

Donald stars alongside Mickey Mouse in "Mickey's PhilharMagic," a new 3-D attraction at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

Disney also released a retrospective DVD last month, "Walt Disney Treasures: The Chronological Donald, Volume 1 (1934-1941)."

CAPTION(S):

Donald Duck in a 1939 story sketch from "Sea Scouts."