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Fergus McDuck, also known as McPapa, is Scrooge McDuck's father and Donald Duck's maternal grandfather. He encouraged Scrooge to find his fortune, and gave him the important advice to "work smarter, not harder", a value that Scrooge still keeps to.

History[]

Img102

Scrooge's father, as he appeared in Zio Paperone e l'oro del Klondike.

Scrooge's father was originally created by Carl Barks, who mentioned him in his 1950s Duck Family Tree notes, which described the relationship between the main members of Donald family from his comics. Barks gave Scrooge's father the name Old "Scotty" McDuck.[1]

In the Donald Duck daily newspaper comic strip by Bob Karp and Al Taliaferro, Scrooge would sometimes refer to his rich father. In a 1960 installment of the strip, Scrooge says: "My daddy didn't trust banks", while digging up a chest full of cash from the McDuck property.[2] In a later strip, Scrooge describes his father as "a lazy spendthrift who married a rich widow".[3] In another strip, where Scrooge is talking to a homeless man who tells Scrooge that he quit school in the sixth grade, Scrooge responds: "What a coincidence! So did I! But dear old Dad left me twenty million to get started on!".[4] Another strip has Scrooge showing Donald an antique chair that has been in his family for a hundred years, and says: "My father personally reupholstered it back in 1912!". When Donald accidentally breaks the chair's fabric, it turns out the chair was stuffed with money, to which Scrooge says the stuffing was cheap, since "it was tax-free then!".[5]

In 1970's Zio Paperone e l'oro del Klondike ("Uncle Scrooge and the Gold of the Klondike"), drawn by Romano Scarpa, Scrooge's parents made their very first appearance. In a flashback sequence, Scrooge's father, referred to as Paperon-Papà in the original version, is a local shopkeeper who sells prospector equipment in the Klondike, and stores all his cash in a stove (not unlike how his future son would store his money in his Money Bin). In the story, he and Scrooge's mother, called Oretta Paporetta in Italian, have been dating for years, but did not get married, because both of them were too stingy to pay the local marriage fee of 1 dollar. Eventually, Scrooge's mother decides to pay the fee and the two ducks marry at last. The story also covers the birth of Scrooge McDuck and the first meeting between Rockerduck's parents.

In 1981, Mark Worden made an illustrated version of Carl Barks' 1950s Duck Family Tree notes, in which all relatives were given their own portrait. On this tree, Old 'Scotty' McDuck had a beard and wore a Scottish bonnet.

Fergus' name originates from the The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, in which he was a prominent character. In these flashback stories about Scrooge's youth, Fergus lives in Glasgow with his wife and children. The family is dirt poor, and Fergus encourages his son to work in order to earn his own money. Scrooge's obvious intelligence, skill at hard work and ambition make Fergus believe that Scrooge will be able to restore The Clan McDuck to its former glory.

Appearances[]

DuckTales[]

Mcpapa

McPapa in "Once Upon a Dime".

Scrooge briefly mentioned his parents in the DuckTales episode "The Curse of Castle McDuck". When Scrooge returns to his childhood home, cottage McDuck, he reveals that his parents were poor, simple farmers.

Scrooge's parents made their animated debut in the season 1 episode "Once Upon a Dime", in which Scrooge refers to Fergus as McPapa. In this episode, it's told that Scrooge and his father both played the bagipes. McPapa, Scrooge and Scrooge's mother could be seen living in cottage McDuck, as it previously appeared in the series.

DuckTales (2017)[]

Fergus appears in the reboot. He was mentioned in the first episode "Woo-oo!" by Webby Vanderquack. Making his proper debut in "The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck!", Fergus is seen living in Castle McDuck, and acting as its laird. He and Downy are both still alive, having been cursed with immortality after Scrooge utilized discount mystic druid stones in the reconstruction of portions of Castle McDuck. In this episode it's revealed Fergus originally had the number one dime, but gave it to the American who gave it to Scrooge to help Scrooge learn self-reliance.

Printed media[]

Comics[]

Naamloos

Rumpus reveals the family secret in William Van Horn's Travails (first published in 2000).

In The New Laird of Castle McDuck (Uncle Scrooge #289), young Scrooge returns to his family in Scotland, because there is a threat of the Clan's hereditary lands being seized due to Fergus' inability to pay the taxes. Using all of the money he has earned so far, 10,000 dollars, Scrooge is able to pay the taxes and becomes the new owner of their lands.

After years of hard work, Scrooge becomes rich in the Klondike and returns to Scotland as a billionaire, as shown in The Billionaire of Dismal Downs (Uncle Scrooge #293). Scrooge's original intention to settle in Dismal Downs quickly changes and Scrooge decides to move to Duckburg. Scrooge's sisters go with him, but Fergus decides to stay in Scotland.

According to William Van Horn's Travails (Uncle Scrooge #323), Fergus at some point had a short marriage with an unidentified woman, with whom he had one son: Rumpus McFowl. He later married Downy O'Drake, his wife in further stories, who became the mother of Scrooge and his sisters Matilda McDuck, and Hortense McDuck, whose names also origin from the Duck family tree sketches Barks did in the 1950s. Given the fact that Scrooge has a full brother called Gideon McDuck, Fergus and Downy must have had at least one other son.

In A Letter from Home (Uncle Scrooge #342), it's revealed that Fergus tried to find the Knight Templar treasure hidden in the castle McDuck by one of his ancestors, a Knight himself. Even though Fergus decided not to tell Scrooge about the treasure, the latter learns about it through other ways and, like his sister Matilda, thinks Fergus kept the secret from him because he disapproved Scrooge. In the middle of their way to the treasure Matilda finds a letter from Fergus revealing the reason he hid the secret from Scrooge is that Scrooge would feel better building his own fortune instead of inheriting one.

Fergus reappeared in Scrooge's flashbacks in the Christmas-themed comics Donald's Homemade Christmas and Uncle Scrooge's Christmas Carol, alongside Hortense, Matilda and Downy.

Gallery[]

References[]

v - e - d
DuckTales logo
Media
Shows/Movies: 1987 series (videography) • 2017 seriesWalt Disney's World on Ice: Double Feature... Live!Raw ToonageDuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost LampChibi Tiny TalesThis Duckburg Life

Video Games: Video game (HD remake/Soundtrack) • DuckTales 2The Quest for GoldScrooge's LootDisney Heroes: Battle ModeDisney All-Star RacersDisney All-Star Party
Comics: Comic Books (IDW)
Books: The Secret City Under the SeaSphinx for the Memories and Sir Gyro GearlooseScrooge's Treasure HuntChristmas at the North PoleWebby Saves the Day

Disney Parks
DuckTales World Showcase AdventurePLAY!Donald's Duck Pond
Characters
1987 series: Scrooge McDuckHuey, Dewey, and LouieLaunchpad McQuackWebby VanderquackBentina BeakleyDuckworthChief O'HaraShedlock JonesGyro GearlooseLittle HelperYardarmDoofus DrakeFenton CrackshellDonald DuckLudwig Von DrakeGladstone GanderBubba the Cave DuckAbominable SnowwomanTootsie the TriceratopsSkittlesBlackjackPouponGene the GenieGlittering GoldieMad Dog McGurkFeathers GaloreBurt QuackarachMajor CourageMicro DucksAdmiral GrimmitzKing HomerQueen ArielShawebizadGandra DeeMcPapaMcMamaRoboticaBeagle BoysMa BeaglePeteFlintheart GlomgoldPhantom BlotDijonArgus McSwineMagica De SpellMinima De SpellPoe De SpellEl CapitanJoaquin SlowlyMerlock the MagicianCinnamon TealDracula DuckDr. NoGoodMillionara VanderbucksFritter O'WayLawrence LoudmouthBruno Von BeakArmstrongThe SirensCirceHarpiesYuckalindaQueen GriseldaDjinniTerra-Firmie KingOverlord BulovanSolegoGICU-2Magica's ShadowThe Fear DemonsVacation Van Honk

2017 series: Della DuckLenaBradford BuzzardBentley and Buford BuzzardCaptain PeghookManny the Headless Man-HorsePixiuGabby McStabbersonHack and Slash SmashnikovRoxanne FeatherlyToad Liu HaiMark BeaksFalcon GravesAmunetSabafToth-RaZeusSeleneStorkulesCharybdisBriar and BrambleDarkwing DuckGosalyn MallardMegavoltDon KarnageQuackerjackLiquidatorBlack HeronZan OwlsonFisherMannDrosera occidendumJosé CariocaPanchito PistolesFethry DuckJohn D. RockerduckJeevesGavinGrandpappy BeagleViolet SabrewingUnicornPercival P. PeppingtonNightmare BeastPaddywhackBushrootNegaduckDaisy DuckGoofyChip and Dale Monterey JackZipperGadget HackwrenchKit CloudkickerTaurus BulbaMolly CunninghamLieutenant PenumbraGeneral LunarisMoonlandersMoon MitesGilded ManNeighbor JonesSteelbeakIsabella FinchIndy and Ty SabrewingTri-Crested TittertwillAletheiaVeroKing HonestusEmma GlamourInspector TezukaAkitaStrongbeardHeckaJormungandrPonce de LeonMatilda McDuckEmutilda

Episodes
1987 series

Season One: "The Treasure of the Golden Suns" • "Send in the Clones" • "Sphinx for the Memories" • "Where No Duck Has Gone Before" • "Armstrong" • "Robot Robbers" • "Magica's Shadow War" • "Master of the Djinni" • "Hotel Strangeduck" • "Lost Crown of Genghis Khan" • "Duckman of Aquatraz" • "The Money Vanishes" • "Sir Gyro de Gearloose" • "Dinosaur Ducks" • "Hero for Hire" • "Superdoo!" • "Maid of the Myth" • "Down and Out in Duckburg" • "Much Ado About Scrooge" • "Top Duck" • "Pearl of Wisdom" • "The Curse of Castle McDuck" • "Launchpad's Civil War" • "Sweet Duck of Youth" • "Earth Quack" • "Home Sweet Homer" • "Bermuda Triangle Tangle" • "Micro Ducks from Outer Space" • "Back to the Klondike" • "Horse Scents" • "Scrooge's Pet" • "Catch as Cash Can" • "Merit-Time Adventure" • "The Golden Fleecing" • "Ducks of the West" • "Time Teasers" • "Back Out in the Outback" • "Raiders of the Lost Harp" • "The Right Duck" • "Scroogerello" • "Double-O-Duck" • "Luck o' the Ducks" • "Duckworth's Revolt" • "Magica's Magic Mirror"/"Take Me Out of the Ballgame" • "Duck to the Future" • "Jungle Duck" • "Launchpad's First Crash" • "Dime Enough for Luck" • "Duck in the Iron Mask" • "The Uncrashable Hindentanic" • "The Status Seekers" • "Nothing to Fear" • "Dr. Jekyll & Mr. McDuck" • "Once Upon a Dime" • "Spies in Their Eyes" • "All Ducks on Deck" • "Ducky Horror Picture Show" • "Till Nephews Do Us Part"
Season Two: "Time is Money" • "Super DuckTales"
Season Three: "The Land of Trala La" • "Allowance Day" • "Bubbeo & Juliet" • "The Good Muddahs" • "My Mother the Psychic" • "Metal Attraction" • "Dough Ray Me" • "Bubba's Big Brainstorm" • "The Big Flub" • "A Case of Mistaken Secret Identity" • "Blue Collar Scrooge" • "Beaglemania" • "Yuppy Ducks" • "The Bride Wore Stripes" • "The Unbreakable Bin" • "Attack of the Fifty-Foot Webby" • "The Masked Mallard" • "A DuckTales Valentine"
Season Four: "Ducky Mountain High" • "Attack of the Metal Mites" • "The Duck Who Knew Too Much" • "New Gizmo-Kids on the Block" • "Scrooge's Last Adventure" • "The Golden Goose"

2017 series
Season One: "Woo-oo!" • "Daytrip of Doom!" • "The Great Dime Chase!" • "The Beagle Birthday Massacre!" • "Terror of the Terra-firmians!" • "The House of the Lucky Gander!" • "The Infernal Internship of Mark Beaks!" • "The Living Mummies of Toth-Ra!" • "The Impossible Summit of Mt. Neverrest!" • "The Spear of Selene!" • "Beware the B.U.D.D.Y. System!" • "The Missing Links of Moorshire!" • "McMystery at McDuck McManor!" • "JAW$!" • "The Golden Lagoon of White Agony Plains!" • "Day of the Only Child!" • "From the Confidential Casefiles of Agent 22!" • "Who is Gizmoduck?!" • "The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck!" • "Sky Pirates...in the Sky!" • "The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck!" • "The Last Crash of the Sunchaser!" • "The Shadow War!"
Season Two: "The Most Dangerous Game...Night!" • "The Depths of Cousin Fethry!" • "The Ballad of Duke Baloney!" • "The Town Where Everyone Was Nice!" • "Storkules in Duckburg!" • "Last Christmas!" • "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!" • "Treasure of the Found Lamp!" • "The Outlaw Scrooge McDuck!" • "The 87 Cent Solution!" • "The Golden Spear!" • "Nothing Can Stop Della Duck!" • "Raiders of the Doomsday Vault!" • "Friendship Hates Magic!" • "The Dangerous Chemistry of Gandra Dee!" • "The Duck Knight Returns!" • "What Ever Happened to Donald Duck?!" • "Happy Birthday, Doofus Drake!" • "A Nightmare on Killmotor Hill!" • "The Golden Armory of Cornelius Coot!" • "Timephoon!" • "GlomTales!" • "The Richest Duck in the World!" • "Moonvasion!"
Season Three "Challenge of the Senior Junior Woodchucks!" • "Quack Pack!" • "Double-O-Duck in You Only Crash Twice!" • "The Lost Harp of Mervana!" • "Louie's Eleven!" • "Astro B.O.Y.D.!" • "The Rumble for Ragnarok!" • "The Phantom and the Sorceress!" • "They Put a Moonlander on the Earth!" • "The Trickening!" • "The Forbidden Fountain of the Foreverglades!" • "Let's Get Dangerous!" • "Escape from the ImpossiBin!" • "The Split Sword of Swanstantine!" • "New Gods on the Block!" • "The First Adventure!" • "The Fight for Castle McDuck!" • "How Santa Stole Christmas!" • "Beaks in the Shell!" • "The Lost Cargo of Kit Cloudkicker!" • "The Life And Crimes of Scrooge McDuck!" • "The Last Adventure!"

Locations
DuckburgAtlantisThe Money BinMcDuck ManorCastle McDuckFountain of YouthScotlandNotre DuckValley of the Golden SunsSt. CanardCape Suzette
Organizations
Air PiratesF.O.W.L.Junior WoodchucksS.H.U.S.H.
Objects
Number One DimeJunior Woodchucks GuidebookGizmosuitGene's LampMerlock's TalismanSun CoinSun ChaserHarp of TroyMillennium ShortcutGyro's HelicopterMolecular ManipulatorGolden GooseWebby's Quacky Patch DollHindentanicMagic MedallionRatcatcherJewel of AtlantisPep!Gummiberry JuiceIron VulturePirate FightersSpear of SeleneSea DuckRanger Plane
Songs
DuckTales ThemeThree Cheers for Bubba DuckBoogie Beagle BluesMoon Stage ThemeSky PiratesThe Three CaballerosHear My Voice
See also
Carl BarksThe Disney AfternoonDarkwing DuckQuack PackDisney XD (Netherlands)Let's Go to Disneyland Paris
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