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Elvira Coot, nicknamed Grandma Duck (first name given as Elviry[1], Elvira[2][3] or Abigail[4][5]) is the grandmother of Fethry Duck and Gladstone Gander and the paternal grandmother of Donald Duck, as well as the Duck family matriarch. In most stories, she is simply referred to as Grandma.

Background

Grandma is Grandpa Duck's wife and the mother of Quackmore Duck (Donald Duck's father), Daphne Duck (Gladstone Gander's mother), and Eider Duck (Fethry Duck's father). According to The Invader of Fort Duckburg, Grandma and her husband used to be nicknamed "Ma and Pa Duck". Walt Disney confirmed that Ludwig Von Drake was the brother of Donald's father, which would make him Grandma Duck's son, as well.[6] However, the Disneyland episode "The Donald Duck Story" specified that the Drakes were the paternal side of Donald's family and the Ducks were the maternal side (with Donald taking his mother's name), and therefore confirmed that Grandma and Ludwig are unrelated to each other, and would make Grandma Donald's maternal grandmother. According to Mickey Mouse Works and House of Mouse, Ludwig's mother is an off-screen Austrian lady, voiced by April Winchell.

According to her debut appearances in Bob Karp and Al Taliaferro's Donald Duck newspaper comic strips, Grandma was an American pioneer and came west in a covered wagon.[7][8] The strips also portrayed her as having lived through the American Civil War, when some of the money she has been "saving for a rainy day for quite a spell" turns out to be confederate money.[9] A later strip also shows that her husband, Grandpa Duck, was a soldier who fought in the Civil War.[10]

Grandma runs the Duck Family Farm, which is the center of the family's annual holiday gatherings, with said gatherings usually arranged by her. These are always merry, warm, and interesting occasions. Grandma Duck is a great cook and is often praised for her sublime cooking skills.

She is depicted as driving a Detroit Electric automobile. She is extremely old-fashioned, being against many current trends. However, she did persuade herself to buy a television set after seeing other farmers use it. So far, however, she has only been shown watching farm reports, news, and weather updates. Another example of her old-fashioned ways was when she tried to usher out a vacuum cleaner salesman by saying she has done just fine cleaning with her broom. In this case, the salesman was actually a gunman who then holds Grandma hostage as well as Daisy Duck (who was visiting), and demands their purses and other possessions.

Elvira-0

Grandma's first name "Elviry" (a rural pronunciation of "Elvira") was mentioned in an untitled 1950 comic (Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #121) and later used by Don Rosa in his Duck Family Tree and The Invader of Fort Duckburg. However, in an untitled 1953 comic by Frank McSavage and Carl Fallberg (published in Walt Disney's Christmas Parade (Dell) #5), as well as the 1955 comic story Ridin' the Rails (Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #173-175) Grandma's first name was said to be "Abigail".

According to numerous European stories (including Marco Rota's From Egg to Duck, created in honor of Donald's 50th anniversary in 1984), Grandma is Scrooge McDuck's older sister. Occasionally they have also been portrayed as being cousins, a now rarely enforced tradition. According to the Donald Duck family tree Carl Barks sketched out for personal use in the 1950s, Scrooge is the brother of Elvira's daughter-in-law[11]. For this relationship, there is no word in the English language.

Grandma Duck's parents made a brief appearance in Grandma's flashback in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #161 (1954). In Don Rosa's 1993 Duck Family Tree, her parents' names are given as Clinton Coot and Gertrude Gadwall, while her grandfather was said to be Cornelius Coot, the founder of Duckburg (introduced by Carl Barks in Statuesque Spendthrifts, first published in 1952's Walt Disney's comics and Stories #138). She was also given a brother called Casey Coot on this tree.

History

Gramma Duck

Grandma Duck in Carl Barks' You Can't Guess.

Grandma Duck was introduced to the Disney comics by Al Taliaferro in the Donald Duck newspaper comic strips. She made her very first appearance in 1940, on a portrait in Donald's house, behind which Donald tries to hide his money from burglars.

In 1943, Grandma Duck visits Donald and the nephews in person in a series of newspaper strips, and from then on became an occasionally recurring character in the strips. Taliaferro found inspiration for her in his own mother-in-law, Donnie M. Wheaton. Aside from newspaper gags, Grandma also got an increasingly more prominent role in other Donald Duck comics, where she could be seen living on her farm with Donald's country cousin Gus Goose as her farmhand. However, Gus is very lazy and does not work much. In some stories, especially older ones, Jaq and Gus, the two mice from Cinderella, live at Grandma Duck's farm.

Appearances

Walt Disney anthology series

GrandmaDuck

Grandma Duck in her first animated appearance, "This is Your Life, Donald Duck".

Grandma made her animated debut in the 1960 Wonderful World of Color episode "This is Your Life, Donald Duck", where she was voiced by June Foray. The episode depicted her great difficulty in raising Donald, a strong-willed and ill-tempered duckling from the moment he was hatched.

Cameos

Grandma also made a non-speaking cameo as a guest at Fezziwig's party in Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983), and a speaking cameo (voiced by Russi Taylor) in Sport Goofy in Soccermania (1987), reading the newspaper in her rocking chair, and looks notably more aged than her comic self. She has one line, praising Scrooge McDuck for donating an expensive trophy to a forthcoming soccer tournament. In the DuckTales episode "Horse Scents", Grandma can be seen very briefly among the spectators of the horse race, leaning on a cane.

Video games

Grandma Duck had a minor appearance in Donald Duck no Mahō no Bōshi, in which her pet bird, Pippi, has escaped and was consequently captured by Pete. She offers to pay Donald to sneak into Pete's house to retrieve the bird, as one of the optional jobs Donald may take during the first portion of the game, and explains the controls for deactivating noisy objects so that Donald does not attract the attention of Pete's watchdog, Butch. She also shows up at Splash Mountain in Mickey's Great Adventure in Tokyo Disneyland.

Disney Parks

Grandma Duck's farm was the inspiration for a children's petting farm as part of Mickey's Starland at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, where Minnie Moo, a cow with a Mickey Mouse-shaped marking, was featured. Grandma also joined Donald at Donald's 50th Birthday Parade in 1984, one of Grandma's rare Disney Park appearances. Tokyo Disneyland's Toontown has a baby care center themed as a daycare operated by Grandma.

Trivia

  • In most comics, mainly the Italian, Grandma was said to be Scrooge’s older sister (which would make him Donald’s granduncle) as they seemed closer and have connection with each other. They also raised Donald together while he was an infant when he was orphaned, unaware they’re biologically related. In the 1987 Disney version of the board game Trivial Pursuit however, she was featured in the question: "Is Scrooge McDuck the son of Grandma Duck?" (the correct answer being no).

Gallery

Mickey Mouse's Chocolate Factory (Grandma Duck is using a stamp to put the stickers on the boxes)

Grandma Duck is another employee at Mickey Mouse's Chocolate Factory. She can be seen stamping the stickers on the boxes on the conveyor belt.

References

v - e - d
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Media
Short Films: Mickey Mouse seriesDonald Duck seriesGoofy seriesPluto seriesChip and Dale series

Feature Length Films: Fantasia Saludos Amigos The Three Caballeros Fun and Fancy Free Melody Time DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp Disney's The Twelve Days of Christmas A Goofy Movie Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas Fantasia 2000 An Extremely Goofy Movie Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of MouseMickey's House of VillainsMickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three MusketeersMickey's Twice Upon a ChristmasChip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
Television: Mickey Mouse Club The Wonderful World of Disney DuckTales Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers Darkwing Duck Goof Troop Quack Pack Mickey's Fun SongsMickey Mouse WorksHouse of MouseMickey Mouse ClubhouseMinnie's Bow-ToonsMickey Mouse DuckTalesMickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures Legend of the Three Caballeros Mickey Go Local The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse Funhouse Chip 'n' Dale: Park Life Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 2.0

Disney Parks
Mickey's ToontownMickey and Minnie's Runaway RailwayPLAY!

Entertainment: Disney Adventure Friends CavalcadeStitch's Interplanetary Beach Party BlastIt’s Very Minnie!Minnie's Tiara of DreamsMinnie, We Love You!Club Mouse BeatMickey and Friends: An Extra Big AdventureMinnie @ Funderland
Spring: Disney's Easter WonderlandHippity Hoppity SpringtimeUsatama on the Run!
Summer: Summer BlastDisney's Summer Oasis SplashMickey's WaterWorks
Halloween: Re-Villains! Halloween ParadeMickey's Boo-to-You Halloween ParadeFrightfully Fun Parade
Christmas A Christmas Fantasy ParadeMickey's Once Upon a Christmastime ParadeDisney's Santa Village Parade
Parades: Main Street Electrical ParadeDonald Duck's 50th Birthday ParadeSpectroMagicMickey Mania ParadeJubilation!Nightfall GlowPaint the NightHappiness is Here ParadeDreaming Up!Mickey's Storybook ExpressDisney Harmony in Color! Parade
Fireworks: Celebrate! Tokyo DisneylandDisney EnchantmentIgnite the Dream: A Nighttime Spectacular of Magic and LightWorld of Color: CelebrateWe Love Mickey!Wondrous Journeys

Characters
The Sensational Six: Mickey MouseMinnie MouseDonald DuckDaisy DuckGoofyPluto

Secondary characters: Chip and DalePeteClarabelle CowHorace HorsecollarHuey, Dewey, and LouieScrooge McDuckLudwig Von Drake
Characters from Walt Disney Animation Studios: Julius the CatOswald the Lucky RabbitOrtensiaJ. P. WhiskersHomer the CatFanny CottontailBunny ChildrenParrotClara CluckThe Mad DoctorMortimer MouseThe Three Little PigsBig Bad WolfLittle Red Riding HoodYen SidMagic BroomsJosé CariocaPanchito PistolesHumphrey the BearMax GoofJ. Audubon WoodloreFigaroBootle BeetleButch the BulldogFifi the PekeDinah the DachshundAracuan BirdSalty the SealLouie the Mountain LionRajaBearSpike the BeeLonesome GhostsWillie the GiantWeaselsPeter PigMammy Two ShoesWitch HazelDonna DuckP.J.Pluto's Kid BrotherPluto's Quin-pupletsPluto JuniorClariceKat NippDolores the ElephantBobo the ElephantGopherBent-Tail the CoyoteBent-Tail JuniorMilton the CatPluto's AngelPluto's Devil
Characters from comic stories: Phantom BlotMorty and Ferdie FieldmouseChief O'HaraMillie and Melody MouseGyro GearlooseGus GooseBeagle BoysDaisy's parentsGrandma DuckGladstone GanderMagica De SpellFlintheart GlomgoldGilbert GoofJohn D. RockerduckHortense McDuckQuackmore DuckSylvester ShysterTrudy Van TubbFelicity FieldmouseApril, May, and JuneDella DuckMoby DuckHortense
Characters from Disney Television Animation: Launchpad McQuackWebby VanderquackMa BeagleBentina BeakleyDuckworthGizmoDuckBubba the Cave DuckGadget HackwrenchMonterey JackZipperFat CatDarkwing DuckGosalyn MallardPeg PetePistol PeteRoxanneBobby ZimmeruskiSylvia MarpoleBradley Uppercrust IIITankBaby ShelbyThe TroubadourToodlesCuckoo-LocaMartian MickeyPluto from PlutoMartian MinnieBilly BeagleXandraBaron Von Sheldgoose
Characters from Disney Experiences: Duffy the Disney BearShellieMay the Disney BearGelatoniStellaLouCookieAnn'Olu MelTippyBlueLinaBellMr. Easter BunnyMrs. Easter BunnyChuuby

Key artists
Producers and directors: Walt DisneyBurt GillettWilfred JacksonDavid HandDick HuemerJack HannahJack KingJack KinneyClyde GeronimiCharles A. NicholsBill JusticeTad StonesRoy E. DisneyBobs GannawayPaul Rudish

Designers and animators: Ub IwerksNorman FergusonLes ClarkArt BabbittDick LundyFrank ThomasOllie JohnstonFred MooreFred SpencerFloyd GottfredsonHamilton LuskeTed OsborneAl TaliaferroCarl BarksWard KimballWolfgang ReithermanDon RosaAndreas DejaMark HennMichael Peraza Jr. • Robert Griggs • Eric Goldberg
Composers: Carl Stalling • Frank ChurchillOliver WallacePaul SmithAlbert Hay MalotteJimmie Dodd • Stephen James Taylor • Mark Watters • Christopher Willis
Voice actors: Walt DisneyMarcellite GarnerPinto ColvigBilly BletcherClarence NashJimmy MacDonaldBill ThompsonPaul FreesWayne AllwineTony AnselmoRussi TaylorAlan YoungWill RyanBill FarmerCorey BurtonTress MacNeilleJim CummingsBret IwanKaitlyn RobrockChris DiamantopoulosDebra Wilson

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