Offered is a rarely seen Walt Disney Company "Duckster" Award. These coveted trophy's have been awarded to Disney employees or associates who make significant contributions to the success of the company. Walt Disney created the "Mousecar" award, inspired by the Oscar, in 1947 as a way to celebrate those who weren't seen by the public. The first recipient was Walt's brother Roy O. Disney, who was then the chairman of The Walt Disney Company. Just a few years later, in 1952, the first "Duckster" was awarded to Martha Torge, a publicist at Disney. (The photo at right shows one of each of the awards on Walt Disney's office desk.)
Full lists of recipients are hard to nail down, but it seems that recipients of the Duckster included: Carl Barks, Marvin Goldfarb, Susan Henning, Bob Karp, Clarence Nash, Jennifer Sleeper, Al Taliaferro, Martha Torge and Max Westebbe. In 2009, a Duckster was awarded at the D23 Expo Disney convention to the winner of a contest to create the official portrait of Donald Duck for his 75th birthday.
The offered statue was not yet awarded when acquired more than 30 years ago by a former Disney employee. A "Mousecar" award, acquired at the same time, is available as the previous lot in this auction--get the pair!! On the back of Donald's right foot is the maker's mark “©WDP” (Walt Disney Productions). The statue stands 10inches tall, with the plinth measuring 5 inches in diameter. Near Mint condition.