Donald Duck Lifestyle Magazine

Donald Lifestyle Magazine

Nothing could have really prepared me for the popularity of Donald Duck in Germany. Sure, I’d heard that he’s a comic genuis in Deutschland, and I’m certainly familiar with the worldwide appeal of many Disney characters, but I was still surprised to find his likeness in so many places. It seemed like you couldn’t swing a cat without hitting a Duck.

Donald Duck Ice Cream, Frankfurt

Donald Duck in Game Store Window, Frankfurt

Google Translate tells me this means "Power Class Binge Drinkers", seen in Prien

Most surprising of all is Donald Lifestyle Magazine, which focuses of course on cars, fashion, music, games, and pretty ladies, all with an emphasis on our favorite Duck. I picked up a copy my first night in Germany, and despite having leafed through it quite a few times I’m still at a loss to explain it. The features include:

• Brief news pieces, including a piece on the Walt Disney Family Museum
• Parody album covers featuring Disney characters
• An interview with Jan Gulbransson
• An article on Uncharted 3, for no reason I can discern
• A seductive centerfold of Daisy Duck
• Women dressed in Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse themed outfits

According to Fashion Daily, this magazine is being run in a limited edition of 150,000 copies. (Either I’m underestimating the potential audience, or that’s not particularly limited.) It’s available at a variety of newsstands and bookstores; I happened to pick mine up at a gas station. Since the target audience seems to be men ages 18-40 (if I’m correctly understanding the Google Translate version of this Mode article). I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised to find it in the Mens’ magazine section, near Maxim and Playboy.

Donald Lifestyle Magazine, Sharing Shelf Space with softcore porn in Heidelberg

Now, all of this seems strange to my US-centric sensibilities. But maybe I wouldn’t be all that surprised if I were Dutch, as they seem to have had a similar magazine in Holland in 2009, as described in Paper Mode.

Wondering how on earth Disney decided to license such a thing? Well, according to the masthead, Donald Lifestyle is published by none other than Disney Enterprises. If you can read German, or are willing to wade through a whole bunch of Google Translate, it looks like you can buy a copy at the Ehapa Shop, which also has a few pictures from the magazine, as well as a variety of other (less surprising) Donald Duck products.