theeuropeantourfinland

Barks arrived in Finland from Copenhagen by plane. I was more than flattered to hear that Barks on his way to Helsinki had said he would like to meet me. That's because I wrote him back in 1972; and even in an interview recorded on video in Atlanta, he recalled the name Markku Saarinen. What a memory!

Fortunately, these were the most glorious days in Finland this summer. Carl Barks rode in a fantastic triumphal procession in an open convertible through one of Helsinki's main streets; from Hotel Marski to the City Hall where he met with lord mayor Rahkamo. The sidewalks were full of cheering people, probably in the thousands. Photographic equipment of every description was in use. The car had to drive very slowly, and occasionally it even stopped since Carl Barks was kind enough to sign autographs even there.

This was the only occasion most citizens could see Barks in person. He and the lord mayor waved to the public on the City Hall balcony. Later, hundreds of fans stood in position in front of the City Hall to see Barks again, but obviously they hadn't studied their Barks comics well enough; he used the back door and zoomed away in a taxi!

Wednesday, June 15th. was very special to me, since Barks would visit the local editorial offices. Furthermore, this would be a private meeting of about 30 professionals. So there we were standing at 11 AM, listening to reports over a portable phone how Barks was approaching our offices in a cab. Then it happened. At the other end of a long corridor, dubbed 'Walt Street', appeared a group of people, and I could feel Carl's charisma from the distance. The Shakespeare of comics walked erect as an arrow without any canes or other support. If I had been nervous until then, a peculiar calm fell over me.
There was a slight confusion as to who should take the initiative to address Carl and his agents, but then our editor-in-chief, Markku Kivekäs, stepped forward and led me to Barks, announcing loud and clear, 'May I introduce - this is Markku Saarinen, the guy who was the first one to write you from Finland back in 1972.' Barks' blue eyes twinkled and his countenance lighted up, 'Oh yes I remember you'. Then cameras clicked and in the light of flashbulbs, the three of us stood in a 'buddy-buddy' position - with our arms over Barks' shoulders.
The calm feeling deepened, and I could feel a distinct flow of benevolent energy emanating from Barks. This charismatic radiation was reported by everyone I enquired later. And here I stood with my arm on Barks' shoulder. As Kivekäs said later, now I can meet anyone, repeat anyone, without hesitating - be it a president, a king or a pope, since I have met the greatest of them all.

Luckily, we have a VCR at the office so we were able to show Barks the newscast of the previous night. He watched himself driving in the convertible like a king, with a slight smile on his face. My father, who passed away at the age of 90, had smiled just like that when he watched a sentimental TV program ... probably Barks was slightly touched, too.
We showed Barks around the offices; the walls are covered with his lithographs, so I am sure he felt like home. Kivekäs showed his own room where Barks did something only Barks might do. With a giant felt-tip pen, he signed his name and date on the wall with letters one foot tall. That must be the most curious signature he's ever done, and most likely it will be protected with plexiglass.

After about one hour - my sense of time was somewhat lost - we went to the company cafeteria where an excellent lunch was served. Thanks to Kivekäs, I sat on Barks' right side; our managing director Tapio Kallioja sat to his left, and across the table were Kivekäs, and our managing editor, Paula Antila, and our line director, Pirkko Huotilainen. To make Barks feel like home, I handled the silverware the American way.
On the menu was reindeer and whitefish with gyromitra esculenta gravy (a mushroom sauce. Editor's remark). I knew I could ask Barks just about anything, but I didn't want to ruin the near-religious atmosphere. Kivekäs asked him what was his favourite among the cartoons he had collaborated on, and he answered, 'Good Scouts - especially since Disney gave a 500 dollar bonus to all of us'.
We returned to the editorial offices; I'm not sure how many hours had passed. However, now Barks was about to leave us. Americans don't shake hands too often, but now I insisted on shaking Barks'.

The next day, June 16th., Barks agreed to make a slight emendation to his plans. Many fans had been sort of left out, so he arranged a signing session at the Marski Hotel on Thursday morning at 9 AM. (Note the cunning: to divert overzealous fans, a lot of his appearances took place at Marski, but who said he lived there? As a matter of fact, he lived at SAS Royal. I suppose it won't hurt to reveal the secret at this point.)
It turned out that some fans 'were born there' - they had arrived at 5 AM to be on the safe side. This session was supposed to last for an hour, but Barks didn't leave until after an hour and a half. Then he travelled by a Mercedes bus to Visavuori, to meet the retired political cartoonist Kari Suomalainen who had drawn cartoons for decades. He had also experience in creating realistic comic strips which interested Barks a lot.

Friday, June 17th., would be the last of five days (one of the longest stretches Barks would spend in one country). He said he had already given enough autographs (true!) and wanted to relax. Markku Kivekäs and Paula Antila took him for a short trip to the historical town of Porvoo.

If allowed to speak prosaically, is there a net outcome of Barks' visit? Surely, we have stacks and stacks of great photos and videos, I received a few superb dedicated signatures ... but most of all, the impossible had happened. Barks had embarked on an European tour no one would have believed possible even months or weeks before. And I had the privilege of shaking his hand, talking to him, dining with him, and experiencing his overwhelming charisma. Never again will I meet anyone like him. And all of us miss him an awful lot.

Markku Saarinen

Barks at the Helsinki Airport browsing through the Finnish Uncle Scrooge magazine		Barks with the lord mayor on the balcony of the Town Hall		Barks with Donald and Mickey waving to fans near the Market Square
Courtesy of Riku Perala		Courtesy of Riku Perala		Courtesy of Riku Perala