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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Wednesday 13 March 2019
Della Duck, intrepid space explorer and amputee, comes to TV

By LYNN ELBER of the Amputee Coalition,
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Della a nonprofit advocacy and
Duck is a brave and re- support group, assisted in
sourceful fowl, the sort that Della's creation. He ad-
refuses to be defeated by vised the series on ele-
a solo crash landing on the ments including an authen-
moon — even when it costs tic gait for Della and her
her a leg. can-do attitude, which he
Della, an elusive and lesser- said reflects that of a deter-
known member of the Don- mined friend who quickly
ald Duck family, took cen- adapted to becoming an
ter stage in Saturday's epi- amputee.
sode and quickly proved to He's optimistic about how
be a groundbreaker, one children will receive Della
of the few TV characters with a prosthetic leg.
with a disability who's part "Kids usually are the first
of a children's series. one to adjust and move
"Pretty cool robot leg!" on. They tend to accept
Della says gleefully of the This photo provided by Disney shows a scene from "What Ever Happened to Della Duck?!" in an things and say, 'OK, that's
prosthetic she fashioned episode of the animated series "DuckTales" that airs Saturday, March 9, 2019, on Disney Channel. cool.' As adults, we strug-
with debris from her ship, Associated Press gle with it a little bit more,"
downed in a space storm. Richmond said. Even a car-
The loss is handled off- life, said the producers of this season, Della focuses according to Disney. toon character's depiction
screen: She is shown with the Disney Channel series. on getting back to her kids She's the latest example of can carry over into the lives
her left limb trapped under "We got really excited but must also confront the "DuckTales" inclusive ap- of young viewers, he said,
spacecraft wreckage, then about the opportunity to unexpected company she proach, said executive allowing them to accept
a short time later with the show an aspirational ver- has on the moon. producer Matt Youngberg. differences among people
replacement. sion of a character that Voiced by Paget Brewster, The series debuted in 2017 they encounter.
Della, who's had a minor has a prosthetic and that Della made a cameo ap- as a reboot of the 1987-90 There's more than enough
and shifting role within her isn't entirely defined by her pearance in the season- "DuckTales" show. room on TV for characters
venerable flock, is depict- prosthetic," said Francisco one finale and was seen "We're trying to make sure like Della. She and Julia, a
ed in "DuckTales" as Don- (Frank) Angones, co-pro- as a young woman in last that unique and interest- Muppet with autism who's
ald's twin sister and long- ducer and story editor. year's holiday special. ing voices are being heard, part of "Sesame Street," are
lost mom to Huey, Dewey A spunky adventurer in the There's more Della history: and that we're embracing rarities, said Jay Ruderman,
and Louie. In making her spirit of her family, she has She was first mentioned in the differences in all types president of the Ruderman
an amputee, it was critical a buoyant catchphrase to a Donald Duck newspaper of people," Youngberg Family Foundation, which
to demonstrate that is only match: "Nothing can stop comic strip and animated said. advocates for inclusion for
one aspect of her and her Della Duck!" In a story arc short film in the late 1930s, Jack Richmond, president people with disabilities.q

Norway mints a new pop princess in Sigrid

saw coming that instantly
makes an impact.
The Norwegian performer
has a knack for pure, crys-
talline synth-pop and her
12-track full-length debut
is a string of massive hooks
and beats, fed by videos
featuring the seemingly
normal and endearingly
goofy 22-year-old.
Sigrid — born Sigrid Solbakk
Raabe — first came to no-
tice in 2017 with her break-
out hit "Don't Kill My Vibe,"
a millennial giving shade
to anyone talking down to
her. "Say I'm young/I don't
care/I won't quit," she sings
on it. That song is included
in "Sucker Punch" but it
might not even be the high

This cover image released by Island Records shows "Sucker point of the album.
Punch," a release by Sigrid. She lets her falsetto soar on
Associated Press "Basic," shows adaptability
on the complex "Strang-
By MARK KENNEDY Rising pop singer Sigrid's ers" and while the excellent
Associated Press new album "Sucker Punch" Lorde-like title track seems
Sigrid, "Sucker Punch" (Is- is perfectly titled — it's deceptively spare, it's a
land Records) a surprise hit you never pure wriggling earworm.q