About Lustiges Taschenbuch

Lustiges Taschenbuch

The Lustiges Taschenbuch, universally known as LTB, is the German monthly Disney comics magazine, published by Egmont Ehapa Media. Appearing since October 1967, originally as "Walt Disneys Lustige Taschenbücher", it collects the comics from the universe of Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse, the vast majority of Italian production, into 256-page paperbacks. With a sold circulation of 107,590 copies in the second quarter of 2026 and a four-weekly rhythm that produces thirteen issues per year, it is one of the most successful and longest-running comics publications in the German-speaking world, with numerous side series, reprints and special editions extending the brand far beyond the main series.

Overview

The Lustiges Taschenbuch is a comic publication in the paperback format: each volume comprises 256 pages, of which 250 are comics, presenting complete stories from the Disney duck and mouse universes. The overwhelming majority of the comics come from Italy, where the Disney comics tradition, centred on the weekly Topolino, has produced the bulk of the long-form adventure and comedy stories; a notable number come from Scandinavia, while comics from other countries are rare. The magazine's readership spans generations: children discovering the ducks for the first time, and adults who have read the LTB since their own childhood and now buy it for their children, or for themselves as collectors.

The LTB appears every four weeks, thirteen issues per year, a rhythm it has kept since 1994. The sold circulation of 107,590 copies in the second quarter of 2026 documents the title's continuing strength in a comics market that has otherwise contracted dramatically. The reach was measured at 0.494 million readers in 2019. The editor-in-chief is Marko Andric, and the managing director of the publishing house is Per Gustav Kjellander.

The brand extends far beyond the main series. Numerous side series serve the different segments of the readership: the thematic special editions, the reprint series for collectors, the editions for younger readers, and the special volumes for anniversaries. The website lustiges-taschenbuch.de presents the brand digitally, with information on the current issues, the side series and the subscription offers.

Egmont Ehapa Media, the Berlin-based publisher, is the German arm of the Danish Egmont group, one of Europe's leading children's media companies. The publishing house's Disney comics programme, centred on the LTB and the weekly Micky Maus magazine, has shaped the German Disney comics culture for generations.

History

The first issue appeared on 9 October 1967 as "Walt Disneys Lustiges Taschenbuch", with the opening story "Der Kolumbusfalter und andere Abenteuer". The models were the Italian "I Classici di Walt Disney" and "Topolino": the German publisher Ehapa, which held the Disney comics licence, adapted the Italian paperback concept for the German market. In the early years the LTB appeared quite irregularly: at first a new volume came every three months, and over time the frequency increased to up to eight volumes per year.

With volume 119 the LTB became a monthly publication, and since 1994 it has appeared in the four-weekly rhythm, so that as a rule thirteen issues are published per year. Volume 119 also marked the visual turning point: the exterior was completely redesigned, and the title became "Lustiges Taschenbuch", with the logo changing its form. Until volume 118 the spine had carried the lettering "Walt Disneys Lustige Taschenbücher" with the volume number; from volume 119 the spine carried a motif, and the motifs of volumes 119 to 165, placed side by side, form a single continuous image, the longest connected spine design published to date.

The anniversaries were celebrated with special volumes: volume 172 for the 25th birthday, volume 230 for the 30th, each thicker than usual and with editorial sections. The 100th anniversary of Walt Disney's birth was celebrated with volume 293. The reprint history documents the collector's market: very early the publisher released reprints of the first edition, and in the mid-1980s a third reprint in full colour, where the originals had alternated black-and-white and colour pages.

Through more than five and a half decades and well over 550 volumes, the LTB has accompanied the German Disney comics culture: the Italian stories of the great Disney authors, the Scandinavian contributions, and the German editorial tradition that selected, translated and presented them. The series that began in 1967 with the Columbus butterfly continues in 2026 with the same paperback in the kiosk.

Content and Sections

Each volume of the Lustiges Taschenbuch presents a selection of complete Disney comics stories, predominantly from Italian production. The story mix follows the Disney tradition: the adventure stories with Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge and the nephews, the Mickey Mouse detective stories, the shorter gag stories, and the ensemble pieces of the duck family. The Italian Disney comics, produced for Topolino and the Italian paperback series, provide the long-form narratives that fill the 250 comic pages: the treasure hunts, the time travels, the parodies and the character comedies.

The editorial sections frame the comics: introductions, background information on the stories and their creators, and the anniversary features. The side series extend the programme: thematic volumes collecting stories on particular topics, the reprint editions for collectors, and the special formats for younger readers. The main series' numbering, now beyond 550, is itself a publishing phenomenon: few periodicals in any genre have maintained a continuous numbered series for so long.

The translation and editorial adaptation are part of the LTB's identity: the German Disney comics tradition, shaped by the legendary translator Erika Fuchs and her successors, gave the ducks their German voices. The LTB continues this tradition, presenting the international Disney comics in the German editorial form that generations of readers know.

Publisher and Organization

The Lustiges Taschenbuch is published by Egmont Ehapa Media, the Berlin-based German subsidiary of the Danish Egmont media group. Egmont is one of Europe's leading media companies for children and young people, and the German Disney comics programme is one of its flagship operations. The managing director named in the imprint is Per Gustav Kjellander, and the editor-in-chief is Marko Andric.

The business model combines newsstand sales, subscriptions and the side-series business. The sold circulation of 107,590 copies in the second quarter of 2026 makes the LTB one of the highest-circulation comics publications in the German-speaking world. The collector's market for the early volumes, the reprint editions and the special volumes provides additional revenue and deepens the brand's relationship with its most loyal readers. The Disney licence, held by the Egmont group, is the foundation of the entire operation.

Digital Presence

The website lustiges-taschenbuch.de is the brand's digital home, presenting the current volumes, the side series, the subscription offers and the world of the LTB. The site is in German and aimed at the readers and collectors, with the e-commerce functions for subscriptions and single issues. The fan wiki Duckipedia documents the series' history volume by volume, a testament to the dedication of the readership.

The digital strategy serves the print brand: the website promotes the current volumes, recruits subscribers, and connects the readers to the LTB community. For a comics paperback, the print volume remains the core product: the 256-page book that readers collect, shelve and reread. With more than five and a half decades of continuous publication and its thirteen annual volumes, the Lustiges Taschenbuch remains the German Disney comics magazine, in print every four weeks from Berlin and online every day.