Donn Tatum (1913-1993) was a President of Walt Disney Productions, indeed he was the first President who was not a member of the Disney family. That's his name on the tribute window above Crystal Arts in Disney World. Having one's name on a window on Main Street USA is of course considered a great Disney park honor.
A few years after his death, some of Tatum's personal Disney memorabilia was auctioned off by S/R Laboratories, an animation art gallery and restorer. At this sale, I discovered and purchased a pair of large blue enamel cufflinks depicting the head of Professor Ludwig Von Drake and adorned with the Latin words
"Dimidus Asinus Genius." Von Drake is wearing a laurel, as befits a Latin scholar.
 |
| Donn Tatum's Ludwig Von Drake Cufflinks, Dimidus Asinus Genius |
Now I myself am no Latin scholar, but for purposes of expediency I'm going to take it upon myself to translate this arcane phrase as "A Half the Genius of an Ass," which I take to be something of a corporate inside joke. When was the last time American businessmen made Latin jokes in the board room? I take it Tatum must have gone to a private school.
Since this sale some years ago, I've been very curious to learn whether there are other examples of cufflinks like this, but I've never come across anything even remotely similar. It even could be possible they are unique, although I would hazard it more likely that at least a few might have been made available to other Disney honchos, particularly if they were also "geniuses." I'm quite sure these were never offered for sale to the general public, with the exception of course of that one estate sale where I eagerly snatched them up! The thing is, there must be quite an interesting story behind these, but, for the most part, we can only speculate what that might be. Certainly Disney's top corporate brass had a sense of humor and of humility.
 |
| Donn Tatum's Ludwig Von Drake Cufflinks, Dimidus Asinus Genius |
By the way, I firmly believe all men reading this should get in the habit of wearing shirts with french cuffs, so they can take full advantage of interesting cufflinks when they find them. Yes, my blog offers useful fashion advice, too!
Update October 2, 2011 Update: Today I found a site called Pin Pics which showcases images of Disney pins. Just released this summer for the fiftieth anniversary of Professor Ludwig Von Drake is a limited edition (500) pin with this very same design. Wow! My cufflinks have to be between 18 and 50 years old, which means that this design languished somewhere in an enamel workshop for perhaps two decades or more before being reused. This could make sense. It's just possible the cufflinks were designed for Von Drakes twenty-fifth anniversary and then the whole thing was reintroduced as a limited edition pin design for his fiftieth.
Here's the information from Pin Pics:
 |
| Pin 86408: D23 - 2011 EXPO Professor Ludwig Von Drake GENIUS |
| Class: | Disney Pins |
| Origin: | D23 |
| Type: | Event Only |
| Limited Edition: | 500 Pins |
| SKU Number: | Unknown |
| Original Price: | |
| Released: | 8/19/11 |
| Retired: | |
| Categories: | Cartoon/Short film; D23; Series |
| Members Trading: | 1 |
| Members Wanting: | 6 |
| Coolness: | Unranked |
| Creator: | SKRUES |
| Described by Walt Disney as "a renowned scientist, lecturer, psychologist and world traveler," Professor Ludwig Von Drake is the leading authority on absolutely everything. Cheerfully absent-minded and ever-oblivious to his surroundings, Ludwig's lectures most often go awry. For this commemorative pin, celebrating Ludwig Von Drake's 50th Anniversary of his premiere on Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color, the didactic duck makes sure everyone is listening for they may be scolded for their lack of attention. This 6 sided pin shows Professor Ludwig Von Drake wearing a laurel wreath on his head with the words DIMIDUS ASINUS GENIUS. The back has the D23 official symbol and limited edition 500. |
| Added 2011-09-06 10:34:12, Updated 2011-09-27 18:36:27 |
October 3, 2011 Update: I went ahead and purchased this pin on eBay. I'm sure I overpaid, but I just have to see how it compares to the Donn Tatum cufflinks. Blogging is getting to be expensive.
 |
| 2011 D23 Official Disney Fan Club Pin | |
I may have to rethink my conviction that the cufflinks were never made available to the general public. I had assumed that the Latin phrase made this a somewhat elitist item suitable only for board members. Apparently I have underestimated the general public's regard for the classics! Either that or the world has changed a lot in 25 years.
October 23, 2011 Update: Placing the cufflinks and the trading pin side by side yields a new surprise. I had always considered the Ludwig Von Drake cufflinks conspicuously large, but they are dwarfed by the limited edition pin!
 |
Side by Side Comparison of Ludwig Von Drake
Dimidus Asinus Genius Cufflinks (Top)
and 2011 D23 Official Disney Fan Club Pin (Bottom) |
 |
Side by Side Comparison of the Backs of Ludwig Von Drake
Dimidus Asinus Genius Cufflinks (Top)
and 2011 D23 Official Disney Fan Club Pin (Bottom) |
Can you provide more information? If you have images of cufflinks or other Disney jewelry in any way similar to these, please get in touch with me through the comments or via the email address associated with this blog. So far, I believe these are the only Ludwig Von Drake cufflinks described on the internet, but I'm curious whether more are out there. Similarly, any information about Donn Tatum specifically relating to these cufflinks would be welcome.
January 9, 2021 Update: After all these years, a second pair of these cufflinks has come to light on eBay. The buyer, TNBIB, made inquiries of the seller and obtained some background information as well as tantalizing hints of other Ludwig Von Drake cufflinks hidden deep inside the Disney vaults. Here then are TNBIB's well-considered findings along with four photographs:
I purchased these from a very reliable source; a verifiable former cast member of 21 years who resides in the Burbank, CA area. (I will refer to him as Fred.) My cuff links are verifiably from the Disney Archives and have, until now, never left the hands of this former Disney Cast Member. Additionally, Fred tells me, without a doubt, there is still a box of them packed away deep in the Disney Archives like the Ark at the end of "Raiders!"
 |
| Photo by TNBIB |
So allow me to hypothesize, using the info I know on these cuff links and from all I know about Disney after collecting for over 30 years. I truly believe there is a LOT more to this story that right now we just don’t know. Like who made them and why? They are verifiably an authentic Disney item. Once created they were not sold, distributed, or given away but instead locked away in the Disney Archives for some unknown reason. We know one set went into Donn Tatum’s hands, which helps us date them to some extent, unless they were perhaps older and he got a set from the Disney Archives. The other set known to be outside of the Disney Archives belonged to Fred (the former Cast member of 21 years) and are now owned by me.
 |
| Photo by TNBIB |
With all my experience at collecting and studying Disney, I ask my self why would Disney have made these then locked them away? I think the answer has to do with the inscription, “Dimidus Asinus Genius”. First, whoever created these had a fantastic sense of humor. “Half-assed Genius” in Latin is hilarious and in itself, genius. Second, it would be very “un-Disney” to sell an item calling any character “half-assed”, even in Latin. At least it would have been the case around the time that Walt and Roy Disney were at the helm of the company and perhaps even into the onset of Donn Tatum’s leadership. We know for sure that these were locked away along with the back story. Why is anyone’s guess for now. However, they were NOT forgotten by any means. Someone in the Archives is well aware of these and the back story. Disney has a history of being “sneaky” so to speak. They love to introduce items available to the public while quietly hiding the back story of this special item just to “tease” us. Once in a while we unlock the secret but more often than not, we are fooled and never even know something is going on. And l believe they did just that with a “silent salute” to these cuff links in 2011. D23, the Official Disney Fan Club which is supported and run by Disney, created a special edition pin using the design of these cuff links in 2011 with a very limited edition size of 500. (I believe this is pin #86408.) This was created as a part of the 50th “anniversary” of Ludwig Von Drake celebration. These were part of the “Disney Archives Treasure Trove” store at the D23 Expo on August 19, 2011 – now, does this sound familiar?? Not much else was shared about this pin or its design when these were sold which would be VERY typical of Disney when there is a hidden back story. They were just issued and sold. But it does tie us back to the fact that these exist in the Disney Archives and 100% verifies Fred’s story! Disney is well aware of these cuff links hidden in the Archives and most likely someone there knows the entire story. Why else would these have been replicated in pin form for the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Ludwig Von Drake and done so clearly stating these were from the Disney Archives Treasure Trove?
 |
| Photo by TNBIB |
We will have to keep searching for someone who may know the “inside” story on these pins, but for now I think there are a couple of things we now know for sure. One, we may have begun to unlocked one of the secrets that has been hidden for so many years. Two, there are only 2 sets of these cuff links known to exist outside of the Disney Archives. I am proud to own a set of these and yes I will be wearing them occasionally. I will also continue to dig and search for the rest of the story and hopefully one day we can unlock the full mystery of the Dimidus Asinus Genius Ludwig Von Drake cuff links!
 |
| Photo by TNBIB |
For now there are 2 “half-assed geniuses” running around with these cuff links. Could there be more? Time will tell.
Thanks, TNBIB. For the sake of posterity, I have taken the liberty of archiving the eBay auction here:
 |
Ludwig Von Drake Cufflinks
eBay listing ended January 3, 2021 |
 |
Ludwig Von Drake Cufflinks
eBay item description |
 |
Ludwig Von Drake Cufflinks
eBay bid history |
Note: My most recent Disney post is
here.
091
