Becoming Dr. Seuss
Page 51
36. Ibid.
37. Ibid.
38. Ibid.
39. Ibid.
40. Michael J. Bandler, “Dr. Seuss: Still a Drawing Card,” American Way, December 1977, emphasis added.
41. “Macy’s Parade Has ‘5,000 Fingers’ Float,” Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, FL), January 11, 1953.
42. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 135.
43. Ibid.
44. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 136.
45. Quin, “The 5000 Fingers of Dr. T.”
46. Terry Bell, “Hitler and ‘Quick, Henry the Flit’ Shaped the Saga of Dr. Seuss,” NZEE (New Zealand), June 7, 1976.
47. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 136.
48. C. Robert Jennings, “Dr. Seuss: ‘What Am I Doing Here?’” Saturday Evening Post, October 23, 1965.
49. “Japan’s Young Dreams,” Life, March 29, 1954.
50. Bell, “Hitler and ‘Quick, Henry the Flit’ Shaped the Saga of Dr. Seuss.”
51. Ibid.
52. David Sheff, “Seuss on Wry . . . with Lots of Relish,” www.davidsheff.com/dr-seuss/.
53. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 135.
54. Bell, “Hitler and ‘Quick, Henry the Flit’ Shaped the Saga of Dr. Seuss.”
55. Ibid.
56. “The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T,” Variety. Retrieved at https://variety.com/1952/film/reviews/the-5-000-fingers-of-dr-t-1200417405/.
57. Bosley Crowther, “The Screen in Review: ‘5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.’ with Hayes, Mary Healy, Tommy Rettig, Is at Criterion,” New York Times, June 20, 1953.
58. Cohen, The Seuss, the Whole Seuss, and Nothing but the Seuss, 294.
59. TSG, “Non-Autobiography,” quoted by Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 138.
60. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 133.
61. Jennings, “Dr. Seuss: ‘What Am I Doing Here?’”
62. Ibid.
63. Ibid.
64. She wouldn’t represent him long. After Jackson failed to find a publisher for On the Road and two other books, Kerouac quickly returned to friend and fellow writer Allen Ginsberg as his representation.
65. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 140.
66. Ibid.
67. “Books for Young Readers,” Philadelphia Inquirer, April 12, 1953.
68. Dorothy Garey, “Children’s Books,” Hartford Courant, April 26, 1953.
69. Walt Kelly, “A La Peter T. Hooper,” New York Times, April 5, 1953.
70. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
71. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 144.
72. Ibid., 143.
73. Ibid., 142.
74. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
75. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 142–43.
76. Ibid., 145.
77. Sheff, “Seuss on Wry . . . with Lots of Relish.”
78. TSG’s handwritten notes for “Mrs. Mulvaney and the Billion-Dollar Bunny, an Address, with Drawings on a Blackboard,” by Dr. Seuss, c. 1949, Mandeville Special Collections Library, UCSD.
79. Sheff, “Seuss on Wry . . . with Lots of Relish.”
80. Ibid., emphasis in original.
81. Ibid.
82. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 145.
83. TSG, “Final shooting script for TV Ford Foundation telecast attempting to explain something to teenagers of the country about Contemporary Art,” 1954, Mandeville Special Collections Library, UCSD.
84. Ibid.
85. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
86. TSG, “Final shooting script for TV Ford Foundation telecast.”
87. Ibid.
88. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 146.
89. Ibid., 147.
Chapter 10. A Literary Straitjacket
1. Judith and Neil Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel: A Biography (New York: Random House, 1995), 148.
2. Ibid. The Morgans cite the initial diagnosis as “Neuronitis acute,” which is likely a transcription error.
3. Ibid., 150.
4. Ibid., 149.
5. Ibid., 150.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Ibid.
9. Polly Goodwin, “The Junior Books,” Chicago Tribune, October 10, 1954.
10. Charles A. Brown III, “Dr. Seuss for Kids? He’s Adults’ Delight,” Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN), September 19, 1954.
11. Goodwin, “The Junior Books.”
12. Warren T. Greenleaf, “How the Grinch Stole Reading: The Serious Nonsense of Dr. Seuss,” Parents, May 1982.
13. Robert C. Jennings, “Dr. Seuss: ‘What Am I Doing Here?’” Saturday Evening Post, October 23, 1965.
14. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 151.
15. Ibid.
16. John Hersey, “Why Do Students Bog Down on First R?” Life, May 24, 1954.
17. Description of the Newbery Medal from the Newbery Medal homepage, retrieved at www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberymedal.
18. This quote, as well as the brief history of children’s primers, is courtesy of Jonathan Cott, in the chapter “The Good Dr. Seuss,” from Pipers at the Gates of Dawn: The Wisdom of Children’s Literature (New York: Random House, 1983).
19. Joseph B. Treaster, “Zerna Sharp, 91, Dies in Indiana; Originated Dick and Jane Texts,” New York Times, June 19, 1981.
20. Caption on illustration for Hersey, “Why Do Students Bog Down on First R?”
21. Hersey, “Why Do Students Bog Down on First R?”
22. Rudolf Flesch, Why Johnny Can’t Read (New York: HarperCollins, 2000; reprint of 1955 edition), 6–7.
23. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 154.
24. Ibid.
25. See “566 Get Degrees and Dartmouth’s 186th Graduation,” Boston Globe, June 13, 1955.
26. “Honorary Degrees Awarded to Eleven,” Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, Summer 1955.
27. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
28. Dr. Seuss, On Beyond Zebra! (New York: Random House), 28.
29. See, for example, Helen S. Canfield, “Young Reader’s Delight,” Hartford Courant, November 13, 1955.
30. Jane Cobb, “On Beyond Zebra,” New York Times, November 13, 1955.
31. “The Gregarious Reader,” Boston Globe, October 23, 1955.
32. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
33. Robert Cahn, “The Wonderful World of Dr. Seuss,” Saturday Evening Post, July 6, 1957.
34. Ibid.
35. TSG, “How Orlo Got His Book,” New York Times, November 17, 1957.
36. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
37. TSG, If I Ran the Circus (New York: Random House, 1956), 17.
38. TSG, If I Ran the Circus.
39. Jim Marcus, “Seeking Seuss in Springfield,” Yankee Traveler, November–December 1995.
40. Maude French, “If I Ran the Circus,” Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, December 1956.
41. Diane Clark, “And There, but for the Grace of Dr. Seuss, Goes the Grinch: He Is Waking Children to a World of Words,” San Diego Union, December 19, 1976.
42. William B. Hart, “Between the Lines,” Redbook, December 1957.
43. TSG, “The Hoobub and the Grinch,” reprinted in Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories. Emphasis in original.
44. Clark, “And There, but for the Grace of Dr. Seuss, Goes the Grinch.”
45. George Kane, “And, Dear Dr. Seuss, the Whole World’s in Love with Yeuss,” Rocky Mountain News, February 15, 1976.
46. Norman Bell, “Dr. Seuss and His Wonderful World of Whimsy,” Tampa Bay Times, July 1, 1956.
47. Robert Sullivan, “Oh, the places He Wen
t!” Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, Winter 1992.
48. “‘Somebody’s Got to Win’ in Kids’ Books: An Interview with Dr. Seuss on His Books for Children, Young and Old,” U.S. News & World Report, April 14, 1986.
49. Ibid.
50. Ibid.
51. TSG’s personal notes on Cat in the Hat. Emphasis in original, Mandeville Special Collections, UCSD.
52. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
53. Anne Commire, ed., “Geisel, Theodor Seuss,” in Something About the Author, Vol. 28 (Detroit, MI: Gale Research Company, 1982).
54. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 138. The Cat in the Hat would be among the last books Commins would edit; he would die in 1958 at age sixty-six.
55. Colin Dangaard, “Dr. Seuss Reigns Supreme as King of the Kids,” Boston Herald American, November 21, 1976.
56. Ibid.
57. Cahn, “The Wonderful World of Dr. Seuss.”
58. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
59. TSG, The Cat in the Hat.
60. The Cat in the Hat contains a total of 1,626 words, and 236 unique words. Only thirteen words were not on the approved list, including nothing and plaything.
61. Betsy Marsden Silverman, “Dr. Seuss Talks to Parents About Learning to Read and What Makes Children Want to Do It,” Parents, November 1960.
62. Beverly Beyette, “Seuss: New Book on the Tip of His Tongue,” Los Angeles Times, May 29, 1979.
63. Elizabeth Blair, “All Things Considered: How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” NPR, December 23, 2002. Retrieved at http://news.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/grinch/index.html.
64. Jeff Lyon, “Writing for Adults, It Seems, Is One of Dr. Seuss’s Dreams,” Chicago Tribune, April 15, 1982.
65. Ted and Helen’s conversation was captured by and quoted in Cahn, “The Wonderful World of Dr. Seuss.”
66. Dan Carlinsky, “The Wily Ruse of Doctor Seuss: Or, How Ted Geisel Has Done Real Well,” Magazine of the Boston Herald American, March 4, 1979.
67. Sally Hammond, “Dr. Seuss: The Man Who Stole Boredom,” untitled clipping, c. 1966, Rauner Special Collections Library, Dartmouth College.
68. Lyon, “Writing for Adults, It Seems, Is One of Dr. Seuss’s Dreams.”
69. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 158.
70. Ibid.
71. Ibid.
72. Ibid., 157.
73. Ibid., 158.
74. Random House press release, April 19, 1957, Rauner Special Collections Library, Dartmouth College.
75. “Hooray for Dr. Seuss!” Chicago Tribune, May 12, 1957.
76. Diane Clark, “He Is Waking Children to a World of Words,” San Diego Union, December 19, 1976.
77. See William L. Earle, “Man Who Draws Wacky Animals Quit Oxford on Advice of a Girl,” Daily Independent Journal (San Rafael, CA), November 19, 1957.
78. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
79. Clark, “He Is Waking Children to a World of Words.”
80. Alfred Jacoby, “Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel: How to Capture a Child’s Fancy,” San Diego Union, June 7, 1956.
81. “Dr. Seuss’ ‘Cat in the Hat’ Appeals to First-graders,” Los Angeles Times, December 1, 1957,
82. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
83. Ibid.
84. “Hooray for Dr. Seuss!”
85. Dorothy Barclay, “See the Book? It is Made with 6-Year-Old’s Words,” New York Times, April 15, 1957.
86. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
87. Hilliard Harper, “The Private World of Dr. Seuss: A Visit to Theodor Geisel’s La Jolla Mountaintop,” Los Angeles Times Magazine, May 25, 1986.
88. See the cover of Redbook, December 1957.
89. Polly Goodwin, “Some Christmas Books for Santa’s Biggest Following,” Chicago Tribune, December 1, 1957.
90. “Book Review: TV Stars Bare Their Secrets,” Independent Press-Telegram (Long Beach, CA), December 22, 1957.
91. Lyon, “Writing for Adults, It Seems, Is One of Dr. Seuss’s Dreams.”
92. Arthur Gordon, “The Wonderful Wizard of Soledad Hill,” Woman’s Day, September 1965.
93. TSG, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
94. Arthur Gordon, “The Wonderful Wizard of Soledad Hill.”
95. Elizabeth Blair, “All Things Considered: How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” NPR, December 23, 2002. Retrieved at http://news.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/grinch/index.html
96. Robert Kupferberg, “A Seussian Celebration,” Parade, February 26, 1984.
97. While Peyton Place had been published in 1956, it was still dominating The New York Times bestseller list for the better part of 1957.
98. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
99. In Phyllis Cerf’s 2006 obituary in the New York Times, it would be reported that she and Ted had shared a desk at the McCann-Erickson advertising firm during the 1930s. The real story is that Ted, who preferred working at home, maintained only a drawer of materials at the firm. That drawer was in her desk.
100. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 156.
101. Cynthia Gorney, “Dr. Seuss at 75: Grinch, Cat in the Hat, Wocket and Generations of Kids in His Pocket,” Washington Post, May 21, 1979.
Chapter 11. Beginner Books
1. Lewis Nichols, “Then I Doodled a Tree,” New York Times Book Review, November 11, 1962.
2. “Beginner Books: New Trade Learn-to-Read Juveniles,” Publishers Weekly, June 2, 1958.
3. Jonathan Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss,” in Pipers at the Gates of Dawn: The Wisdom of Children’s Literature (New York: Random House, 1983).
4. Cynthia Gorney, “Dr. Seuss at 75: Grinch, Cat in Hat, Wocket and Generations of Kids in His Pocket,” Washington Post, May 21, 1979.
5. TSG, “How Orlo Got His Book,” New York Times Book Review, November 1957.
6. Carol Gelber, “A Few Well-Chosen Words for Children Make Dr. Seuss’ New Book a Delight,” untitled and undated clipping, circa 1958, Mandeville Special Collections.
7. Beginner’s Book Word List. Emphasis in original. My thanks to Mike Frith, who let me copy the word list contained in his personal files.
8. TSG, “How Orlo Got His Book.”
9. “Cindy’s Creator Is Brief,” Detroit Times, November 5, 1958.
10. Judith and Neil Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel: A Biography (New York: Random House, 1995), 159.
11. Clifford Jordan, “Dr. Seuss,” Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, October 1962.
12. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 163. Emphasis in original.
13. Ibid., 163–64.
14. TSG, “Making Children Want to Read,” Book Chat, Fall 1958.
15. Frank Dostal, “Another Dr. Seuss: The Cat in the Hat Comes Back,” Democrat & Chronicle (Rochester, NY), October 26, 1958.
16. “Beginners Thru 3D Grade—A Bonanza for All,” Chicago Tribune, November 2, 1958.
17. Glenn Edward Sadler, “Maurice Sendak and Dr. Seuss: A Conversation,” The Horn Book, September/October 1989.
18. Rob Wilder, “Catching Up with Dr. Seuss,” Parents, June 1979.
19. See Richard Minear’s introduction to Yertle the Turtle, in Your Favorite Seuss, compiled by Janet Schulman and Cathy Goldsmith (New York: Random House, 2004), p. 190.
20. Cynthia Gorney, “Dr. Seuss at 75: Grinch, Cat in the Hat, Wocket and Generations of Kids in His Pocket,” Washington Post, May 21, 1979.
21. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 163.
22. Gorney, “Dr. Seuss at 75: Grinch, Cat in the Hat, Wocket and Generations of Kids in His Pocket.”
23. Stefan Kanfer, “The Doctor Beloved by All,” Time, October 7, 1991.
24. C. Robert Jennings, “Dr. Seuss: ‘What Am I Doing Here?’” Saturday Evening Post, October 23, 1965.
25. TSG, Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (New York: Random House, 1958), 19.
26. Cott, “The Good Dr. Seuss.”
27. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 163.
28. E. J. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend,” The New Yorker, December 17, 1960.
29. Jordan, “Dr. Seuss.”
30. Robert Bernstein, Speaking Freely: My Life in Publishing and Human Rights (New York: New Press, 2016), 62.
31. “The One and Only Dr. Seuss and His Wonderful Autographing Tour,” Publishers Weekly, December 8, 1958.
32. Don Freeman, “Dr. Seuss from Then to Now,” San Diego Magazine, May 1986.
33. “The One and Only Dr. Seuss and His Wonderful Autographing Tour.”
34. Bernstein, Speaking Freely, 62.
35. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 161.
36. Frank Graham, “Dr. Seuss Is on the Loose,” untitled and undated newspaper clipping, c. 1958, Rauner Special Collections Library, Dartmouth College.
37. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
38. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 164.
39. Bennett Cerf to TSG, March 3, 1959, Columbia University Libraries.
40. Ibid.
41. Much of the description of the Beginner Books office is based on the author’s interview with Michael Frith, as well as reminiscences of Stan and Jan Berenstain, Down a Sunny Dirt Road: An Autobiography (New York: Random House Books for Young Readers, 2002), 142–43.
42. Ted added that his full name was “Dr. Outgo Schmierkase.”
43. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 165.
44. Kahn, “Profiles: Children’s Friend.”
45. “‘Somebody’s Got to Win’ in Kids’ Books: An Interview with Dr. Seuss on His Books for Children, Young and Old,” U.S News & World Report, April 14, 1986.
46. Gelber, “A Few Well-Chosen Words for Children Make Dr. Seuss’ New Book a Delight.”
47. Colin Dangaard, “Dr. Seuss Reigns Supreme as King of the Kids,” Boston Herald American, November 21, 1976.
48. Peter Bunzel, “The Wacky World of Dr. Seuss,” Life, April 6, 1959.
49. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 162.
50. TSG, Happy Birthday to You! (New York: Random House, 1959).
51. “‘Somebody’s Got to Win’ in Kids’ Books.”
52. Morgan and Morgan, Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel, 173.