Dr.+Seuss

By: Irene and Michael

http://www.xtimeline.com/timeline/MultipleIntelligence

 Dr. Seuss: The Literary Genius



Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known by his pen name Dr. Seuss, is the brain behind many of our favorite childhood books. His published works, __Green Eggs and Ham__, __How the Grinch Stole Christmas!__, and __The Cat and the Hat__, truly inspire that nostalgic feeling within us. Within his entire life, Dr. Seuss has changed the world of reading between the creation of new words such as "nerd" and "Grinch”, and the creation of over 400 political comics during World War II. Dr. Seuss is a valuable asset to the reading world.  Geisel’s writing and drawing career began in high school. He “drew cartoons and wrote for the school newspaper” (ABC CLIO). Everyone has got to start somewhere, and this is where Dr. Seuss got his start. While at Dartmouth College, Geisel drew cartoons under a pen name, Dr. Seuss. After graduation, Dr. Seuss drew comics for many magazines and comic books such as //Judge// magazine. This caught Helen Palmer’s eye, whom he would marry on November 27, 1927.  Geisel’s writing career and status took off when his first book, __And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street__, was published in 1937. 27 publishers rejected it initially as they “felt that the story was amoral and the illustrations too strange” (ABC CLIO). In 1940, his next book, __Horton Hatches an Egg__, was published. This furthered his writing reputation. 

 When World War II started, Geisel enlisted in U.S. Army Signal Corps. Here, he produced many training films, and was awarded the Legion of Merit for his actions. After the war, Dr. Seuss settled down with his wife, Helen Palmer, in California. He produced __Design of Death__, a film that describes “how the Japanese class system contributed to Japan's defeat in war.” It won the Academy Award for best documentary film in 1947.  He wrote many books after these films, including __The Cat in the Hat__ and __How the Grinch Stole Christmas!__ in 1957. Both were bestsellers (no surprise there), and __How the Grinch Stole Christmas!__ was developed into a cartoon in 1966, and a movie in 2000.

 In his later years, Dr. Seuss’ books took a more serious tone. The reason for this is his main supporter and wife died in 1967. He wrote //The Sneetches// in 1971, which deals with racism and tolerance. //The Lorax//, also published in 1971, is “considered a high point of Seussian language” (ABC CLIO) and deals with environmental issues in a kid-friendly manner we all know and love. Dr. Seuss’ last book, __Oh, the Places You'll Go__, deals with age, moving on, and opportunity. Even today it is a popular book for graduating high school students. Theodor Seuss Geisel passed away on September 24, 1991.  Dr. Seuss’ legacy is vast. He has made huge contributions to reading, writing, drawing, and filming. Talk about a jack-of-all-trades. Without Dr. Seuss, children’s book would not be what they are. Nothing can take away from simple but elegant writings of Dr. Seuss that we have come to know and love. His legacy will surely last.

__**Works Cited**__

AP Images. “Dr. Seuss.” //AP Images.// Ed. AP Images. N.p., n.d. Wed. 25 Feb. 2011 <[|__http://apimages.ap.org__] >

"Dr. Seuss." //ABC CLIO//. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2011.  < [|__http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/255521?terms=Dr.+Seuss__] >

Pease, Donald E. //Theodor Seuss Geisel.// N.p.: Oxford University press Inc, n.d. Print.

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