Green Eggs + Ham (Hold the Salt)

 

Me and the Bella-meister at the "Dr. Seuss Library!"  Such cool architecture makes the Geisel Library at the University of California, San Diego...

I'm still chuckling that Dr. Seuss posthumously became the new target for cancel culture by the salty PC mob.  (The same PC mob who won't let us say "mother" insisting on "birthing person" + the same boneheads who don't like "Mister" in a popular spudded children's toy...) -----> FACE PALMING... 

In fact, in case you didn't hear, there were six Dr. Seuss books targeted for alleged "racist" and "hurtful" imagery.  (Yet, we have a sitcom called "Blackish" that openly targets and spews racist comments towards white people.)  

Even the "Cat in the Hat" came under vicious scrutiny with a mob that has no productive hobbies.  I mean, you have to laugh at this "Dr. Seuss bashing" when kids are not even reading books anymore and instead accessing:

 Pornography with the simple click of a mouse

Rap music (with lyrics about wet anatomy on awards shows during prime time television)

Violent video games promoting car theft and killing prostitutes

 Live streams which may have inappropriate content in which they can potentially be exploited

Chat rooms full of predators where kids could be potentially trafficked

(just to name a few off the top of my head)

But, no, let's target Dr. Seuss, because that sounds like the best use of resources in helping today's youth (scathing sarcasm)...

So, this post is to do the RIGHT thing.  I'm going to actually do my part to shed light on his life + career and commend and applaud Dr. Seuss for being one of the most iconic story tellers + illustrators of our time!  This dude, born Theodore Seuss Geisel, was actually a highly fascinating person and deserves some mad props, mainly for publishing over 60 delightful children's books over the course of his career!

I'll start with this interesting fact that I never knew!  Dr. Seuss never had any biological kids of      his own!  

Sadly due to the societal culture at the time and an undue pressure on women to reproduce, his first wife committed suicide when she found out she was barren.  Dr. Seuss went on to remarry and his second wife, Audrey Diamond, had two kids (daughters).  When Dr. Seuss was questioned why he didn't have any biological kids of his own, he joked, "You make them, and I'll amuse them."  Dr. Seuss was actually a bit "wary" of kids due to their "unpredictable nature."  I can relate Dr. Seuss, I can relate.

But, as a joke, Dr. Seuss would jest with his friends by making up imaginary kids.  One he named, "Chrysanthemum Pearl" and boasted she could whip up "the most delicious oyster stew with chocolate frosting and flaming Roman candles."

What do I have in common with Dr. Seuss, besides a love for writing?

Dr. Seuss had an enormous collection of hats.  He had up to 300 in his collection at one point.  I'm not quite there yet, but I do love a good hat.  When Dr. Seuss battled writer's block, he would go into his room of hats, put a hat on and imagine the sort of character who would wear it.  He would sit on the floor until the inspiration hit him.

The fun and unconventional twist to Dr. Seuss's books at the time was...

Up until then, kids had Dick and Jane books which taught strict Victorian moralism and "how to behave."  But, Dr. Seuss, feeling that children's books were just plain boring, added a naughty twist which allowed "kids to be kids" in a fun chaotic sort of way.  And, what happened?  Kids READ MORE!

When asked where Dr. Seuss got the ideas for his characters, he replied: "I get all my ideas in Switzerland near the Forka Pass.  There is a little town called Gletch, and two thousand feet up about Gletch there is a smaller hamlet called Uber Gletch.  I go there on the fourth of August every summer to get my cuckoo clock fixed  While the cuckoo is in the hospital, I wander around and talk to the people in the streets.  They are very strange people, and I get my ideas from them."

His first children's book?

It was rejected TWENTY SEVEN times before And to Think I Saw It On Mulberry Street was finally published in 1937.  That's some serious rejection + motivation for anyone undergoing the scrutiny of non-writers criticizing writers.

Was Dr. Seuss really a Doctor? (a recent debate over happy hour yesterday)

No, he was not a doctor, sort of like how "Captain Kangaroo was never really a Captain" (credit: my friend, Louis).  He was caught partying with his friends in his dorm room with a bottle of gin.  As punishment, the "powers-that-be" stripped him of his editorship at the school paper called the "Jack-o-lantern."  In turn, he conjured up several pen names to still be able to publish his work.  And, Dr. Seuss just stuck.  

And, actually the correct German pronunciation of Seuss is "Soice" or "Zoice", but he loved how "Soose" rhymed with "Mother Goose."

(Are you learning a lot so far?  Keep reading)

Was he a fun guy in real life?

His father, at one point, ran a zoo.  So, Seuss began sketching animals.  His character, Yertle the Turtle was based on Adolf Hitler.  

In one year, Dr. Seuss received 9,267 POUNDS of fan mail.  So, yeah, he was a fun guy.

He had a vanity license plate that read: "GRINCH"...

Was Dr. Seuss a racist?

No, Dr. Seuss actually vehemently fought against racism, particularly anti-Semitism.  He was a proponent for the US to enter WWII.  He wanted to join the Navy, but instead made war propaganda films with Frank Capra.  His war cartoons set the way for his future book illustrations, rhymes, and story lines.  During war time, he was a political cartoonist for the newspaper and posted cartoons such as:

As the commander of the Animation Department of the First Motion Picture Unit of the US Army Air Forces, he made training films and war propaganda films.  One of his most remembered was a short called SNAFU.

Was writing children's books lucrative for him?

Actually Dr. Seuss left his most lucrative career, writing ads (marketing) for an advertisement agency.  He wrote ads for both "Standard Oil" and "Flit Bug Spray."  Notice anything about these ads?

What was Dr. Seuss's all-time best selling book and what inspired it?

"Green Eggs and Ham"!  His editor bet him $50 that he couldn't write a book in only fifty DIFFERENT words or less.  Dr. Seuss took that bet and "Green Eggs and Ham" was born.  It's the story of a very picky eater, which most kids are.  As a writer I find this to be the coolest thing ever.  The book has sold over EIGHT MILLION copies since its publication.  It was banned in China for its alleged portrayal of "early Marxism"...so, China banned Seuss in the 60's and the US banned Seuss in 2020...yep, absolutely nothing to see here.  Cancel culture is definitely NOT Marxism/Facism...(scathing sarcasm)

Interesting fact: Other books were inspired or "born" by his doodles.

Dr. Seuss brought us the word "Nerd" + the word "Grinch" as a grouch...

In his book, "If I Ran the Zoo," (one of the books under scrutiny by the Cancel Culture Mob) Dr. Seuss described a nerd as a red, yellow, and white haired sour puss.  It's since been used as a derogatory name for a bookish person.  Also, the word "grinch" was in existence, but Dr. Seuss made it a popular term for an extremely grouchy person.

Dr. Seuss actually failed greatly as a writer!

He published two adult books.  One was called "The Seven Lady Godivas" and centered around two naked sisters.  Several critics claim the book failed because Dr. Seuss could not draw erotic, sexy pictures of naked women.  He later wrote, "You're Only Old Once" which was also a big flop.  This should be wildly encouraging for any aspiring writers reading this!  Keep writing until you find your niche!

I'll leave you with this solid Seuss quote encouraging you to always be your authentic self:

Love, 

Kimmie