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PEOPLE IN AMERICA, a program in Special English on the Voice ofAmerica.
Today we tell about one of the most successful writers ofchildren’s books. Sarah Long and Steve Ember tell about DoctorSeuss.
VOICE ONE:
Doctor Seuss was the name used by Theodor Seuss Geisel. He wasfamous because of the books he wrote for children. They combinehumorous words, funny pictures, and social opinion. Mister Geiselalso illustrated his books with pictures of funny creatures andplants. He did not receive training in art. Yet he created thepictures for most of his books.
The Doctor Seuss books are verypopular with young readers. They enjoy the invented words. And theylike to look at the pictures of unusual creatures such as the Cat inthe Hat, Thing One, Thing Two, Little Cindy-Lou Who, and Sam-I-Am.
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VOICE TWO:
Theodor Geisel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts inNineteen-Oh-Four. He graduated from Dartmouth College inNineteen-Twenty-Five. He spent a year studying literature at OxfordUniversity in England. Mister Geisel returned to the United Statesin Nineteen-Twenty-Seven. He hoped to become a writer of seriousliterature.
During this time the United States was in an economic declineknown as the Great Depression. This forced Mister Geisel to delayhis dreams of becoming a serious writer. He found work as a creatorof advertising campaigns designed to sell products. He also drewcartoons for popular magazines including Life and Vanity Fair.Cartoons are humorous pictures with words.
VOICE ONE:
Doctor Seuss wrote his first book for children inNineteen-Thirty-Seven. It is called “And To Think I Saw It onMulberry Street.” A number of publishers rejected it. They said itwas too different. A friend finally published it. Soon othersuccessful books followed. Over the years he wrote more than fortychildren’s books. They were fun to read. Yet his books sometimesdealt with serious subjects including equality, responsibility andprotecting the environment.
By the middle Nineteen-Fifties, Doctor Seuss had become one ofthe best-loved and most successful children’s book writers in theworld. He had a strong desire to help children.
In Nineteen-Fifty-Four, Life magazine published a report aboutschool children who could not read. The report said many children’sbooks were not interesting. Doctor Seuss decided to write books thatwere interesting and easy to read. He used rhyming words, words withthe same ending sound, like fish and wish.
In the book Hop on Pop, he presented two words. Then he used themin simple sentences like this. Day. Play. We play all day. Night.Fight. We fight all night.
VOICE TWO:
In Nineteen-Fifty-Seven, Dr. Seuss wrote “The Cat in the Hat.” Heused less than two-hundred-twenty-five words to write the book. Thiswas an estimate of the number of words a six-year-old should be ableto read.
The story is about a cat who tries to entertain two children on arainy day while their mother is away from home. The cat is not likenormal cats. It is more like a human. It walks on two legs insteadof four. It wears a tall, red and white hat. A big red bow is aroundits neck. And it talks. As the cat entertains the children itcreates complete disorder in the house.
The book was an immediate success. It was a fun story and easy toread. Children loved it. Their parents loved it, too. Today manyadults say it is still one of the stories they like best.
Listen as Ray Freeman reads from “The Cat in the Hat.”
VOICE THREE:
The sun did not shine. It was too wet to play.
So we sat in the house all that cold, cold, wet day.
I sat there with Sally. We sat there, we two.
And I said, “How I wish we had something to do!”
Too wet to go out and too cold to play ball.
So we sat in the house. We did nothing at all.
So all we could do was to Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit!
And we did not like it. Not one little bit.
And then something went BUMP!
How that bump made us jump!
We looked!
Then we saw him step in on the mat!
We looked!
And we saw him! The Cat in the Hat!
And he said to us, “Why do you sit there like that?
I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny.
But we can have lots of good fun that is funny!”
VOICE ONE:
Doctor Seuss was very concerned that some children were notlearning to read. The success of “The Cat in the Hat” made him wantto write more books for children. He started a series calledBeginner Books. Beginner Books remain well-liked among childrentoday. The series includes such titles as “Yertle the Turtle andOther Stories,” “Fox in Socks,” and “The Lorax.”
In Nineteen-Sixty Doctor Seuss was urged by a book publisher towrite a book using less than fifty words. And he did. The book iscalled “Green Eggs and Ham.” It is one of Doctor Seuss’ most popularbooks. In the book a creature named Sam-I-Am tries to get anothercreature to eat an unusual meal, green eggs and ham.
Here is part of the story read by seven-year-old Miko Prescott.
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VOICE TWO:
In Nineteen-Sixty, Doctor Seuss wrote the story “How the GrinchStole Christmas.” It is about an extremely unkind man called theGrinch. He tries to stop Christmas from arriving in a village calledWhoville. He steals all the Christmas gifts and food in the villagewhile everyone is sleeping. Yet Christmas comes anyway. The peopleof Whoville are happy although they have no gifts. By the end of thestory, the Grinch becomes a kind person. In this story Doctor Seussgives the message that Christmas is about more than receiving gifts.
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” was later produced fortelevision. It first was shown in Nineteen-Sixty-Six. It continuesto be a very popular holiday program. Here is a song from How theGrinch Stole Christmas. It is called “You’re a Mean One MisterGrinch.”
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VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Eighty-Four, Mister Geisel won a Pulitzer Prize forchildren’s literature. At that time he had been writing children’sbooks for almost fifty years. He was honored for the education andenjoyment his books provided American children and their parents.
In Nineteen-Eighty-Six, Doctor Seuss wrote “You’re Only OldOnce.” It was his first book written for adults. It talks aboutgetting old. His last book was written in Nineteen-Ninety. It wascalled “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”
VOICE TWO:
Theodor Seuss Geisel died in Nineteen-Ninety-One. He waseighty-seven years old. Doctor Seuss’s influence remains through thebooks he wrote and illustrated. Millions of copies of them have beensold worldwide.
Experts say his books helped change the way American childrenlearned to read. Yet, his books are loved by people of all ages.Doctor Seuss once said “I do not write for children. I write forpeople.”
People continue to honor Doctor Seuss. Theodor Seuss Geisel wasborn on March second. Each year on that day the National EducationAssociation calls for every child and every community in America tocelebrate reading. This program is called “Read Across America.”
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ANNCR:
This Special English program was written by Lawan Davis. It wasproduced by Paul Thompson. Your announcers were Sarah Long and SteveEmber. I’m Mary Tillotson. Join us again next week for anotherPEOPLE IN AMERICA program on the Voice of America.