William Steig
| William Steig | |
|---|---|
 Steig in New York City on April 12, 1944. Photograph taken by Arnold Newman. |
|
| Born | November 14, 1907 Brooklyn, New York |
| Died | October 3, 2003 (aged 95) Boston, Massachusetts |
| Occupation | Illustrator, Writer |
| Nationality | American |
| Notable work(s) | Sylvester and the Magic Pebble (1969), Doctor DeSoto (1984), Shrek! |
| Notable award(s) | CINE Golden Eagle Award, Caldecott Medal Newbery Honor |
| Spouse(s) |
Elizabeth Mead Steig (m. 1936–1949) |
| Children | Jeremy Steig Lucinda 'Lucy' Steig Franchechini Margit Laura Steig |
William Steig (November 14, 1907 – October 3, 2003) was a prolific American cartoonist, sculptor and, later in life, an author of popular children's literature. Most noted for the books Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, Abel's Island and Doctor De Soto, he also created the character Shrek, who inspired the popular movie series.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Steig was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Polish-Jewish immigrants from Austria, both socialists. His father, Joseph Steig[1]
, was a house painter, and his mother, Laura Ebel Steig, was a seamstress who encouraged his artistic leanings. As a child, he dabbled in painting and was an avid reader of literature. Among other works, he was said to have been especially fascinated by Pinocchio. In addition to his artistic endeavors, he also did well at athletics, being a member of the collegiate All-American water polo team. He graduated from Townsend Harris High School at 15 but never completed college, though he attended three, spending two years at City College of New York, three years at the National Academy of Design and a mere five days at the Yale School of Fine Arts before dropping out of each.[2]
[edit] Career
Steig began drawing illustrations and cartoons for The New Yorker in 1930, producing more than 2,600 drawings and 117 covers for the magazine. Steig later when he was 61 began writing children's books.[3] In 1968, he wrote his first children's book. He excelled here as well, and his third book, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble (1969), won the Caldecott Medal.[4] He went on to write more than 30 children's books, including the Doctor DeSoto series, and he continued to write into his nineties. Among his other well-known works, the picture book Shrek! (1990) formed the basis for the Dreamworks Animation film Shrek.
In 1984, Steig's film adaptation of Doctor DeSoto directed by Michael Sporn was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. Also in 1984, Steig received the CINE Golden Eagle Award in Education.[5] for the film adaptation of this book.
[edit] Personal life
Steig married four times and had three children. From 1936 to 1949, Steig was married to educator and artist Elizabeth Mead Steig (1909–1983), sister of anthropologist Margaret Mead, from whom he was later divorced. They were the parents of jazz flutist Jeremy Steig and a daughter, Lucinda. He married second wife Kari Homestead in 1950, and they had a daughter, Margit Laura. After their divorce, he was married to Stephanie Healey from 1964 to 1966. His final marriage, to Jeanne Doron, endured for the rest of his life. His brother Irwin was a journalist and painter, and his brother Henry was a writer who played the saxophone and painted. His brother Arthur was a writer and poet, who, according to Steig, read The Nation in the cradle, was telepathic and "drew as well as Picasso or Matisse." At the age of 95, Steig died from natural causes in Boston in October 2003.[6] The closing credits for Shrek 2 noted: "In memory of William Steig, 1907–2003."[7]
[edit] Works
- 1939, About People
- 1941, How to Become Extinct by Will Cuppy, illustrated by Steig
- 1942, The Lonely Ones
- 1945, Persistent Faces
- 1946, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House by Eric Hodgins, illustrated by Steig
- 1948, Listen, Little Man! by Wilhelm Reich, illustrated by Steig
- 1950, The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody by Will Cuppy, illustrated by Steig
- 1951, The Rejected Lovers
- 1953, Dreams of Glory
- 1968, CDB!
- 1968, Roland the Minstrel Pig
- 1969, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble — NBA finalist[a]
- 1969, Bad Island
- 1971, Amos and Boris
- 1972, Dominic — NBA finalist[a]
- 1973, The Real Thief
- 1974, Farmer Palmer's Wagon Ride
- 1976, Abel's Island
- 1976, The Amazing Bone
- 1977, Caleb + Kate — NBA finalist[a]
- 1978, Tiffky Doofky
- 1979, Drawings
- 1980, Gorky Rises
- 1982, Doctor De Soto — National Book Award, Picture Book[b]
- 1984, CDC?
- 1984, Doctor De Soto Goes to Africa
- 1984, Ruminations
- 1984, Yellow & Pink
- 1984, Rotten Island — his most popular book
- 1985, Solomon: The Rusty Nail
- 1986, Brave Irene
- 1987, The Zabajaba Jungle
- 1988, Spinky Sulks
- 1990, Shrek! — the basis for the movie series
- 1992, Alpha Beta Chowder
- 1994, Zeke Pippin
- 1996, The Toy Brother
- 1998, A Handful of Beans: Six Fairy Tales, retold by Jeanne Steig, illustrated by William Steig
- 1998, Pete’s a Pizza
- 2000, Made for Each Other
- 2000, Wizzil
- 2001, A Gift from Zeus
- 2002, Potch & Polly
- 2003, When Everybody Wore a Hat
- 2003, Yellow & Pink [new format]
- 2003, The Incredibles
- 2003, Puss in boots
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, Dominic, and Caleb + Kate were finalists for the National Book Award, Children's Literature.
"National Book Awards – 1970". National Book Foundation. Retrieved 2012-02-08. (Select 1970, 1973, and 1978 from the top left menu.) - ^ Doctor Dr. Soto shared a National Book Award in category Picture Books during the brief time there were multiple children's awards.
"National Book Awards – 1983". National Book Foundation. Retrieved 2012-02-22.
[edit] References
- ^ "William Steig, 95, Dies; Tough Youths and Jealous Satyrs Scowled in His Cartoons". New York Times. 2003-10-05. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/05/nyregion/william-steig-95-dies-tough-youths-and-jealous-satyrs-scowled-in-his-cartoons.html.
- ^ "Wry Child of the Unconscious; William Steig, 90, on Art, Life and the Mysterious Orgone". New York Times. 1997-11-29. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E4DD103AF93AA15752C1A961958260.
- ^ Puig, Claudia (May 30, 2001). "'Shrek!' author exclaims his approval of film". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/enter/movies/2001-05-30-shrek.htm. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ American Library Association: Caldecott Medal Winners, 1938 - Present. URL accessed 27 May 2009.
- ^ "cine.org". http://www.cine.org/archives/winner-archives/pdfs/1984-CINE-Winner-Directory.pdf. Retrieved 2010-10-20.
- ^ "Cartoonist Steig Dead at 95". Studio Briefing. October 7, 2003.
- ^ "William Steig, 95, Dies; Tough Youths and Jealous Satyrs Scowled in His Cartoons". New York Times. 2003-10-05. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/05/nyregion/william-steig-95-dies-tough-youths-and-jealous-satyrs-scowled-in-his-cartoons.html?ref=william_steig.
[edit] External links
- Official William Steig Website
- Official Caldecott Website
- From The New Yorker to Shrek: The Art of William Steig
- Obituary: William Steig 1907-2003
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