Richard Scarry

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Richard Scarry
Children's books
Notable worksBest Word Book Ever
SpousePatricia Murphy
Children1

Richard McClure Scarry (/ˈskæriː/;[1] June 5, 1919 – April 30, 1994) was an American children's author and illustrator who published over 300 books with total sales of over 100 million worldwide.[2] He is best known for his Best Ever book series that take place primarily in the fictional town of Busytown, "which is populated by friendly and helpful resident [animals...such as] Mr. Frumble, Huckle Cat, Mr. Fixit, Lowly Worm, and others..."[3] The series spawned a media franchise.

Early life and education

Scarry was born in

Dorchester neighborhood,[6] even during the Great Depression
.

Following high school, Scarry enrolled in

drafted
into the U.S. Army in 1942.

Career

After entering the Army, Scarry was assigned to the military's radio repair school. After a small success in that trade, he was chosen to paint a large sign and then was made an art director after receiving a medical dispensation "from strenuous physical activity". Later he became "Editor and Writer of Publications for the Information and Morale Services Section of the Allied Force Headquarters", served in North Africa, and was discharged from the Army in 1946.[8][10] After the war, Scarry worked in magazine and advertising in New York City, including a very brief stint at Vogue. In 1949, he made a career breakthrough with Little Golden Books.[8]

Scarry's most famous series of books was about

half-timber
houses.

The fabric of Scarry's world was woven with a strong sense of community and cooperation. His characters work together, be it building a house or constructing a highway. And he endowed his characters with an honest humanity that underscores his tales. Scarry knew children needed to know that they did not have to be perfect all the time.[11]

A snapshot of Scarry's illustration style from the book Busy, Busy Town

Scarry was a disciplined worker.

Kids' CBC
morning program block.

Busytown was featured at the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh from June 13 to September 8, 2002, in an interactive exhibit, Richard Scarry's Busytown.[14] His books were popular with children throughout the world, with over 100 million copies sold.[2]

Scarry's papers and drawings are collected in the University of Connecticut archives.[15]

Personal life and family

While working as a freelance illustrator, Scarry met Patricia "Patsy" Murphy, a writer of children's textbooks, when they collaborated on one such book, and they married in 1948.[8] She is credited with writing many of the stories in his subsequent children's books, such as Good Night, Little Bear, The Bunny Book, and The Fishing Cat. Before moving to Europe, the family lived on a farm in Ridgefield, Connecticut.[16]

In 1972, Scarry and his wife moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, and in 1974 bought a chalet in nearby Gstaad, where Scarry enjoyed spending time with his adult son, Richard Scarry Jr., skiing, coin collecting, and sailing.[17][11][18]

Scarry's son is also an illustrator, who sometimes works under the name Huck Scarry in his father's style. He moved to Vienna, Austria, and has four children.[4][17][19]

Death

On April 30, 1994, in Gstaad, Switzerland, Scarry died of a heart attack, caused by complications from esophageal cancer, at the age of 74.[2][8]

Bibliography

Scarry began his book career in 1949 as an illustrator of books by other people, specifically Kathryn & Byron Jackson's Mouse's House. He continued as only or primarily an illustrator through 1955, then began turning out original books.

His titles, in order of publication, are:[3]

Golden Books

Random House

Golden Books

Random House

Golden Books

  • Sniff the Detective, 1988
  • All About Cars, 1989
  • Best Friend Ever, 1989
  • Best Ride Ever, 1989
  • Best Two-Minute Stories Ever!, 1989
  • Mother Goose Scratch and Sniff Book, 1989
  • Best Ever, 1989
  • Tinker and Tanker Storybook, 1989
  • Welcome to Scarrytown, 1989

Random House

Many of these titles are preceded by his name ("Richard Scarry's ..."), and may be so listed in library and booksellers' databases. Some (Pie Rats Ahoy!, Best Mistake Ever! and The Early Bird) were published under the Beginner Books (Grolier and Early Moments only) imprint, and others (Chuckle with Huckle! and Other Easy-to-Read Funny Stories and The Worst Helper Ever [Early Moments only]) as Bright and Early Books, although all are targeted at beginning readers. Scarry also illustrated a 1963 edition of The Fables of La Fontaine, and in 1993 put his own stamp on a series of familiar nursery stories (Little Red Riding Hood, The Little Red Hen, The Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs).

Stories made to video

Golden Book Videos:

Random House Videos: (by 2006 these were taken out of print)

Richard Scarry's:

  • Best ABC Video Ever! (Random House 1989)[23]
  • Best Counting Video Ever! (Random House 1989)[24]
  • Best Busy People Video Ever! (Random House 1993)[25]
  • Best Learning Songs Video Ever! (Random House 1993)[26]
  • Best Silly Stories and Songs Video Ever! (Random House 1994)[27]
  • Best Sing-Along Mother Goose Video Ever! (Random House 1994)[28]

PolyGram Videos:

The Busy World of Richard Scarry:

  • The Three Fishermen and 0ther Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • The Best Birthday Present Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • Sergeant Murphy's Day Off and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • The Busiest Firefighters Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • Mr. Frumble's New Cars and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • The Snowstorm and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • A Trip To The Moon and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • Summer Picnic and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • The Best Babysitter Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993)
  • Sally's First Day At School and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • New Friend On The Block and 2 Other stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)

Richard Scarry's:

  • The Best Christmas Present Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • The Best Birthday Party Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • Now I Know My 123's and 2 and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • The Best Spelling Bee Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • The Best Christmas Surprise Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • Be My Valentine and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • The First Easter Egg Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • Practice Makes Perfect and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • Making Progress and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)
  • The First Halloween Ever and 2 Other Stories (Cinar 1993, 1994, 1995)

References

  1. ^ Flaste, Richard (16 March 1976). "Richard Scarry and His People". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2024. The books have made Mr. Scarry (pronounced as in "carry") a wealthy man.
  2. ^ a b c Pace, Eric (3 May 1994). "Richard Scarry, 74, Children's Book Author and Illustrator, Dies". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 December 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  3. ^ a b Liukkonen, Petri. "Richard Scarry". Books and Writers (kirjasto.sci.fi). Finland: Kuusankoski Public Library. Archived from the original on 2 January 2008.
  4. ^
    New York Historical Society. Archived
    from the original on 2021-11-17. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  5. ^ Mapes, Melissa (July 1, 2012). Richard Scarry’s Best Luck Ever. Literary Traveller.
  6. ^ a b 1940 U.S. Census, familysearch.com
  7. ^ American National Biography. Vol. 19. Oxford University Press. 1999. p. 350.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Branwen, Gwern. "Richard Scarry". Archived from the original on 2021-09-21. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  9. doi:10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1603321. Archived
    from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  10. ^ "A Guide to the Richard Scarry Papers". Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  11. ^ a b Owens, Darryl E. (September 23, 1995). "Scarry's talent: Finding magic in the mundane"". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2022-04-17. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  12. ^ Lipson, E. R. (August 24, 2000). "Ole C. Risom, 80, Publisher of Children's Books". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 19, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  13. ISBN 9780810940000
    .
  14. ^ "Carnegie Science Center". Carnegie Magazine. Archived from the original on 2008-10-12 – via carnegiemuseums.org.
  15. ^ "A Guide to the Richard Scarry Papers". collections.ctdigitalarchive.org. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  16. ^ Sanders, Jack (2015). Hidden History of Ridgefield, Connecticut. Arcadia Publishing. p. 73.
  17. ^
    National Public Radio. Archived
    from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  18. ^ Munier, Alexis (September 10, 2015). "His Father's Son -- Huck Scarry on his Family's Past, Present & Future". GstaadLife. Archived from the original on September 29, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  19. Interview Magazine. Archived
    from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  20. ^ "3 Richard Scarry Animal Nursery Tales (Video 1986)". IMDb. 1986. Archived from the original on 2022-07-12. Retrieved 2018-06-30.
  21. ^ "Richard Scarry's Old MacDonald's Farm and Other Animal Tales (Video 1986)". IMDb. 1986. Archived from the original on 2022-07-12. Retrieved 2018-06-30.
  22. ^ "Get Ready for School (Video 1986)". IMDb. 1986. Archived from the original on 2022-07-12. Retrieved 2018-06-30.
  23. ^ "Best ABC Video Ever! (Video 1989)". IMDb. 15 March 1989. Archived from the original on 10 February 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  24. ^ "Best Counting Video Ever! (Video 1989)". IMDb. 31 August 1989. Archived from the original on 10 February 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  25. ^ "Best Busy People Video Ever! (Video 1993)". IMDb. 17 August 1993. Archived from the original on 8 February 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  26. ^ "Best Learning Songs Video Ever! (Video 1993)". IMDb. 17 August 1993. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  27. ^ "Best Silly Stories and Songs Video Ever! (Video 1994)". IMDb. 23 August 1994. Archived from the original on 19 March 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  28. ^ "Best Sing-Along Mother Goose Video Ever! (Video 1994)". IMDb. 23 August 1994. Archived from the original on 25 March 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2018.

External links

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