Shel Silverstein
IF YOU’RE passionate about a talent or hobby you have, its never too early to start thinking about turning your passion into a career. The great childrens author, poet, cartoonist, musician and playwright Shel Silverstein began writing seriously when he was just 12 years old.
Silverstein would famously joke that he would have rather played baseball than write, but that he had no athletic skill. However, whatever skill he lacked with a bat or a mitt he made up for with his pen and pencil. His books and collection of poems, such as The Giving Tree, and Where the Sidewalk Ends, are classics in childrens literature. Where the Sidewalk Ends, a collection of his childrens poetry, is one of the best-selling hardcover books of all time.
Shel was born on September 25, 1932 in Chicago, Ill., and was displaying his drawing and writing talents before he was even a teenager. As a young man, he joined the military and fought in the Korean War. He worked as a cartoonist for the military newspaper Stars & Stripes and, after the war, quickly established himself as a successful cartoonist with adult publications.
One day, a friend took him to meet with a very important editor of childrens books. They convinced him to try writing and illustrating childrens books. His first childrens book, Lafcadio: The Lion who Shot Back, was published in 1963. His next book, The Giving Tree, is his most legendary, but was also his most difficult to publish. Shel was known for his sly humor and whimsy, but The Giving Tree had a sad ending. Editors felt the book was too sad for children, but wasnt an adult book either. It took four years for the book to be published, but when it was, in 1964, it was a huge success and made Shel Silverstein famous.
Shel wrote and illustrated many more books and poetry collections for young readers, and his books have been recognized over the years with countless awards.
He was equally successful as a musician. Shel played the guitar, and he wrote several hit songs for famous recording artists, such as A Boy Named Sue recorded by Johnny Cash.
He also set his own work to music. His poem Unicorn was recorded as a song by the Irish Rovers. Shel composed the musical scores for Hollywood movies, and won more awards for his music. He set the poems in his collection, Where the Sidewalk Ends, to music, and won a Grammy Award for the album.
In the 1980s, Shel Silverstein began writing plays and film scripts, all of which achieved various degrees of success. He also returned to writing and drawing cartoons for an adult audience. His last childrens book, Falling Up, was published in 1996 to great critical praise.
Shel Silverstein died of a heart attack in 1999 at age 67, but his spirit lives on in the rich trove of literature and music he contributed to the world during his life.
Shel took a humorous, playful and unconventional approach to writing for young people, mixing the silly with the serious, the light with the dark.
Perhaps his approach to his career, and his advice to his young readers, can best be expressed by Shel himself, who once said: Draw a crazy picture, write a nutty poem, sing a mumblegumble song, and whistle through your comb. Do a loony-goony dance ˜cross the kitchen floor, put something silly in the world that aint been there before.
Picture Above: Shel Silverstein, pictured here in 1968, was a poet, author and musician.
New York Post, December 15, 2010
Written by: Robin Wallace
