About Dr. Seuss
March 2nd is Dr. Seuss’s Birthday!
Theodor Seuss Geisel was born to Theodor and Henrietta Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts on March 2, 1904. Theodor, known as Ted by his family and friends, was the grandchild of German immigrants and had one sister, Margaretha Christine (known as “Marnie”). Seuss was his mother’s maiden name and was pronounced in the German manner: Zoice (rhymes with voice). He spent his childhood at 74 Fairfield Street, and when he walked through the Springfield Zoo in Forest Park with his father, he began bringing a pencil and sketch pad to draw animals.
Ted entered Dartmouth College in 1921 and graduated in June 1925. Dartmouth was where he first began using the pseudonym “Seuss,” when he was writing for Jack-O-Lantern, the college humor magazine. He added “Dr.” in 1927 and used the pseudonym Dr. Seuss thereafter. He also used the pseudonym Theo LeSieg (LeSieg is Geisel spelled backwards) for books that he wrote but someone else illustrated. After Dartmouth, Ted traveled to Oxford where he attended Lincoln College and met future wife Helen Palmer. They married in 1927 and moved to New York City.
Dr. Seuss won many awards for his various literary and entertainment projects, including a Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for his special contribution to the education and enjoyment of America’s children and their parents. Three of his books received Caldecott Honors, he was the recipient of seven honorary doctorate degrees (including one from his alma mater), and he was even posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2004.
Dr. Seuss died on September 24, 1991, but the man who inspired everyone from six-year-olds to NASA spacecraft engineers left behind a gigantic legacy of genius and imagination. And every year on his March 2nd birthday he is remembered around the globe as children and adults alike celebrate literacy in his honor.
(Extracted from https://www.seussville.com/dr-seuss/)
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