#ted geisel

24. How the Grinch Stole Christmas

This week on Have You Heard Of…Jenny introduces Emma to a movie she has already heard of because...who hasn’t? It’s the Grinch! But while this movie left an indelible mark on Jenny’s soul twenty years ago, it’s been static in Emma’s brain UNTIL NOW. We’re talking about how one movie can shape everything that you find funny in your life, references out of context, Jenny dialling in on exactly who the movie was for, the legacy of Audrey Geisel, and just Emma’s utter befuddlement. Feat. A Surprising Display of Synergy with JJ Abrams

Watch the Trailer

Emma’s Spotlight Swap: I Saw Three Ships from Carols for a Cure

Music: Something Elated by Broke For Free

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Stag at eve

Theodor Seuss "Ted" Geisel (American, 1904-1991)

Unorthodox Taxidermy 

In the early 1930s, Ted Geisel was living in New York scratching out a living as a young illustrator and cartoonist. He got a job creating advertising for Esso marine oil. He invented a series of cartoon fish that represented all the terrible things that could happen to your engine if you used bad oil, like the powerless puffer, and the carbonic walrus.

“His job was to sell oil for boats,” said Jeffrey Schuffman, curator with the Art of Dr. Seuss Collection. “He created a campaign of two-dimensional traditional advertising that appeared in Yachting magazine and in other places. Some of those characters he invented for that campaign he made into three-dimensional characters that were on display at the National Motorboat Show in NYC.”

In 1937 Standard Oil wanted something elaborate from Dr. Seuss for the show. Ted topped his previous efforts by using a collection of his seven Marine Muggs sculptures for the Essomarine booth. The January 1937 issue of Yachting magazine highlighted their appearance: “From the briny depths of the imagination of the famous designer, Dr. Seuss, whose murals have been a feature of Essomarine’s recent Show exhibits, comes a collection of the weirdest denizens of the deep ever imagined in the wildest nightmare of a skipper. The anatomy and peculiar appearance of certain of these creatures have caused so much speculation that their origin has at last been divulged. It is said that many of these monstrosities were sighted in out of the way spots by Seuss Admirals and reported to Admiral-in-Chief Seuss during the course of a year’s cruising.”

The works shown above are posthumously produced resin-castings based on the original 1930s sculptures.

Sawfish - original sawfish bill, plaster, and oil paint on wood base 

and the seven Marine Muggs:

The Powerless Puffer - original plaster with oil paint on wood base

The Sea-Going Dilemma Fish - original plaster, antlers, and oil paint on wood base

The Flaming Herring - original plaster with oil paint on wood base

The Gimlet Fish - original plaster with oil paint on wood base

The Carbonic Walrus - original plaster with oil paint on wood base

The Turtle-Necked Sea-Turtle - original turtle shell, plaster with oil paint on wood base

The Sludge Tarpon - original plaster with oil paint on wood base