Don Freeman was born in San Diego, California, in 1908. At an early
age, he received a trumpet as a gift from his father. He practiced
obsessively and eventually joined a California danceband. After
graduating from high school, he ventured to New York City to study
art under the tutelage of Joan Sloan and Harry Wickey at the Art
Students' League. He managed to support himself throughout his
schooling by playing his trumpet evenings, in nightclubs and at
weddings.Gradually, he eased into making a living sketching
impressions of Broadway shows for The New York Times and The Herald
Tribune. This shift was helped along, in no small part, by a rather
heartbreaking incident; he lost his trumpet. One evening, he was so
engrossed in sketching people on the subway, he simply forgot it
was sitting on the seat beside him. This new career turned out to
be a near-perfect fit for Don, though, as he had always loved the
theater.
He was introduced to the world of Childrens' Literature, when
William Saroyan asked him to illustrate several books. Soon after,
he began to write and illustrate his own books, a career he settled
into comfortably and happily. Through his writing, he was able to
create his own theater- "I love the flow of turning the pages, the
suspense of what's next. Ideas just come at me and after me. It's
all so natural. I work all the time, long into the night, and it's
such a pleasure. I don't know when the time ends. I've never been
happier in my life!"
Don died in 1978, after a long and successful career. He created
many beloved characters in his lifetime, perhaps the most beloved
among them a stuffed, overall-wearing bear, named Corduroy.
Don Freeman was the author and illustrator of many popularbooks for
children, including Corduroy, A Pocket for Corduroy, and
theCaldecott Honor Book Fly High, Fly Low. For more information
about Don Freeman, please visit-
www.donfreeman.info
Lisa McCue has illustrated many books for youngreaders. She lives
in Annapolis, Maryland.
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