Arthur Yorinks (born August 21, 1953) is an American author, playwright and director. He is best known for writing '' Hey, Al'', which won a

Caldecott Medal The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

Early life

Arthur Yorinks was born on August 21, 1953, in

Roslyn, New York Roslyn ( ) is a village in the Town of North Hempstead in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. It is the Greater Roslyn area's anchor community. The population was 2,988 at the time of the 2020 census. ...

. He was raised in a

suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

area of the

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

. His father, Alexander, was a

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations o ...

and his mother, Shirley, was a fashion illustrator. His aunt was also a piano teacher and his friend an illustrator and Yorinks considers this artistic childhood as an important inspiration for his later career. When he was six, he started to practice to be a

classical pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

. His piano teacher, Robert Bedford influenced him and is credited with instilling him with perfectionism and a professionalism. Yorinks said that he "learned a great deal of what it means to be an artist" from Bedford. When Yorinks was in high school, he discovered

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The ima ...

and he particularly liked the works of

Tomi Ungerer Jean-Thomas "Tomi" Ungerer (; 28 November 1931 – 9 February 2019) was a French artist and writer from Alsace (a French region on the French/German border). He published over 140 books ranging from children's books to adult works and from the f ...

William Steig William Steig ( ; November 14, 1907 – October 3, 2003) was an American cartoonist, illustrator and writer of children's books, best known for the picture book ''Shrek!'', which inspired the Shrek (franchise), film series of the same name, as we ...

, and especially

Maurice Sendak Maurice Bernard Sendak (; June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. Born to Polish-Jewish parents, his childhood was impacted by the death of many of his family members during the Holocaust. Send ...

. Later Yorinks said "Discovering Tomi Ungerer, William Steig, particularly Maurice Sendak, was a turning point. I was already a young adult, and I saw clearly that their books weren't just kids books. They were for everyone. They had such depth and excitement and had everything I was interested in—drama, pictures, rhythm, music." At sixteen, he approached Sendak's studio with manuscripts, picture books and asked Sendak for advice. The two became friends as a result of the encounter and Sendak later introduced Yorinks to Richard Egielski. Yorinks and Egielski became frequent collaborators. Yorinks graduated from high school one year early and chose not to go to college. He took classes at the

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...

and Hofstra New College in 1971.

Career

In 1971 Yorinks began working for The American Mime Theatre after studying ballet and dancing. He also worked as a theater arts instructor at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

from 1972 to 1979. In 1977, he worked with Egielski, whom Sendak had introduced, on the book ''Sid and Sol''. In 1979, he founded The Moving Theatre where he was the

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogu ...

and a writer. The theater produced plays at various venues, such as South Street Theater and Theater of the Open Eye as well as many other theaters. Yorinks continued to work with Egielski, collaborating on ''Louis the Fish'' (1980), which was inspired by Franz Kafka's ''

The Metamorphosis ''The Metamorphosis'' (), also translated as ''The Transformation'', is a novella by Franz Kafka published in 1915. One of Kafka's best-known works, ''The Metamorphosis'' tells the story of salesman Gregor Samsa, who wakes to find himself inex ...

''. They also worked on ''It Happened in Pinsk'' (1983), ''Hey, Al'' (1986), and ''Bravo Minski'' (1988) together. ''Hey Al'' won a

. Yorinks wrote

librettos A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major l ...

for

operas Opera is a form of Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a li ...

, such as '' The Juniper Tree'' by

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

and Robert Moran in 1985 and ''

The Fall of the House of Usher "The Fall of the House of Usher" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1839 in ''Burton's Gentleman's Magazine'', then included in the collection ''Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque'' in 1840. The short stor ...

'', composed by Glass in 1988. Yorinks also worked with other illustrators aside from Richard Egielski, such as Maurice Sendak, William Stieg,

Mort Drucker Morris "Mort" Drucker (March 22, 1929 – April 9, 2020) was an American caricaturist and comics artist best known as a contributor for over five decades in ''Mad (magazine), Mad'', where he specialized in satires on the leading feature film ...

David Small David Small (born February 12, 1945) is an American writer and illustrator who is best known for children's picture books. His books have been awarded a Caldecott Medal and two Caldecott Honors, among other recognition. Biography David Small ...

, and Martin Matje. In 1988, he released ''Company's Coming'', illustrated by David Small. In 1990, Yorinks again released a book with Egielski as illustrator, titled ''Ugh''. In the same year, he also worked with Sendak to create The Night Kitchen Theater, a national

children's A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''child ...

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

. In 1994 he worked with Drucker on ''Whitefish Will Rides Again!''. In 1995, Yorinks released ''The Miami Giant'', which was illustrated by Sendak. He also adapted one of his plays, ''So, Sue Me'' to a picture book format with Sendak, which was published in 1996. In 1999 he wrote another book illustrated by Drucker, titled ''Tomatoes from Mars''. In the same year he released ''The Alphabet Atlas'', illustrated by Adrienne Yorinks. In 2001 he released a sequel to ''Company's Coming'', titled ''Company's Going'', illustrated by Small. Yorinks has written over 40 audio plays. He has also directed

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (; born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

's radio plays and has adapted numerous works for radio, such as

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a novelist and writer from Prague who was Jewish, Austrian, and Czech and wrote in German. He is widely regarded as a major figure of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of Litera ...

's ''

'',

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

's ''

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...

'', and

Garson Kanin Garson Kanin (November 24, 1912 – March 13, 1999) was an American writer and director of plays and films. Early life Garson Kanin was born in Rochester, New York; his Jewish family later relocated to Detroit then to New York City. He at ...

's ''The Rat Race.'' In 2012 he made an adaptation of

Zora Neale Hurston Zora Neale Hurston (January 7, 1891 – January 28, 1960) was an American writer, anthropologist, folklorist, and documentary filmmaker. She portrayed racial struggles in the early-20th-century American South and published research on Hoodoo ...

's ''

Their Eyes Were Watching God ''Their Eyes Were Watching God'' is a 1937 novel by American writer Zora Neale Hurston. It is considered a classic of the Harlem Renaissance and Hurston's best-known work. The novel explores protagonist Janie Crawford's "ripening from a vibran ...

'' to celebrate the 75th year anniversary of the book's publication. In 2014 New York Public Radio commissioned Yorinks to create a 4 hour audio play adaptation of James Joyce's ''

Dubliners ''Dubliners'' is a collection of fifteen short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. It presents a naturalistic depiction of Irish middle class life in and around Dublin in the early years of the 20th century. The stories were writ ...

'' entitled ''Dubliners: A Quartet''. In 2018 Sendak's ''Presto and Zesto In Limboland'' was published posthumously, in which Yorinks was writer. In 2019 he appeared in season 5, episode 8 of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

show '' Articulate''. In February 2020 Yorinks published ''One Mean Ant'', the sequel ''One Mean Ant with Fly and Flea'' was published in October 2020. He released the third book in the series ''One Mean Ant with Fly and Flea and Moth'' in October 2021. In 2022 he was named Artistic Director of the American Mime Theatre. In October 2024, Yorinks left AMT and founded and became artistic director o
APT, American Physical Theater
a performing company comprising a unique blend of acting, movement, voice, silence, sound and theatrical visual elements. Its premiere production, ''The Lifeboat'' was performed at Harlem Stage in March 2025.

Selected works

Books

* ''Sid and Sol'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1977. * ''Louis the Fish'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1980. * ''It Happened in Pinsk'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1983. * ''Hey, Al'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1986. * ''Bravo, Minski'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1988. * ''Company's Coming'' (illustrated by David Small), New York: Crown, 1988. * ''Ugh'' (illustrated by Richard Egielski), New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1990. * ''Whitefish Will Rides Again!'' (illustrated by Mort Drucker), New York: HarperCollins, 1994. * ''The Miami Giant'' (illustrated by Maurice Sendak), New York: HarperCollins, 1995. * ''Frank and Joey Go to Work'' (illustrated by Maurice Sendak), New York: HarperFestival, 1996. * ''Tomatoes from Mars'' (illustrated by Mort Drucker), New York: HarperCollins, 1999. * ''The Alphabet Atlas'' (illustrated by Adrienne Yorinks, letter art by Jeanyee Wong), Delray Beach, Florida: Winslow Press, 1999. * ''Company's Going'' (illustrated by David Small), New York: Hyperion, 2001. * ''One Mean Ant'', Candlewick Press, 2020 * ''One Mean Ant with Fly and Flea'', Candlewick Press, 2020 * ''One Mean Ant with Fly and Flea and Moth'', Candlewick Press, 2021

Librettos

* ''The Juniper Tree'' (music by Philip Glass and Robert Moran), New York: Dunvagen Music, 1985, produced at the American Repertory Theater, Boston, MA, 1985. * ''The Fall of the House of Usher'', (music by Philip Glass) produced at American Repertory Theater, Boston, MA, May 1988.

Audio plays

* ''Their Eyes Were Watching God'' (2012) * ''A Christmas Carol'' * ''The Rat Race'' * ''Metamorphosis''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yorinks, Arthur 1953 births Living people American children's writers Writers from New York (state) American opera librettists American artistic directors American male dramatists and playwrights Cornell University faculty 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American male writers People from Roslyn, New York