Marjorie Flack (October 22, 1897 - August 29, 1958)
/ref> was an American artist and writer of children's picture books. She was born in Greenport, Long Island, New York in 1897. She was best known for '' The Story about Ping'' (

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

), illustrated by

Kurt Wiese Kurt Wiese (April 22, 1887 – May 27, 1974) was a German-born book illustrator, who wrote and illustrated 20 children's books and illustrated another 300 for other authors. Background Kurt Wiese was born on April 22, 1887, in Minden, Germa ...

, popularized by

Captain Kangaroo ''Captain Kangaroo'' is an American children's television series that aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for 29 years, from 1955 to 1984, making it the longest-running nationally broadcast children's television program ...

, and for her stories of an insatiably curious

Scottish terrier The Scottish Terrier (; also known as the Aberdeen Terrier), popularly called the Scottie, is a dog breed, breed of dog. Initially one of the highland breeds of terrier that were grouped under the name of ''Skye Terrier'', it is one of five br ...

named Angus, who was actually her dog. Her first marriage was to artist Karl Larsson; she later married poet

William Rose Benét William Rose Benét (February 2, 1886 – May 4, 1950) was an American poet, writer, and editor. He was the older brother of Stephen Vincent Benét. Early life and education He was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Col. James Walker Benét ...

. Her book ''Angus Lost'' was featured prominently in the film ''

Ask the Dust ''Ask the Dust'' is the most popular novel of American author John Fante, first published in 1939 and set during the Great Depression era in Los Angeles. It is one of a series of novels featuring the character Arturo Bandini as Fante's alter eg ...

'' (2006), starring

Colin Farrell Colin James Farrell (; born 31 May 1976) is an Irish actor. A Leading actor, leading man in blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters and independent films since the 2000s, he has received various List of awards and nominations received by Col ...

and

Salma Hayek Salma Valgarma Hayek Pinault ( , ; ; born September 2, 1966) is a Mexican and American actress and film producer. She began her career in Mexico with starring roles in the telenovela ''Teresa (1989 TV series), Teresa'' (1989–1991) as well a ...

, in which Farrell's character teaches Hayek's character, a Mexican, to read English using Flack's book. Flack's grandson, Tim Barnum, and his wife, Darlene Enix-Barnum, currently sponsor an annual creative writing award at Anne Arundel Community College. The Marjorie Flack Award for Fiction consists of a $250 prize for the best

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

or children's storybook written by a current AACC student.

Bibliography

* '' The Story about Ping'' (1933), The Viking Press. Illustrated by

* ''Ask Mr. Bear'' * '' Angus and the Ducks'' (

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be on J ...

) * ''Angus and the Cat'' (1931) * '' Angus Lost'' (1932) * "Christopher" (1935) * '' The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes'' (illustrator,

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

; with

DuBose Heyward Edwin DuBose Heyward (August 31, 1885 – June 16, 1940) was an American author best known for his 1925 novel '' Porgy''. He and his wife Dorothy, a playwright, adapted it as a 1927 play of the same name. The couple worked with composer Georg ...

, writer) * ''Walter, the Lazy Mouse'' * ''Up In The Air'', illustrated by Karl Larsson * ''The Boats on the River'', illustrated by Jay Hyde Barnum * ''Wait for William'' * ''Lucky little Lena'' (c1937, published by the Macmillan Company, 1940) * ''Tim Tadpole and the Great Bullfrog'' * ''Neighbors on the Hill'' * ''The Restless Robin'' (1937) * ''Angus and Wagtail Bess'' * ''All around the town: The story of a boy in New York'' * ''Humphrey: One Hundred Years Along the Wayside with a Box Turtle'' * ''Angus and Topsy'' (first published in Great Britain in 1935) * ''Pedro'' (1940)

Awards

Caldecott Honor 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 ...

, for ''The Boats on the River'', 1947

References

External links

Marjorie on Ask Art
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Flack, Marjorie 1897 births 1958 deaths 20th-century American writers 20th-century American women writers People from Greenport, Suffolk County, New York American children's writers American women children's writers Place of death missing Writers from New York (state)