Seymour Reit

Seymour Victory Reit (11 November 1918 – 21 November 2001) was an American author of over 80 children's books as well as several works for adults.[2] Reit was the creator, with cartoonist Joe Oriolo, of the character Casper the Friendly Ghost.[3] Reit started his career working for Fleischer Studios as an animator; he also worked for Jerry Iger and Will Eisner as a cartoonist, for Laffboy as editor in 1965, and for Mad Magazine and several other publications as a humorist.[2]

Seymour Reit
BornSeymour Victory Reit
(1918-11-11)November 11, 1918
New York City, United States
DiedNovember 21, 2001(2001-11-21) (aged 83)
New York City, United States
Pen nameSeymour Reit, Sy Reit
OccupationWriter, cartoonist
Alma materNew York University
Notable worksCasper the Friendly Ghost[1]

Biography

Reit was born in New York City on 11 November 1918 (Armistice Day).[2] He attended DeWitt Clinton High School and New York University, where he drew cartoons for humorous college magazines. He worked as an in-betweener and inker on the 1939 animated film Gulliver's Travels, and later became a gag writer for the Popeye and Betty Boop cartoon series, among others. He also anonymously produced comic strips for Jerry Iger under the Fiction House label.[2] He attended New York University with future Captain Marvel writer William Woolfolk; and helped launch Woolfolk's career as a writer of comics by introducing him to Jerry Iger and Will Eisner.[4]

Reit served in World War II in a U.S. Army Air Force camouflage unit tasked with defending the West Coast from a Japanese invasion, and later served in Europe after D-Day. He later wrote a book, The Amazing Camouflage Deceptions of World War II, drawing on his wartime experience.[2][3] It contains a version of the urban legend which claims that British aviators taunted the German Army by dropping a wooden bomb on a decoy airfield the Germans had built.[5]

After the war, Reit did cartoon work for Archie and Little Lulu, and wrote gags for some of the new Casper animated shorts that were being produced. He also wrote for the TV series Captain Kangaroo. In 1950 he started working for the publications department of the Bank Street College of Education in New York, and also scripted industrial films and radio shows. In the late 1950s, he began submitting work to Mad Magazine, ultimately contributing over 60 pieces.[2][6] One of Reit's articles for Mad, "The 'Down-To-Earth' Coloring Book," appeared in the summer of 1960 and anticipated (or helped inspire) the faddish publishing boom of "adult" coloring books.[7]

Books

Reit wrote over 80 books, primarily for children, on a variety of historical, technical, natural, and other subjects.[3] One of his titles for adults, The Day They Stole the Mona Lisa, written in 1981, is about the theft of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre in 1911.[2] In the book, Reit asserted that there were two genuine Mona Lisas in the world: the one in the Louvre, and an earlier version of the work painted by Leonardo da Vinci which was being held in a bank vault in New Jersey (the so-called "Vernon Mona Lisa").[8] A long-planned movie adaptation of the book[9] has never materialized, although the Internet Movie Database lists a movie by the same title that had tentatively been planned for 2009.[10]

Selected works
BookYearPublisherPagesNotes
Guns for General Washington2001Gulliver Books Paperbacks160About William and Henry Knox, brothers tasked with transporting 60 tons of cannons 300 miles that played a decisive role in the Siege of Boston.[11]
A Dog's Tale1996Random House Children's Books32Featured on episode 137 of the PBS TV series Reading Rainbow.[12][13]
Trains1990Western Publishing45An illustrated history of railway transportation.[14]
Behind Rebel Lines1988Harcourt Children's Books130About Sarah Emma Edmonds, a woman who masqueraded as a man and served as a spy for the Union Army during the United States Civil War.[15]
Scotland Yard Detective1987Bantam Books144Part of the Time Machine series, a spinoff of the Choose Your Own Adventure books.[16][17]
Sibling Rivalry1985Ballantine Books171About the causes of sibling rivalry and how to cope with it.[18]
The Day They Stole the Mona Lisa1981Summit Books254About the theft of the Mona Lisa.[19]
The Pleasure of Their Company: How to Have More Fun with Your Children1981Chilton Book Co.373Suggests activities for children and adults to share and techniques for controlling children's television-watching, diet, and play habits.[20]
Masquerade: The Amazing Camouflage Deceptions of World War II1978Hawthorn Books255Reprinted in 1980 as The Hidden War: The Amazing Camouflage Deception of World War II.[21]
Sails, Rails, and Wings1978Golden Press69About the three different types of transportation, as illustrated by Roberto Innocenti.[22]
Ironclad!: A True Story of the Civil War1977Dodd, Mead92[23]
The Worried Ghost1976Scholastic Book Services95[24][25]
Race Against Death: A True Story of the Far North1976Dodd, Mead94About the 1925 serum run to Nome, Alaska.[26]
Benvenuto and the Carnival1976Xerox Education Publications93A boy's pet dragon is captured and placed in a carnival.[27]
Benvenuto1974Addison-Wesley126About a boy who brings home a dragon from camp.[28]
Rice Cakes and Paper Dragons1973Dodd, Mead79About a girl living in New York City's Chinatown.[29]
The Easy How-To Book1973Golden Press48Instruction for children on how to do everyday tasks.[30]
Child of the Navajos1971Dodd, Mead64About a nine-year-old boy living on a modern Indian reservation.[31]
The Magic of Everyday Things1970Western Publishing62[32]
Growing Up in the White House1968Crowell-Collier Press118A history of presidential children.[33]
America Laughs: a Treasury of Great Humor1966Crowell-Collier Press152[34]
Coins and Coin Collecting1965Golden Press105An introductory manual for numismatists.[35]
All Kinds of Signs1963Golden Press30Picture book "showing all kinds of signs and the importance of signs in everyday life"; illustrated by Trina Schart (Trina Schart Hyman)[36]
Wheels, Sails, and Wings1961Golden Press94[37]
The King Who Learned To Smile1960Golden Press30Reit's earliest record in the Library of Congress Online Catalog.[38]

In addition to those listed here, Reit wrote several books for Golden Press, publishers of the Little Golden Books series, and dozens of other children's books for assorted publishers.

References
  1. Nash, Eric P. (2001-12-17). "Seymour V. Reit, 83, a Creator of Casper the Friendly Ghost". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  2. "Obituary: Seymour Reit". The Guardian. London. 2001-12-24. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  3. Woo, Elaine (2001-12-18). "Seymour Reit, 83; Drew Cartoon Ghost Casper". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  4. Nash, Eric P. (2003-08-09). "William Woolfolk, 86, Writer Behind Comic-Book Heroes". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  5. "Lip Bomb". Snopes (Urban Legends Reference Pages). 2005-10-01. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  6. Nash, Eric P. (2001-12-17). "Seymour V. Reit, 83, a Creator of Casper the Friendly Ghost". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  7. Jacobs, Frank, The Mad World of William M. Gaines, Lyle Stuart Press, 1972, pgs. 191-192
  8. Taliaferro, Frances (1981-07-26). "Nonfiction in brief". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  9. Van Gelder, Lawrence (1990-03-02). "At the Movies". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  10. "The Day They Stole the Mona Lisa (2009)". Internet Movie Database. 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  11. Guns for General Washington, Google Book Search.
  12. "FOR YOUNGER VIEWERS; He's a Party Animal". The New York Times. 2008-11-19. Retrieved 2008-08-17.
  13. A Dog's Tale, Google Book Search.
  14. Trains, Google Book Search.
  15. Behind Rebel Lines, Google Book Search.
  16. Scotland Yard Detective, Google Book Search.
  17. Scotland Yard Detective title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 2018-08-03.
  18. Sibling Rivalry, Google Book Search.
  19. They Day They Stole the Mona Lisa, Google Book Search.
  20. The Pleasure of Their Company, Google Book Search.
  21. Masquerade, Google Book Search.
  22. Sails, Rails, and Wings, Google Book Search.
  23. Ironclad!: A True Story of the Civil War, Alibris.
  24. The Worried Ghost, WorldCat.
  25. The Worried Ghost title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 2018-08-03.
  26. Race Against Death, Google Book Search.
  27. Benvenuto and the Carnival, Google Book Search.
  28. Benvenuto, Google Book Search.
  29. Rice Cakes and Paper Dragons, Google Book Search.
  30. The Easy How-To Book, Google Book Search.
  31. Child of the Navajos, Google Book Search.
  32. The Magic of Everyday Things, Google Book Search.
  33. Growing Up in the White House, Google Book Search.
  34. America Laughs, Google Book Search.
  35. Coins and Coin Collecting, Google Book Search.
  36. "All kinds of signs". WorldCat. Retrieved 2018-08-03.
  37. Wheels, Sails, and Wings, Google Book Search.
  38. "The king who learned to smile". LC Online Catalog (lccn.loc.gov). Retrieved 2018-08-03.
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