Tomie and Monique’s wedding and the dePaola family, left to right: sister Judie, dad Joe, mom Flossie, brother Joe, Jr., sister Maureen. 1959. (Bob)
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REMEMBERING TOMIE on February 28, 2021
I know nothing about this cloth banner. Absolutely nothing. (Bob)
Copyright (c) by Tomie dePaola
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REMEMBERING TOMIE on February 27, 2021
Spring, 1984, the Bologna (Italy) Children’s Book Fair. (A recent book fair boasted 1400 exhibitors and 30,000 visitors from 80 countries.)
Tomie attended with his foreign rights agent, Ruth Gottstein. The two of them are in the top photo in their booth at the fair. Ruth and Tomie used the fair to sell foreign language rights to Tomie’s books. And that’s why you could find Tomie’s books in Portugal to China, Greenland to South Africa.
During this trip to Italy, Tomie along with his sister, Maureen, took a tour group with them. (I chose to pass on this trip.)
Tomie wasn’t always as attentive to the group as the group would have expected so Maureen needed to encourage Tomie to spend more time with the group (who had bought into the “Tomie dePaola Trip to Italy”).
Ruth and Tomie would hold a cocktail party at the Hotel Roma during Tomie’s trips to the book fair. In the bottom photo, Maureen and Bea Herrmann Richards, a retired elementary school librarian from Michigan, at Ruth and Tomie’s party. (Bob)
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REMEMBERING TOMIE on February 26, 2021
Tomie in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1986 (although it was spelled “Gotenburg” in 1986).
Some of Tomie’s books in Swedish are listed on the poster. (Bob)
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REMEMBERING TOMIE on February 25, 2021
Tomie designed the Minneapolis Dayton’s - Bachman’s Flower Show in 1989: March 11 - 25. At the time, I think the annual flower show was the largest in the country with a singular designer and theme.
When Dale Bachman called to ask Tomie for his flower order, Tomie replied, “Huh, uh, what?” You can imagine Tomie’s problem when you realize the Dayton’s auditorium was transformed with 200 cubic yards of soil and over 4000 square feet of flowers and plant material - “approximately seven semi-truck loads.”
“A Child’s Garden of Verses, Songs, Games… and Other Things,” a land of make-believe, was a salute to the 25th anniversary season of the Minneapolis Children’s Theatre Company (CTC). CTC produced several full-stage productions, based on Tomie’s books, with Tomie as costume designer.
This image was on the flower show poster.
Although I was around for the planning of the show, I never did see the show. I was on a break from Tomie, but was encouraged to return after ten months when Tomie asked me to return, and after hearing his friends’ concerns, during my absence, of his mental and physical health.
The few photos I saw of the show were wonderful. (Bob)
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