Today is the birthday of Maurice Sendak, an author and an artist who is most famous for his children's book, Where The Wild Things Are. The story is a personal favorite and an internationally acclaimed tale of an imaginative young boy named Max who is sent to bed without supper. Maurice lived on Chestnut Hill Rd in Ridgefield, until he died of a stroke on May 8, 2012. The New York Times obituary called Sendak "The most important children's book artist of the 20th century."
Mr. Sendak was a beloved and magical member of the Ridgefield community. His gifts to our town include drawings that he donated to the library where he served as an honorary co-chairman of the New Library Campaign, and his donation of 30 acres of land to the Ridgefield Land Conservatory.
"A little boy sent me a charming card with a little drawing on it. I loved it. I answer all my children's letters – sometimes very hastily – but this one I lingered over. I sent him a card and I drew a picture of a Wild Thing on it. I wrote, 'Dear Jim: I loved your card.' Then I got a letter back from his mother and she said: 'Jim loved your card so much he ate it.' That to me was one of the highest compliments I've ever received. He didn't care that it was an original Maurice Sendak drawing or anything. He saw it, he loved it, he ate it."
Check out Google's tribute to his 85th birthday!