Curious George

Last updated

Curious George
Curious George.png
First appearance Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys (1939)
Created by Hans Augusto Rey
Margret Rey
Voiced by Corey Burton (1982–1984)
Frank Welker (2006–present)
In-universe information
Full nameCurious George
Species Monkey
GenderMale

Curious George is a fictional monkey who is the title character of a series of popular children's picture books written and illustrated by Margret and H. A. Rey. Various media, including films and TV shows, have been based upon the original book series.

Contents

George is described as "a good little monkey, and always very curious". In the first book, George is caught by "The Man in the Yellow Hat" and taken from Africa to America where the two live together. George and the Man in the Yellow Hat become friends.

George's first appearance was as a monkey named "Fifi" in the book Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys , which was first published in France during 1939 in the late years. [1] The popularity of the character led the Reys to feature "George" in his own series.

History

Creation

The original series was written by the husband-and-wife team of Hans Augusto (H. A.) Rey and Margret Rey. The Jewish couple fled Paris in June 1940, on bicycles they had made themselves, carrying the Curious George manuscript with them. [2] [3] At first, only H. A. Rey was credited for the work in order to distinguish the Reys' books from the large number of children's books written by female authors. The first seven books were illustrated by H.A. Rey. [4] Later, Alan J. Shalleck was credited as an editor and Hans Rey and Margret Rey for the writing and illustrating. The Reys produced many other children's books, but the Curious George series was the most popular. Each book has been in continuous print since it was first published.

Literature

The White House 2003 Christmas decoration using Curious George as the theme with the Barbara Bush portrait. WhiteHouseCuriousGeorge2003.jpg
The White House 2003 Christmas decoration using Curious George as the theme with the Barbara Bush portrait.

Margret and H. A. Rey released seven Curious George books during H. A. Rey's lifetime. Recently, more Curious George books have been released by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt including board books with scenes from the original books, books adapted from the 1980s telefilm series, and new adventures.

Original adventures

Curious George appeared in 1941. This book begins with George living in Africa and tells the story of his capture by the Man with the Yellow Hat, who takes him on a ship to "the big city" where he will live in a zoo. The second book, Curious George Takes a Job (1947), begins with George living in the zoo, from which he escapes and has several adventures before the Man with the Yellow Hat finds him and takes George to live at his house. The remaining five stories describe George's adventures while living at the house of the Man with the Yellow Hat. Although the Man with the Yellow Hat is unnamed in both the original books and telefilm books, he receives his name in the Curious George TV series and is known as "Theodore Shackleford".

Sometimes dubbed the "Original Adventures", these original seven titles are completely by the series creators, Margret & H. A. Rey.

Before appearing in his own series, Curious George appeared as a character in another children's book written and illustrated by H. A. Rey, Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys (1939).

Books adapted from telefilms

A second series of books, based on the telefilm series, was edited by Margret & H.A. Rey and Alan J. Shalleck. These appeared between 1984 and 1993. They are mostly out of print, though several have been re-released with new cover art as part of the next series, the "New Adventures".

"New Adventures"

A third series of books, the Curious George "New Adventures", began to appear in 1998, and continues to the present. These books are "illustrated in the style of H. A. Rey" by a variety of credited and uncredited artists including Mary O'Keefe Young, Martha Weston, Anna Grossnickle Hines, Michael Alan Jensen, and Vipah Interactive.[ citation needed ]

"The Man with the Yellow Hat"

The Man in the Yellow Hat. Yellow Hat (Curious George).jpg
The Man in the Yellow Hat.

Aside from George himself, the only recurring character in the original adventures is the Man with the yellow Hat who is George's best friend and caretaker. The Man often facilitates George's adventures by taking him somewhere, and even more often resolves the tension by intervening just in time to get George out of a tight spot. He is always seen wearing a bright yellow suit and a wide brimmed yellow hat. The Man is never mentioned by name in the original adventures or in any subsequent content over more than six decades.

He is always referred to as "The Man" or fully "The Man with the Yellow Hat" (abbreviated "TMWTYH"), but aside from those two names, he is unnamed in the original series and telefilm books. When people speak to George about the Man, they often refer to him as "Your friend". In H. A. Rey's book See the Circus, published in 1946, "The Man with the Yellow Hat" was referred to as "Ted". Later, in Curious George (2006), the Man, who is voiced by Will Ferrell, is also referred to as "Ted" throughout the film; his last name is revealed as being "Shacklefield" in a deleted scene. In the TV series, he is voiced by Jeff Bennett.

Other media

Curious George has been adapted into a television show, magazine, and video game.

Television

A set of animated Curious George television films were produced from 1979 to 1982; they were first shown in the United States in 1984 on Nickelodeon. [5] This series was produced and co-written by Alan Shalleck. [6]

The shorts were aired on The Disney Channel as a segment on the program Lunch Box starting in 1989. [7] [8]

In 1993, Margret Rey successfully sued Lafferty, Harwood, and Partners, the Canadian company that funded the cartoons, for licensing VHS tapes to third-party companies without the Reys' permission. The Reys eventually won the dispute, forcing Lafferty, Harwood, and Partners to pay for all wrongdoing. [9]

A new Curious George series debuted on September 4, 2006 on PBS Kids as part of the PBS Kids Preschool Block. Although Curious George ended its original run on April 1, 2015, the series is still airing on PBS Kids in reruns. It was produced by the Boston affiliate WGBH, Imagine Entertainment, and Universal Animation Studios. A revival of the series was released on the streaming service Peacock on July 15, 2020. [10]

Film

The 2017 film Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George's Creators documents the lives of Hans and Margret Rey including their flight from France during the 1940 invasion by Germany, their life in the United States, and their creation of the Curious George children's books. [11]

Animated

A minimal-animation 16 mm film called Curious George Rides a Bike was produced by Weston Woods Studios in 1958 [12] and later released on DVD. [13]

In 1982, animator John Clark Matthews produced a 16 mm stop-motion animated short called Curious George Goes to the Hospital based on the book of the same name. In 1984, they created another short, again based on the book of the same name. Produced by Churchill Films, the films were created with puppet-figures. [14] [15] Matthews would later use a similar technique for his Frog and Toad films. [16]

An animated film, Curious George , was released on February 10, 2006, featuring Will Ferrell as the voice of the originally unnamed Man with the Yellow Hat. In the film (in which The Man is referred to as "Ted"), Curious George secretly follows The Man onto the ship to the city on his own accord. Frank Welker provided the vocal effects of Curious George. Ron Howard serves as the film's producer.

A direct-to-video sequel to the film was released on March 2, 2010, titled Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! , which featured Jeff Bennett replacing Ferrell as the voice of the Man. Bennett also provides the Man's voice in the television series. The second direct-to-video sequel, Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle, was released on June 23, 2015. [17] Curious George: Royal Monkey was released on September 10, 2019, while Curious George: Go West, Go Wild was released on Peacock on September 20, 2020. [18] A sixth and final film, Curious George: Cape Ahoy, was released on Peacock on September 30, 2021. A Christmas film, Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas , was released in 2009 on PBS. "Curious George Swings Into Spring" and "Curious George: A Halloween Boo Fest" were released in 2013. On Monday, August 6, it began to re-run on Cartoonito.[ citation needed ]

Reboot

A live action/animated film was in development at Illumination Entertainment in the beginning of the 2010s. [19] [20] In August 2016, Andrew Adamson was in negotiations to direct, co-write, and executive produce a live action film for Universal Pictures, along with Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, David Kirschner, Jon Shapiro and Erica Huggins producing it. [21]

Video game

A Curious George video game was released on February 2, 2006, published by Namco and developed by Monkey Bar Games, a division of Vicious Cycle Software for Microsoft Windows, Xbox, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Game Boy Advance. It is the based on the 2006 animated film. A version for the Nintendo DS was also planned, but was cancelled.[ citation needed ]

Other

A children's bookstore in Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts was known as Curious George and Friends (formerly Curious George Goes To Wordsworth) and carried a considerable amount of licensed Curious George merchandise. It was the last remaining property of Wordsworth Books, a former local general interest bookstore that closed in the beginning of the 2000s. This store was closed in June 2011. [22] A new store, the World's Only Curious George Store, opened in 2012 at the same address and closed permanently in 2021. [23]

From 2009 to 2011, a musical stage show based on the TV series, Curious George Live!, toured the United States and Canada. In the show, George heads to Rome, Italy to help Chef Pisghetti win a meatball eating contest there. The show was produced by VEE Corporation, the producer of Sesame Street Live! . As of 2024, the show continues to be performed in several community theaters and has been retitled Curious George: The Golden Meatball.

Curious George is used as the theme for children's play areas and some of the children's entertainment on the Stena Line ferries. [24] On some peak time sailings, this includes a Curious George costumed character. Curious George merchandise is also provided with children's meals and is available to purchase in the on-board shop.

A Curious George-themed water play area, Curious George Goes to Town, opened at Universal Studios Florida in 1998 and was removed in 2023. The attraction was also featured at Universal Studios Hollywood until its removal in 2013.

In February 2006, the Curious George brand partnered with Welch's jelly for a collection of six jars. In the latter part of that decade (when the new film and the new television show were released), licensing deals for the character generally involved less upscale, more kid-focused products. [25] Earlier, Vivendi Universal (now NBCUniversal) had—for a short time—embraced the use of the character in a series of 2001 adverts for the company, but the character never officially became a corporate mascot. [25]

In the 1994 film Forrest Gump , one edition of Curious George is featured as Forrest's favorite book, which his mother reads to him. Forrest later reads it with his son, with a Curious George plush also shown on his shelf. In the opening scene, a feather comes floating down to Forrest's feet and he stores it in this book. At the end of the film, it falls out of the book and rises floating through the air again.

Jarrod, the protagonist of the NBC series The Pretender , reads Curious George books in season one and develops a fascination with them. He likens himself to George and Sydney Green to the Man with the Yellow Hat.

The books have inspired other derivative works, including Bangkok Bob (written by Sasha Alyson and published by the Lao publishing project Big Brother Mouse).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H. A. Rey</span> Childrens illustrator and writer (1898–1977)

H. A. Rey was a German-born American illustrator and author, known best for the series of children's picture books that he and his wife Margret Rey created about Curious George.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margret Rey</span> Childrens illustrator and writer (1906–1996)

Margret Elizabeth Rey was a German-born American writer and illustrator, best known for the Curious George series of children's picture books that she and her husband H. A. Rey created from 1939 to 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pet monkey</span> Monkey kept as a pet

A pet monkey is a monkey kept as a pet. Monkeys are beloved for their entertainment value, resemblance to humans, and human-like abilities, but the practice of keeping monkeys as pets is criticized by primatologists and zoologists due to issues surrounding conservation, the animals' welfare, and public health and safety.

<i>Curious George</i> (film) 2006 animated film directed by Matthew OCallaghan

Curious George is a 2006 animated adventure film based on the book series written by H. A. Rey and Margret Rey. It was directed by Matthew O'Callaghan, written by Ken Kaufman and produced by Ron Howard, David Kirschner, and Jon Shapiro. Featuring the voices of Frank Welker, Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore, David Cross, Eugene Levy, Joan Plowright, and Dick Van Dyke, it tells the story of how the Man with the Yellow Hat, a tour guide at a museum, first befriended a curious monkey named George and started going on adventures with him around the city while attempting to save the museum from closure.

Alan J. Shalleck was an American writer and producer for children's programming on television, most known for his work on later Curious George books and the 1980s television shorts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Joyce (writer)</span> American writer

William Edward Joyce is an American writer, illustrator, and filmmaker. He has achieved worldwide recognition as an author, artist and pioneer in the digital and animation industry.

<i>Curious George</i> (TV series) 2006 animated television series

Curious George is an American children's animated television series based on the children's book series of the same name for PBS Kids and a sequel series to the 2006 animated film Curious George. Frank Welker, who voiced George in the 2006 film, reprises the role in the series while Jeff Bennett co-stars as the voice of "The Man with the Yellow Hat", replacing Will Ferrell. The show premiered on PBS Kids on September 4, 2006, not long after the film's release, and originally ended after nine seasons on April 1, 2015 before returning in 2018. Later seasons were released on Peacock, and the series concluded on March 17, 2022 after a total of 15 seasons. This is the second animated series from Imagine Entertainment, following 1999’s The PJs.

<i>Curious George Flies a Kite</i> Book written by Margaret Rey and illustrated by H. A. Rey

Curious George Flies a Kite is a children's book written for beginning readers by Margret Rey, illustrated by H. A. Rey, and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1958. It is the fifth book in the original Curious George series and the only one the Reys did not write together.

<i>Curious George</i> (book) Childrens book by Margret and H. A. Rey

Curious George is a children's book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey, and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941. The first book in the Curious George series, it tells the story of an orphaned monkey named George and his adventures with the Man with the Yellow Hat. For 83 years, it has sold over 25 million copies, and has been translated into various different languages such as Japanese, French, Afrikaans, Portuguese, Swedish, German, Chinese, Danish, and Norwegian. It is also in the Indie Choice Book Awards Picture Book Hall of Fame and has been the subject of scholarly criticism.

<i>Curious George Takes a Job</i>

Curious George Takes a Job is a children's book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1947. It is the second of the Curious George books and tells the story of George taking a job as a window washer.

<i>Curious George Rides a Bike</i> Book by H. A. Rey

Curious George Rides a Bike is a children's book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1952. It is the third book of the original Curious George series and tells the story of George's new bicycle and his experiences performing with an animal show.

<i>Curious George Goes to the Hospital</i>

Curious George Goes to the Hospital is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1966. It is the seventh and final book in the original Curious George series, and tells the story of George's experiences in a hospital after swallowing a jigsaw puzzle piece.

<i>Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey!</i> 2009 American film

Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! is a 2009 American animated adventure comedy film based on the Curious George children's stories by H.A. Rey and Margret Rey. The sequel to the 2006 film Curious George, it was originally subtitled Monkey on the Run. It was released straight to DVD in the United States and theatrically in Denmark, Sweden, and Iceland.

<i>The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!</i> Canadian-British-American animated television series

The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! is an animated musical preschool children's television series featuring Martin Short as the voice of The Cat in the Hat. It premiered on Treehouse TV in Canada on August 7, 2010, also airing on YTV and Nickelodeon Canada on weekday mornings from 2012 to 2013, and on PBS Kids and PBS Kids Preschool in the US on September 6, 2010; it also aired on CITV and Tiny Pop in the UK, and Disney Junior India. The show is based on Random House's Beginner Books franchise and The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library, itself based on the 1957 children's book The Cat in the Hat.

<i>Curious George Gets a Medal</i> 1957 book by H. A. Rey

Curious George Gets a Medal is a George book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1957. It is the fourth book in the original Curious George series, and tells the story of George's flight into space. The story was published only weeks before the Soviets launched Sputnik II and Rey wanted to share his interests in space travel with children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Universal Animation Studios</span> American animation studio

Universal Animation Studios LLC is an American animation studio and a division of Universal Pictures, which is a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast. It has produced direct-to-video sequels to Universal-released feature films, such as The Land Before Time, An American Tail, Balto, and Curious George, as well as other films and television series.

<i>Curious George</i> (franchise) Media series

Curious George is an American media franchise based on the animated television series of the same name by H. A. Rey and Margret Rey. The series began with the theatrical release of the first film in 2006. The film's success led it to receiving direct-to-video sequels, a television series as well as a video game.

Matthew O'Callaghan is an American film director, animator, writer, and storyboard artist whose credits include directing the 2006 film Curious George and co-creating the television series Life with Louie.

Curious George is a 1982 animated television series produced by Alan Shalleck, along with the co-creator of the Curious George books, Margret Rey.

Curious George is a 1984 short stop-motion animated children's film, and is based on H. A. Rey's 1941 book of the same name. The film is directed by John Matthews and was produced by Churchill Films. The company also produced Curious George Goes to the Hospital two years prior in 1982. The two films are often paired together and collectively called The Adventures of Curious George.

References

  1. ↑ "Curious George. About the Reys | PBS KIDS". 2008-06-16. Archived from the original on 2008-06-16. Retrieved 2022-07-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ↑ "Boston.com News, By Mark Feeney Globe Staff". The Boston Globe. September 17, 2005. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
  3. ↑ Dinitia Smith (September 13, 2005). "How Curious George Escaped the Nazis". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 29 May 2015. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
  4. ↑ Marcus, Leonard S. "Introduction" in The Complete Curious George. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001.
  5. ↑ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 227. ISBN   978-1476665993.
  6. ↑ "Alan Shalleck Dies at 76; a Writer and TV Director". The New York Times . Feb 9, 2006. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  7. ↑ The Disney Channel Magazine, Vol. 7, no. 5, September/October 1989: p. 41.
  8. ↑ The Disney Channel Magazine, Vol. 9, no. 6, November/December 1991: p. 34.
  9. ↑ Biederman, Donald E.; Pierson, Edward P.; Biederman, Charles J.; Silfen, Martin E. (10 May 2018). Law and Business of the Entertainment Industries. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN   9780275992057 – via Google Books.
  10. ↑ "Peacock TV: Halloween Kills, Yellowstone, Premier League, NFL and everything else".
  11. ↑ "Five Questions With... Ema Ryan Yamazaki, Director of Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George's Creators". Nantucket Film Festival. June 23, 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  12. ↑ Curious George rides a bike. in libraries ( WorldCat catalog)
  13. ↑ ISBN   0-439-69687-9
  14. ↑ "John Clark Matthews' The Adventures of Curious George (1982)". Stop Motion Magazine. June 10, 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  15. ↑ "Filmography".
  16. ↑ See samples on John Clarke Matthews' website Archived 2010-05-31 at the Wayback Machine , also available as a DVD / VHS, including the Frog and Toad animations - "Curious George Comes To America" ASIN: B00062J0OE
  17. ↑ "Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle". Universal Studios Home Entertainment. 21 March 2015. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
  18. ↑ "New 'Curious George' Movie Hitting Peacock, Along with Seasons 1-9 of TV Series". 3 September 2020.
  19. ↑ Zeitchik, Steven (July 30, 2010). "With 'Curious George', Illumination looks to make more animation mischief". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  20. ↑ Debruge, Peter (November 17, 2015). "'Minions' and Illumination Create a Blockbuster Animation Unit for Universal". Variety. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  21. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (August 8, 2016). "Andrew Adamson To Direct Live-Action 'Curious George' For Universal". Deadline.
  22. ↑ Curious George story ending as Harvard Square shop loses lease, Boston Herald, June 7, 2011
  23. ↑ Cho, Emmy M.; Hsu, Carrie. "Comedy Club to Move Into Vacant Curious George Store Space in 2022". Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  24. ↑ Stena Line Curious George Archived 2011-10-01 at the Wayback Machine
  25. 1 2 Kilday, Gregg (2006-02-03). "The curious saga of George's big-screen gig". The Macon Daily (article from The Hollywood Reporter). Retrieved 2010-05-10.[ permanent dead link ]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.