Syd Hoff facts for kids

Syd Hoff (September 4, 1912 – May 12, 2004) was an American cartoonist and author of children's books. He is most famous for his classic early reader book, Danny and the Dinosaur. Syd Hoff's fun cartoons were seen in many places, including advertisements for well-known companies like Eveready Batteries and Jell-O.

The Life of Syd Hoff

Syd Hoff was born in the Bronx, a part of New York City. When he was still in high school, a famous cartoonist named Milt Gross told him he would be a great cartoonist one day. This must have been very encouraging!

Starting His Career

At just 16 years old, Syd Hoff went to the National Academy of Design in New York City to study art. By the time he was 18, he had already sold his first cartoon to The New Yorker magazine. He ended up selling 571 cartoons to The New Yorker between 1931 and 1975. His cartoons often showed scenes of city life, especially in apartment buildings and everyday neighborhoods.

Syd Hoff's cartoons appeared in many popular magazines, including Esquire and Look. He even had his own TV show called Tales of Hoff, where he drew pictures and told stories.

Writing for Young Readers

Syd Hoff wrote and drew pictures for over 60 books in the "I Can Read" series by HarperCollins. These books are perfect for kids who are just learning to read. His most famous book is Danny and the Dinosaur (published in 1958). This book has sold over 10 million copies and has been translated into many different languages around the world. Another popular book he wrote was Sammy the Seal.

In 1976, Syd Hoff also put together a large book called Editorial and Political Cartooning: From Earlier Times to the Present. It featured more than 700 examples of political cartoons from different artists.

Syd Hoff's Comic Strips

Syd Hoff also created two popular comic strips that appeared in newspapers for many years.

• Tuffy (1939–1949)
• Laugh It Off (1958–1978)

One of his characters, a man with a walrus mustache, became the father character in his daily Tuffy comic strip. This strip was created for the King Features Syndicate.

Tuffy was so popular that it was considered "essential for national morale" during World War II. This meant that Syd Hoff did not have to join the military for active duty. Instead, he worked for the Office of War Information and drew cartoons that were used to help with the war effort.

Political Cartoons as A. Redfield

From 1933, Syd Hoff also drew cartoons for newspapers and magazines that focused on social and political issues. He used the name A. Redfield for these drawings. His first published book, The Ruling Clawss (1935), was a collection of these political cartoons. He also wrote a children's book with a social message called Mr. His: A Children's Story for Anybody.

Syd Hoff's political cartoons became less frequent after 1940. He was later questioned by the FBI in 1952 because of his past political work. However, he was never charged with anything or put on a blacklist. He remained worried throughout his life that his political past might affect how people viewed his children's books.

Books by Syd Hoff

Syd Hoff wrote and illustrated many books for children and some for adults.

Children's Books

• Muscles and Brains (1940)
• It's Fun Learning Cartooning (1952)
• Out of Gas (1954)
• Eight Little Artists
• Patty's Pet (1955)
• Danny and the Dinosaur series (1958–1996)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur (1958)
  • Happy Birthday, Danny and the Dinosaur (1985)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur Go to Camp (1996)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur: Too Tall (2014)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur and the New Puppy (2015)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur and the Girl Next Door (2016)
  • Danny and the Dinosaur: School Days (2017)
• Julius (1959)
• Sammy the Seal (1959)
• Ogluk the Eskimo (1960)
• Oliver (1960)
• Where's Prancer? (1960)
• Who Will Be My Friends? (1960)
• Chester (1961)
• Albert the Albatross (1961)
• Little Chief (1961)
• Stanley (1962)
• Grizzwold (1963)
• Lengthy (1964)
• Mrs. Switch (1966)
• Learning to Cartoon (1966)
• Irving and Me (1967)
• Jeffrey at Camp (1968)
• Slithers (1968)
• Wanda's Wand (1968)
• The Witch, the Cat, and the Baseball Bat (1968)
• The Rooftop Mystery (1968) — text by Joan M. Lexau
• Baseball Mouse (1969)
• Herschel the Hero (1969)
• Roberto and the Bull (1969)
• The Horse in Harry's Room (1970)
• A Walk Past Ellen's House (1973)
• Barkley (1975)
• Henrietta series (1977–1985)
  • Henrietta Lays Some Eggs (1977)
  • Henrietta, Circus Star (1978)
  • Henrietta, the Early Bird (1978)
  • Henrietta Goes to the Fair (1979)
  • Henrietta's Halloween (1980)
  • Henrietta's Fourth of July (1981)
  • Happy Birthday, Henrietta! (1983)
  • Henrietta's Vacation (1985)
• Walpole (1977)
• Syd Hoff Shows You How to Draw Cartoons (1979)
• The Man Who Loved Animals (1982)
• The Young Cartoonist, The ABC's of Cartooning (1983)
• Barney's Horse (1987)
• Mrs. Brice's Mice (1988)
• Captain Cat (1993)

Books for Adults

• The Ruling Clawss (Daily Worker, 1935)
• Feeling No Pain: an Album of Cartoons (1944)
• Mom, I'm Home! (1945)
• Oops! Wrong Party! (1951)
• Oops! Wrong Stateroom! (1953)
• Okay—You Can Look Now! (1955)
• The Better Hoff (1961)
• Upstream, Downstream and Out of My Mind (1961)
• Twixt the Cup and the Lipton (1962)
• So This is Matrimony: Cartoons (1962)
• Hunting, Anyone? (1963)
• From Bed to Nurse, or, What a Way to Die (1963)

Film Adaptations

Syd Hoff's 1962 book Stanley was made into a short stop-motion animation film in 1989. The film was called Stanley and the Dinosaurs. It was produced by Churchill Films.