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Crockett Johnson's Characters: Others from the 1950s

Who's Upside Down?

"In the picture, the kangaroo saw you, standing around where you live and not doing anything very much at the moment, and, halfway around the world, there was she." You appear in both the geography book the kangaroo is reading and in the main text ofWho's Upside Down? Sometimes you respond to the kanagroo and other times you notice other illustrations, but you never speak.

You

Big kangaroo and little kangaroo

Since "the kangaroo couldn't read, even very short words," she feels upside down and, when she feels upside down, is shown upside down. In response to this feeling, her little kangaroo steps back to take a look and tells her, "You look all right to me, ma." Like Ellen's lion, the little kangaroo is the practical member of the duo, suggesting that they turn the book around.

Terrible, Terrifying Toby

Time for Spring

Irene

Discouraged by the late snowfall, Irene decides to make "a very little snowman" because she had "very little interest left in things that had to do with winter." When he comes to life, she grows concerned that winter will never end. She reluctantly participates in his winter games and, though she doesn't wish for his demise, does wish for spring to come.

Irene's snowman bears more than a passing resemblance to Mr. O'Malley in both body-shape and attitude. His ideas for winter fun are much more fun for him than for Irene (she carries the sled up the hill, then he sleds down on it). His comment that "Spring won't come, while I'm here" worries her, but when she tries to refute him, he says, "Spring, no snowman" and "Snowman, no spring." She agrees that the "first part's true," then he adds "And the last part follows."

The snowman

The Blue Ribbon Puppies

2 children and 5 of their 7 puppies

When one of the children decides that a particular puppy is, for example, "too tall" to receive the "best puppy" ribbon, the puppy looks at the child. The child then promptly has a change of heart (as you can see, these are very cute puppies.)

 

Merry Go Round

 

On the merry go round, the boy rides, round and around. It is as if a camera were attached at center of the ride, its lens fixed on the boy: with each turn of the page, he remains at the center, but the background shifts, recording his motion. Beneath the pictures, in all capitals, with minimal punctuation, the text proceeds, each page offering a line of almost exactly the same length:   PAST THE GLASS HOUSE WITH FLOWERS IN IT PAST THE STATUE OF A HORSE AND A GENERAL PAST HIS MOTHER AND FATHER, WHO WAITED "ISN'T IT EVER GOING TO STOP?" THEY SIGHED   Like the sentence, the ride never ends, and the boy (referred to only as "he") turns round for as long as the reader keeps turning the pages.

The boy and his mother and father

The Frowning Prince

Will Spring Be Early? or Will Spring Be Late?

The Groundhog

A very conscientious, good-natured groundhog. Before rushing off to spread the news, he pauses: "I must be certain there is no sun. I must make sure I have no shadow." When he listens and smells for the sun, a passing truck interferes with his senses and, seeing an artificial flower dropped by the truck, he thinks it real and jumps to the wrong conclusion.

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Cartoons: Barnaby and Barkis | Harold and Ellen | Others: 1950s | Others: 1960s | Collaborations

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All of Johnson's text and artwork is © by the Estate of Ruth Krauss.

The rest of these pages are © 1998-2005 by Philip Nel. Read the Disclaimer. 

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Last updated Wednesday, August 3, 2005.