Tales from the 50s discovered by avid fan in old magazines due out in new book Seven rarely-seen Dr Seuss stories from the 50s, which were tracked down by a Massachusetts dentist, will finally be published in book form this autumn. Dr Seuss’s art director Cathy Goldsmith was on eBay when she stumbled across a sale for tearsheets from 1950s magazines, purporting to be stories by the author, who was born Theodor Seuss Geisel in 1904. She bought the stories, and discovered that the seller, dentist Charles Cohen, was a huge collector of “Seussiana” and an avid Seuss scholar. She travelled to Springfield, Massachussetts, to meet him along with Random House vice-president and publisher Kate Klimo. “His house was literally bursting at the seams with Seussiana: plush, toys, beer trays, puzzles, and a wide range of ephemera. Not only that, Dr Cohen was a fount of Seuss information, history, and theories about Ted’s artistic process,” said Klimo. “In short order, we had contracted Cohen to write what would become The Seuss, The Whole Seuss, and Nothing But the Seuss . Published in 2003, it was a nearly encyclopaedic look at Ted’s career. But through it all, Charles always wanted to compile the stories he had found in various magazines.” Ten years later, The Bippolo Seed – described by the publisher as “the literary equivalent of buried treasure” – is lined up for publication in September. “These stories were published during what could arguably be called Dr Seuss’s most fertile creative period, a time that would yield both Cat in the Hat and Grinch, a time when his theories about how to reach children through rhyme, rhythm, and a resonant combination of nonsense and sagacity, were coming into full bloom,” said Klimo. “The stories are as good as anything in the already-published canon and readers of all ages are in for a treat.” The stories include The Strange Shirt Spot, the inspiration for the bathtub ring scene in The Cat in the Hat Comes Back (“‘Have no fear of that ring,’ / Laughed the Cat in the Hat. / ‘Why, I can take cat rings / Off tubs. Just like that!’ / Do you know how he did it? / WITH MOTHER’S WHITE DRESS! / Now the tub was all clean, / But her dress was a mess!”) Gustav the Goldfish is an early, rhymed version of the Dr Seuss book A Fish Out of Water, about a fish that grows and grows, while The Bippolo Seed tells of a conniving feline (reminiscent of the Cat in the Hat, perhaps) who encourages an innocent duck to make a bad decision. The book is completed with The Great Henry McBride, about a boy whose “far-flung career fantasies are only bested by those of the real Dr Seuss”; The Bear, the Rabbit, and the Zinniga-Zanniga, about a rabbit saved from a bear with a single eyelash; Steak for Supper, about fantastic creatures who follow a boy home for dinner; and Tadd and Todd, a story about twins. Due out in late September from Random House in the US and HarperCollins in the UK, The Bippolo Seed and other lost stories will include an introduction from Cohen, explaining the significance of the stories in Dr Seuss’s career. The author, who died in 1991 aged 87, won a Pulitzer for his contribution to American education. He wrote and illustrated 44 books, making his name in 1957 with The Cat in the Hat. Containing just 225 words, it was written following a challenge from his publisher: to write a fun story using the list of words first-grade schoolchildren needed to learn. Dr Seuss Children’s books: 7 and under Children and teenagers Publishing Alison Flood guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Google adding touchscreen-friendly tweaks to Chrome OS, still has tablets on its mind
April 7, 2011 No Comment
When a tablet version of Chrome OS was teased back in February of last year, we found it a legitimately exciting proposition. Now that we have Android’s Honeycomb iteration designed specifically for slates, however, we’re having to wonder just why Google’s still chasing that keyboard-less dream with its web-centric OS. CNET has been doing some snooping in and around the latest iterations of Chrome OS, where it’s discovered numerous pieces of circumstantial evidence, such as a new onscreen keyboard, suggesting tablets are still very much on the menu. Chrome OS kicked off life on the development device known as Cr-48 and will resume availability this summer courtesy of Acer and Samsung, though we’d kind of assumed it would stick to notebooks now that Android’s making a sincere effort on devices bigger than an EVO . Mountain View has responded to CNET ‘s queries with a pretty inconclusive statement, saying only that “We are engaging in early open-source work for the tablet form factor, but we have nothing new to announce at this time.” Check out last year’s concept video after the break. Continue reading Google adding touchscreen-friendly tweaks to Chrome OS, still has tablets on its mind Google adding touchscreen-friendly tweaks to Chrome OS, still has tablets on its mind originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 07:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Donald Trump has been putting himself out there over the last few weeks, and Republican voters are liking what they see. The Donald is tied with Mike Huckabee for second place in a field of nine possible contenders in a new Wall Street Journal /NBC poll of Republican primary voters….
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Business secretary Vince Cable says increase to £6.08 an hour ‘reflects economic uncertainty’ The national minimum wage is to increase by 15p an hour to £6.08 in October, benefiting almost a million workers, the government has announced. Ministers said they had accepted recommendations from the Low Pay Commission , giving a new adult rate of £6.08, while the statutory minimum for 18- to 20-year-olds will increase by 6p to £4.98 an hour. The rate for 16- to 17-year-olds will increase by 4p to £3.68 an hour and the rate for apprentices will increase by 10p to £2.60 an hour. Vince Cable, the business secretary, said: “More than 890,000 of Britain’s lowest-paid workers will gain from these changes. They are appropriate, reflecting the current economic uncertainty, while at the same time protecting the UK’s lowest-paid workers. “I would like to thank the Low Pay Commission for doing a good job in difficult circumstances.” The commission’s chairman, David Norgrove, said: “We welcome the government’s acceptance of our recommendations. The commission was again unanimous, despite all the economic uncertainties. “We believe we have struck the right balance between the needs of low-paid workers and the challenges faced by businesses.” Pay Work & careers Vince Cable guardian.co.uk
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Witnesses tell how gunman opened fire on pupils at Tasso da Silveira primary school in Rio de Janeiro As many as 20 people are feared dead after a gunman invaded a primary school in Rio de Janeiro and opened fire. One witness told the Guardian he had seen between 15 and 20 children dead or seriously wounded inside the Tasso da Silveira primary school in western Rio. “It is a massacre, a true massacre,” said Roni de Macedo, a fireman who arrived on the scene shortly after the shooting began and dragged eight seriously injured children from the second floor classroom. “There is blood on the walls, blood on the chairs. There are 15 to 20 dead I think,” said De Macedo, who was covered in blood. “I’ve never seen anything like this. It’s like something in the United States.” Witnesses said the shooting began outside the school at around 8.30am when a man opened fire on two boys, shooting one in the head and one in the arm with what was said to be handgun. He is said to have cotinued through the school’s metal gates and up to a packed classroom the second floor, opening fire on children aged between 11 and 13. “I saw a load of injured kids, bleeding kids. I saw a dead guy inside. I heard more than 30 shots. My daughter was inside,” said Hercilei Antunes, 44, a postman who lives opposite the school. “It’s always been a calm school,” he added, standing on his bloodstained porch where he gave first aid to children who had been shot. “Today I heard shots, shots, shots and more shots. I tried to go in but he shot more and I am not made of steel.” With police helicopters hovering overhead, Yvonette Fernandes, 51, wept as she looked for news of her 12-year-old niece alongside scores of desperate parents. “Where is she? I want to know where she is!” Brazil Gun crime Tom Phillips guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Sen. James Inhofe still supporting Gbagbo in Ivory Coast and says he has proof election results are wrong
April 7, 2011 No Comment
enlarge Sen. Jim Inhofe will never, ever, ever admit man-made emissions have anything to do with global climate change. Sen. Inhofe, the climate change denier is still claiming to have the knowledge that Gbagbo’s election was rigged and he called the French murderers for stepping in and trying to help sort the situation out. In a VOA interview, Republican Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma says the Obama administration is backing the wrong side in the conflict and offered to provide evidence that it was mathematically impossible for Alassane Ouattara to win the disputed November presidential run-off vote over embattled President Laurent Gbagbo. “I do know that the French have always had pretty much control of the government in the Ivory Coast and that’s just the way the French operate, until President Gbagbo got there and, of course, the French have been running against him ever since that time. And, the current opponent, Ouattara, is no exception; he is the chosen one by the French and, quite frankly, they rigged the election,” said Inhofe. “The French have come in and I don’t know how many thousands of people they have killed because they won’t quantify it. They killed over a thousand in Deukoue, a town in the western part, and those were the people who are Gbagbo supporters. And they said that wasn’t us that killed the people, but it had to be because Gbagbo had no troops there. So it’s a reign of terror by Ouattara and it’s supported by the French…[I] am afraid I’m losing this one, but somebody has to tell the truth,” Inhofe said. Let’s look at Inhofe’s credibility when it comes to the matters pertaining to the military: Remember when Inhofe lied about military spending? INHOFE: Here we are in Afghanistan right now. We have our — our men and women in uniform in harm’s way. And we hear an announcement we’re cutting — and I would say gutting — our military . I’ve never seen a budget like this. We’re spending so much money. The Obama budget has increased welfare and all time we’re doing this, increasing all these welfares to an (INAUDIBLE), the only thing in the budget that’s being cut is military. Right here, things are going to increase. The numbers are going to increase and yet we’re cutting the budget. (END VIDEO CLIP) SANCHEZ: Cutting and gutting the military budget. Joining us now is Jim Arkedis. He’s the director of the National Security Project of the Progressive Policy Institute. You guys check on these things… JIM ARKEDIS, PROGRESSIVE POLICY INSTITUTE: We do. SANCHEZ: …to make sure the figures are right. So because you’re down now in the middle, I’m going to ask you the question — is Senator James Inhofe correct to say that President Obama is “gutting the U.S. military budget?” In fact, he goes on to say disarming America. ARKEDIS: Obviously, the senator’s words are pretty ridiculous. President Obama has proposed an increase, as the numbers you just rattled off suggested. And there’s absolutely no hint any time in the future that America’s military budget is going to be gutted or we’re going to be incapable of fighting the wars that — that we are in now and we will look to in the future — or have to in the future. Listen, I want out of our conflicts in the Middle East as much as the next guy, as you all know, but what Inhofe said about military spending is just a lie and ridiculous, so why are we to believe him now? And in the Ivory Coast, I’m backing the International community and what was a fair election that was validated by the UN. France is trying to end the hostilities in the Ivory Coast as the ex-leader, Gbagbo still refuses to surrender and remains holed up in his residence. Soldiers traded fire with guards at the residence where Laurent Gbagbo is ensconced, refusing to stand down as president, French officials said. France, the former colonial power, has called on Mr Gbagbo to resign after losing November’s election. Forces loyal to his rival, Alassane Ouattara, are besieging the residence. They were driven back when they tried to storm the site in a chic district of Abidjan on Wednesday, after talks on a cease-fire and Mr Gbagbo’s departure ran into difficulty. The incumbent president continues to insist he won the election, despite international recognition of Mr Ouattara’s victory. Mr Gbagbo says Mr Ouattara’s troops want to kill him but they say they have strict orders to capture him alive. Earlier in the day, The Japanese ambassador says mercenaries had taken over his house and used it as a launching point of gunfire while he hid in a safe room with several other people: Late on Wednesday, French helicopters moved in to evacuate the Japanese ambassador, Okamura Yoshifumi, and his aides after his home near the presidential residence was invaded by unidentified gunmen. They were taken to safety in a French military camp at Port-Bouet, south of Abidjan, the French embassy said. The French said they had acted after a request from Japan and the UN. During the operation, French forces exchanged fire with fighters defending Mr Gbagbo’s residence. S peaking before his rescue, Mr Yoshifumi told AFP news agency that a group of “mercenaries” had occupied his residence for five hours. While he and others sheltered in a safe room, the gunmen used his residence as a firing-point to launch rockets and fire machine-guns and cannon, he said. He said he had later found that four people employed at the residence, security guards and a gardener, had “vanished”, and there was “a lot of blood” in the house. It was not clear if the gunmen were part of the forces defending the nearby presidential residence or the attacking forces loyal to Mr Ouattara. France has troops in the country alongside UN peacekeepers, attempting to maintain security around Abidjan under the terms of a UN Security Council resolution. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said neither French nor UN troops were involved in the new offensive against Mr Gbagbo. The Red Cross says: “The population in Abidjan has been very hard hit” Hospitals have been over flowing with the wounded and bloodshed is being spilled as we speak and I do hope it ends as soon as possible. In any case, Alassane Ouattara has a very difficult road ahead if and when he takes over the torn country.
Continue reading …Portugal has bitten the bullet and is admitting that it desperately needs a massive bailout from its European Union partners to stay afloat. Caretaker prime minister Jose Socrates told the nation that the decision to seek a bailout was “a last resort” as interest rates on its short-term debt skyrocket,…
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For a unique take on the world of fashion, sign up to the Guardian’s fashion email and get all the latest news delivered straight to your inbox FASHION DILEMMA What’s going on with Kate Moss’s wedding dress? Never having fantasised about wedding dresses, FS generally fails to get interested in all things meringuey. However, the whole Kate Moss/Jamie Hince wedding thing has got us excited. First you need to be fully up to date on the dress saga … In the beginning … From the lips of the fashion gods themselves (well, Vivienne Westwood ), we heard that Kate was designing her own dress: “I think she’s designing it herself. She has done her own fashion range and she knows about clothes. She knows what she is doing, she doesn’t need my help.” We weren’t sure about this – designing for Toppers is one thing, designing your own wedding dress is a whole different ball game. On the second day … While taking bread at a Topshop dinner in February, Miss Moss said her longtime friend John Galliano would design it. Which turned out to be an EPIC bit of foot-in-mouthery as … On the third day … Dear John allegedly decided had a drunken antisemitic rant, and thus invoked the wrath of the entire fashion world (except, perhaps, for model Jessica Stam ). Despite this, people were still speculating that Galliano would design the dress. On the fourth day … The Daily Mail saw a fashion shoot in Harpers and remembered that Alexander McQueen had been a great friend of Kate’s. OBVIOUSLY then, the dress was to be designed by Sarah Burton, the label’s newish head of design. On the fifth day … Various publications cast around randomly for names connected with Ms Moss and magicked up Kate Halfpenny , the celebrity stylist slash designer who created the 70s dress Kate wore to her own 35th birthday party. On the sixth day … Kate’s fiance, Jamie Hince, spoke on the matter and cleared up the Galliano thing, saying the rumours were “unfounded entirely”. (He also shared his thoughts on the whole event, which is worth a look on Vogue.co.uk ). And lo! Upon the seventh day , every other publication was bored with talking about it, leaving us free to fantasise about who we’d choose. Here are our top three: 1. Maison Martin Margiela Before anyone had ever heard of Lady Gaga, there was Maison Martin Margiela. This avant garde fashion label would create a dress to defy all traditions. We imagine a long, sheer gown, perhaps decorated with a fringe of deconstructed wig running across the chest and under the armpits. Visible beneath the gown, Kate would wear a leather studded chastity belt that could be ceremoniously and theatrically removed during the ceremony. The shoulders would extend three feet out on either side, resulting in American football-style jostling down the aisle, and instead of a veil, Kate would wear a flesh-coloured stocking over her face – much like the models in Margiela’s S/S 09 collection . Amazeballs! 2. Manish Arora Indian-born Manish has a penchant for all things circus. His dress could come in the form of a giant land-crab , a golden car or an entire fairground carousel . Eschewing the traditional white or ivory colourway, we could expect to see acid yellow, hot pink or gold sequins. Finally, if we’re REALLY lucky, there might even be half a Kate and a magician . 3. Giles Deacon Last but not least, we’d opt for Giles Deacon. Partly because he’s British and every now and then we like to do a little flag-waving, but mostly because he’s a bit wacky, which is our favourite thing about fashion. His dress would be more traditional (think chiffon and layers) but adorned with tarantulas . The train drag would be whipped up into a fancy headpiece , thus avoiding the problem of getting it dirty – but would she be able to hear the “I do” prompt? The veil would be a more like a shroud , tied into her hair, or perhaps a shiny, metallic Pac-Man head . Who needs to see them kiss anyway? And the bridesmaids would have to settle for catching a soft-toy dinosaur rather than a bouquet. BANG ON TREND Pleats So often associated with school skirts that would get hastily hitched up the second mum was out of sight, this season’s pleats are, thankfully, a far cry from maths homework. Instead, they’re all about summery floatiness inspired by the floor-sweeping skirts at Chloe. Ethereal pleats, if you will. NB. FS must point out that there are many types of pleat. The pleats du jour are knife pleats (what most normal folk would just call “pleats”) and sunray pleats (where the pleat is smaller at the top and fans out, like a ray of sunshine). For beginners, Zara’s floaty blue dress (£49.99) does the sunray pleat nicely, complete with a tan cinch belt to break up those straight lines. Or we’d team New Look’s pleated tunic blouse (£19.99) with skinny jeans and sandals for a perfect April sunny-but-not-that-sunny look. If you want to double up pleats with this season’s 70s trend, unleash your inner Stevie Nicks with Asos’s pleated maxi skirt (£45). Wallis does a slightly less see-through version at £40. Long blonde perm and tambourine optional. Topshop seems to have gone com pleat ly crazy (sorry). One of the many folded numbers is this daisy print playsuit , £52, while die-hard fashionistas can sleep easy in a cream pleated slip (£46), shorts (£25) and cape (£65). And finally, if you’ve just won the lottery, or are a banker, Chloe’s coral silk-crepe dress (£1,410) will look lovely and babydoll-like on its own, or with a nude belt and heels for some daytime glam. FASHIONISTA OF THE WEEK Emily Browning You might remember Emily Browning as Violet Baudelaire in the film adaptation of Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. Seven years later, having escaped from the evil clutches of Count Olaf, she’s back on the red carpet in this drool-inducing lace Erdem number. FS gives vintage bonus points for the Victoriana-meets-60s-babydoll collar and slicked 20s hair, while the Prada platforms and lick of plum lipstick give added sassiness. FASHION GRAVEYARD Quiana Grant If lilac mesh existed in 1831, Victor Hugo would surely have had Esmerelda dancing around in something similar to this in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Topping all the stakes in the very worst excesses of “peasant fashion”, swimwear model Quiana Grant’s half-dress, half-jumble sale is trumped only by the addition of an organza bolero. But then, who needs clothes when your day job is rolling bikini-clad around the world’s most idyllic beaches? QUOTE OF THE WEEK I saw my first show, which was the third show for Martin Margiela … It was a show where half the audience cried, including myself … Only at that point did I understand what fashion could be or what it could mean to people. It was the “white” show, where all the models wore dresses in white and transparent plastic. Margiela had no money at the time, so the Maison ended up going to a black neighborhood in Paris and asking if they could use a children’s playground for the show. The parents said, “Yes, you can have the playground, but we want our children to be able to see it.” So little black children were standing with the audience in the front row. The children started to run over to the models, and they picked them up and held them around their necks. Thank you to reader Sofie Birkin, who spotted this gem by Raf Simons in Interview Magazine and asked: “Is this what is referred to as a ‘fashion moment’? Or is it just a hilarious lack of self awareness?” SHOPPING NEWS Do you have a shopping addiction? If so, you’ll be pleased to hear that New Look has just launched its very own mobile site, suitable for use on all smartphones. So, next time you’re sitting on the bus feeling murderous as another teenager plays terrible music loudly on their mobile, distract yourself by visiting newlook.com . Charlotte Ronson is one of nine designers to team up with Uniqlo this season. Her seaside-themed six-piece capsule collection will hit the shops on 5 May. Pieces include a lace-up Breton stripe tank dress and a boat-print halterneck top. Other designers for the project include Costello Tagliapietra and Vena Cava. Lots of celebs have joined Selma Blair and the Scissor Sisters’ Ana Matronic in supporting H&M’s fourth Fashion Against Aids collection , in shops from 26 April. The unisex range offers printed T-shirts, pastel chinos, silky trench coats and jumpsuits. A quarter of sales will be donated to promote safe sex and HIV and AIDS prevention to young people around the world. OUT AND ABOUT Residents of Brentwood should beware of stampeding west Londoners this weekend as the Notting Hill home and furniture mecca, Graham and Green , opens its warehouse doors, offering up to 70% off sample and ex-display stock. Prices start from £10, which is rather bargainous by anyone’s standards. Birmingham’s Custard Factory will be host to tea sets, cake stands and furniture galore at this weekend’s vintage home fair . Vinyl DJs will be spinning a soundtrack for shoppers and there’ll be homemade cakes and a vintage hair and make-up salon too. The Do-Lectures – where you can go to meet and be inspired by celebs and hard-working types who are making a difference to our world – is launching a new website. The new fancy-pants design means it loads more quickly and they can jam in more interesting stuff from all their speakers. Check it out at dolectures.com . OFFCUTS What you shouldn’t wear this spring – and what you really should . Seventies fashion is back, but it doesn’t mean we can tolerate bad G-string etiquette, says Hadley Freeman . Fancy a career in fashion and want some top tips? The Guardian careers blog has them. For all the latest fashion news, visit guardian.co.uk/fashion News to tell us? Email kate.carter@guardian.co.uk Follow us on Twitter Fashion Fashion designers Kate Moss Models Rachel Holmes guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Tobii PCEye brings hands-free control to any PC, can’t see eye-to-eye with Macs
April 7, 2011 No Comment
We were kind of shocked at just how well the Lenovo prototype laptop with Tobii eye tracking worked at CEBIT this year. It was, frankly, really good, and we’re happy to say you no longer have to break into Lenovo HQ to try it for yourself. Tobii has released its PCEye, a USB device that uses a VESA mount to hang below LCDs sized between 15- to 20-inches. After a little calibration, it enables full eye control — on Windows. Mac users will have to keep buying batteries for their Magic Mice because there’s sadly no compatibility there. The main idea here is to help those who, due to stroke or other impairment, have lost some or all motor control, enabling them to compute just as well as anybody. However, we who are lucky enough to still have full control over all appendages can’t wait to get one of these and play through every level in World of Goo without reaching for the mouse once. We will, however, have to reach for our wallets — Tobii doesn’t quote a price for the PCEye, which is rarely a good sign. Gallery: Tobii PCEye Continue reading Tobii PCEye brings hands-free control to any PC, can’t see eye-to-eye with Macs Tobii PCEye brings hands-free control to any PC, can’t see eye-to-eye with Macs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 08:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …We celebrate our 1,000th new band of the day with two free mix tapes, while new band columnist Paul Lester tells us how the feature has ruined his life
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