Stuart E. Hample (January 6, 1926 – September 19, 2010), also known as Stoo Hample, was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

children's book author, performer, playwright and cartoonist who sometimes used the pseudonyms Joe Marthen and Turner Brown, Jr. He is best known for the books '' Children's Letters to God'' and ''

The Silly Book ''The Silly Book'' is a children's book by Stoo Hample, first published in 1961 and reissued in 2004. It includes silly songs, silly names to call people and things, silly recipes, silly poems, silly things to say, and "silly nothings". Hampl ...

'', and the comic strip '' Inside Woody Allen''. He is the father of baseball collector Zack Hample.

Early life

Hample began drawing before kindergarten. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and served for two years in the Submarine Service during World War II. He attended Williams College and graduated from the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...

in 1950 with a B.A. in English and drama.

Career

In 1946, while working in advertising, he began performing as a musical cartoonist with symphony orchestras at children's and pops concerts, drawing in strict rhythm with the music. In 1948 he was the writer and star of the evening comedy show ''Cartoon Capers'' on WBEN-TV in

Buffalo, NY Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

and also of a children's show called ''Junior Jamboree'' on the same station. He was sometimes a guest host on the NBC Children's show ''Birthday House'' when the regular host,

Paul Tripp Paul Tripp (February 20, 1911 – August 29, 2002) was an American children's musician, author, songwriter, and television and film actor. He collaborated with a fellow composer, George Kleinsinger. Tripp was the creator of the 1945 " Tubby ...

, was unavailable. In the 1950s he appeared regularly on the

CBS-TV CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

children's program ''

Captain Kangaroo ''Captain Kangaroo'' is an American children's television series that aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for 29 years, from 1955 to 1984, making it the longest-running nationally broadcast children's television program ...

'' as "Mister Artist." In 1955-56, he was an assistant to

Al Capp Alfred Gerald Caplin (September 28, 1909 – November 5, 1979), better known as Al Capp, was an American cartoonist and humorist best known for the satirical comic strip ''Li'l Abner'', which he created in 1934 and continued writing and (wi ...

. A subsequent stint in advertising ended when he created the syndicated comic strip, '' Inside Woody Allen''. Because he simultaneously had another comic strip, ''Rich and Famous'', running with a different syndicate, he briefly employed the pseudonym Joe Marthen, a conglomeration of the names of his children, Joe, Martha, and Henry. During this period his first play, ''Alms for the Middle Class'', had a simultaneous world premiere at the

Pittsburgh Public Theater Pittsburgh Public Theater, or The Public for short, is a professional theater company located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After the retirement of longtime Producing Artistic Director Ted Pappas, The Public began the 2018–2019 season with a new ...

and Geva Theater (Rochester, New York) and was produced on ''Earplay'', the dramatic workshop of National Public Radio. At the time of his death, he was working on ''All the Sincerity In Hollywood'', a one-character play based on the life of radio comedian

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...

. The play had several readings directed by

Austin Pendleton Austin Campbell Pendleton (born March 27, 1940) is an American actor, playwright, theatre director, and instructor. He is known as a prolific character actor on the stage and screen who has appeared in films including ''Catch-22'' (1970); '' W ...

and starring

Dick Cavett Richard Alva Cavett (; born November 19, 1936) is an American television personality and former talk show host. He appeared regularly on nationally broadcast television in the United States for five decades, from the 1960s through the 2000s. In ...

Works

Books

*''

'' (1961) *''Mr. Nobody & the Umbrella Bug'' (1962) *''Doodles the Deer-Horse'' (1963) *''Children's Letters to God'' (1966) (co-edited with Eric Marshall) *''More Children's Letters to God'' (1967) (co-edited with Eric Marshall) *''Blood for Holly Warner'' (1967) *''My Darling Mao'' (1968) *''Black Is'' (1969 - under pseudonym Turner Brown, Jr.) *''God is a Good Friend to Have'' (1969) *''Stoo Hample's Silly Joke Book'' (1978) *''Non-Being & Somethingness'' (1978) *''Hugging, Hitting & Other Family Matters'' (1979) *''Yet Another Big, Fat, Funny Silly Book'' (1980) *'' Children's Letters to God'' (1991) (co-edited with Eric Marshall) *''Dear Mr. President'' (1993) *''Grandma, Grandpa & Me'' (1997) *''Me & My Dad'' (1999) *''My Mom's the Best Mom'' (2000) *''All the Sincerity in Hollywood'' (2001) *''You Stink! I Love You'' (2003) *''Happy Cat Day'' (2004) *''I Will Kiss You: Lots & Lots & Lots'' (2006) *''Stoo Hample's Book of Bad Manners'' (2006) *''Dread & Superficiality: Woody Allen as Comic Strip'' (2009) *''The Silly Book With CD'' (2010)

Plays

*''Alms for the Middle Class'' *''The Asshole Murder Case'' *''Paint the Icebergs'' *''The Most Trusted Man in America'' *''All the Sincerity in Hollywood''

Musicals

*''The Fig Leaves Are Falling'' (uncredited bookwriter; music by

Albert Hague Albert Hague (born Albert Marcuse, October 13, 1920 – November 12, 2001) was a German–born American songwriter and actor. Early life Hague was born to a Jewish family in Berlin, Germany. His father, Harry Marcuse, was a psychiatrist ...

, lyrics by

Allan Sherman Allan may refer to: People * Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name * Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker * Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...

) *''The Selling of the President'' (co-bookwriter with Jack O'Brien; music by Bob James, lyrics by O'Brien) *'' Children's Letters to God'' (bookwriter; music by David Evans, lyrics by Douglas Cohen)

Television

*'' Children's Letters to God'' (NBC Special) *''The Great Radio Comedians'' (PBS Special) *''Kate & Allie'' (CBS) *''That Girl in Wonderland'' (ABC - animated pilot) *''Festival of Family Classics: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (ABC - animated)

Comic strips

*'' Inside Woody Allen'' *''Rich & Famous'' *''Children's Letters to God''

Magazines

*Weekly humor page in ''New York Magazine'' called "The Apple," illustrated by

Seymour Chwast Seymour Chwast (born August 18, 1931) is an American graphic designer, illustrator, and type designer. Biography Chwast was born in the Bronx, New York City and in 1949 graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn where he was intro ...

, 1968 *Weekly humor page in ''New Times Magazine'' called "Fellow Citizens," illustrated by

, 1969 *Monthly cartoon page in ''Cat Fancy Magazine'' called "Tiger's Tales," 2006

References

External links

Lambiek Comiclopedia article

The Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum: Stuart Hample Collection guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hample, Stoo 1926 births 2010 deaths American children's writers American children's book illustrators American dramatists and playwrights American illustrators American comics artists United States Navy personnel of World War II Deaths from cancer in New York (state) American comic strip cartoonists Writers from New York (state) University at Buffalo alumni