Eloise was never supposed to be a children’s book. Ryan paired Thompson with her neighbor, a young illustrator named Hilary Knight, and a year later the first Eloise book was complete. Thompson was urged by friend and Harper’s Bazaar fashion editor D.D.
Apparently Thompson had an extremely lonely childhood and had been talking in the voice of Eloise, an imaginary friend, most of her life and often performed it for friends. At one point, a story made the rounds that on an occasion when Thompson was late to rehearsal, the Williams brothers got so angry with her she immediately broke into a creaky little child’s voice and said “I am Eloise and I am 6!” to diffuse the situation. After that, she had a hit cabaret act with musical siblings the Williams Brothers. At MGM Studios in the 1940s, she was a vocal coach for stars like Frank Sinatra and Lena Horne. Kay Thompson had an extensive career in music long before Eloise, and even long before Funny Face, Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn movie for which she's best known and in which she plays a fashion magazine editor.
Archive Photos / Stringer / Moviepix // Getty Images Kay Thompson and Fred Astaire perform in a scene from the film Funny Face in 1957. The exhibition also explores the lives of both Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight and the life that Eloise took on after publication-in clothes, merchandising, and even Eloise-themed children’s menus from the Plaza. Much of the work on view has rarely been seen, including trial Eloise drawings from Hilary Knight in 1954, previously unpublished drawings from Eloise in Paris, and a once-stolen Eloise portrait from the Plaza. More than 60 years later, Eloise has become one of New York City’s most beloved residents, cherished by generations of readers.īeginning June 30, the New-York Historical Society will pay homage to the sprightly six-year-old with the exhibition " Eloise at the Museum." It will feature original pages from Eloise manuscripts, sketches, photographs, dolls, and portraits alongside original family programming.
The success of Eloise prompted four sequels: Eloise in Paris, Eloise at Christmastime, Eloise in Moscow and, later, Eloise Takes a Bawth. Created by actress and singer Kay Thompson and illustrator Hilary Knight, Eloise took the world by storm when it was first printed in 1955, selling 150,000 copies in two years. The Plaza has known many famous guests over the years, but perhaps none is as famous as Eloise, the mischievous six-year-old girl who lives at the hotel with her nanny, her dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee.
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