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FLOAT LIKE A GOLDILOCKS, STING LIKE A BEAR?
Ali and Other Celebrities Identify Their Favorite Childrens Books
The NYSPCC, the worlds first child protection agency, hosts its inaugural black tie gala October 10 to celebrate 127 years of protecting children and strengthening families in New York City. During the evening, the Society will hold a silent auction of favorite childrens books, selected and autographed by celebrities from various fields.
Muhammad Ali, famous for venturing into the ring with some of the worlds toughest men, identified Goldilocks and the Three Bears – the story of a young girl surrounded by some pretty tough characters herself – as his favorite childhood book when asked by the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC).
Tony LoBianco, who often plays tough guys in the movies, on the other hand, selected Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown, a favorite of children for decades because of the way it gently prepares them for bed.
The NYSPCC, the worlds first child protection agency, hosts its inaugural black tie gala October 10 to celebrate 127 years of protecting children and strengthening families in New York City. During the evening, the Society will hold a silent auction of favorite childrens books, selected and autographed by celebrities from various fields. The benefit will be held at 7:00 p.m. at Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers (23rd Street at the Hudson River, New York City).
Some choices come as no surprise:
· Actor Ben Affleck said his favorite childrens book is Maurice Sendaks Where the Wild Things Are
· New York Governor George Pataki selected The Little Engine That Could (Watty Piper)
· Liz Smith, the syndicated columnist who covers Hollywood, Broadway and other glittering places identified The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum)
· John Turturro, who plays unusual characters, picked The Phantom Tollbooth (Norton Juster)
· Billy Crystal, the comedian and actor, opted for one of Dr. Seusss many hilarious books, Horton Hatches the Egg
· Joan Ganz Cooney, creator of Sesame Street, the most successful childrens television program ever, picked The Three Little Pigs, a story combining entertainment and instruction
· Robert De Niro selected another little pig, Olivia, whos very good at wearing people out"
· Tyne Daly, starring in Judging Amy as a social worker, mother and grandmother, chose Grannys Wonderful Chair (Frances Browne)
· Designer Oscar de la Renta selected The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry), a book as stylish as he is
At the gala, the NYSPCC will honor Mrs. Barbara Bush and Elbridge T. Gerry, Jr., the Societys former President, for their many contributions to children. Mr. Gerry is the great-grandson of a founder of the NYSPCC, also named Elbridge T. Gerry. Mrs. Bush and her husband also have contributed signed copies of their autobiographies for the auction.
The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children has made a real difference in the lives of New York Citys most vulnerable children. Founded in 1875, the Society was the first agency in the world to rescue children from abuse and neglect. It has been the model for similar societies across the United States and around the world. Today, the Society provides child abuse prevention, legal services, education, crisis counseling and family support programs to help parents provide loving and safe homes. The Society assists more than a thousand families every year.
NOTE: The full list of celebrities and the books they selected and autographed is attached.
The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the worlds first child protection agency, hosts its inaugural black tie gala October 10 to celebrate 127 years of protecting children and strengthening families in New York City. During the evening, the Society will hold a silent auction of favorite childrens books, selected and autographed by celebrities from various fields. The celebrities and their favorite childrens books follow:
Ben Affleck Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak
Muhammad Ali Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Ed Begley, Jr. Tom Swift Among the Fire Fighters, Victor Appleton
Jackie Chan The Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss
Carol Higgins Clark The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge, Hildegard
H. Swift and Lynd Ward (illustrator)
Mary Higgins Clark A Girl of the Limberlost, Gene Stratton-Porter
Glenn Close Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder
Joan Ganz Cooney The Three Little Pigs
Bill Cosby Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
Katie Couric From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L.
Konigsburg
Cindy Crawford The Giving Tree, Shel Silverstein
Billy Crystal Horton Hatches the Egg, Dr. Seuss
Mario Cuomo The Blue Spruce, Mario Cuomo
Willem Dafoe Johnny Crow's New Garden, Brooke Leslie
Tyne Daly Granny's Wonderful Chair, Frances Browne
Robert De Niro Olivia
Oscar de la Renta The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Leonardo DiCaprio The Wump World, Bill Peet
Elisa Donovan A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving
Gerald Ford Ragged Dick: Up and Coming
Angie Harmon Where the Red Fern Grows, Wilson Rawls
Jennifer Love Hewitt Charlottes Web, E.B. White
Djimon Hounsou Babar the King, Jean de Brunhoff
Traylor Howard The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Caroline Kennedy The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Matt Lauer Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
John Lithgow Micawber, John Lithgow
Tony LoBianco Goodnight Moon, Margaret Wise Brown
Deborah Norville I Don't Want to Sleep Tonight, Deborah Norville
George Pataki The Little Engine That Could, Watty Piper
Emily Proctor The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
Lilly Pulitzer Paddington Bear in the Garden, Michael Bond
Lynn Redgrave Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
Al Roker Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss
Diane Sawyer Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey
Liz Smith The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum
John Turturro The Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster
Several celebrities also contributed signed copies of grown-up" books to the Societys auction.
George Bush All the Best, George Bush: My Life in Letters and Other Writings
Ed Koch Im Not Done Yet!, Edward I. Koch with Daniel Paisner
Arnold Palmer A Golfers Life, Arnold Palmer with James Dodson
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