Frank Norris wrote McTeague, The Octopus

Still from Erich von Stroheim's 1924 film Greed.

It is the birthday of writer Frank Norris (1870), whose novels McTeague (1899), The Octopus (1901), and The Pit (1903) are considered by scholars to be prime examples of naturalism in American literature. Norris was heavily influenced by the work of French naturalist writer Emile Zola and by the ideas of naturalist Charles Darwin. McTeague is set in San Francisco during the Gold Rush. It was the basis of Erich von Stroheim's 1924 film Greed, a 10-hour epic that has been lost. Foreign film translator Herman Weinberg compiled and edited a book, The Complete Greed of Erich von Stroheim (1972), containing a comprehensive collection of stills from the film. The Octopus dealt with the struggle between wheat farmers and the railroad monopolies in California at the end of the 19th century. The Pit, which was published after Norris died, was about wheat speculation and the trading pits of the Chicago Board of Trade. Norris died before he finished The Wolf: A Story of Empire, the third part of a planned trilogy on wheat.

Wyss created The Swiss Family Robinson

Illustration from 1906 American edition

It is the birthday of Swiss Army chaplain Johann David Wyss, whose famous book, The Swiss Family Robinson (1812), became one of the most beloved children's novels of all time. Wyss told the stories of the shipwrecked family to his four sons when they were youngsters. He based them on Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719). The boys even took turns making up their own tales. The stories were written down in long-hand and illustrated by one of the sons, Johann Emmanuel Wyss. Many years later when he was grown, another son, Johann Rudolf Wyss, edited the manuscript and had it published. In the years since, many versions of the story have appeared, and it has been adapted for television and the movies.

Happy birthday, Dr. Seuss!

It is the birthday of Dr. Seuss (1904), who wrote 46 children's books,  among them such bestsellers as Horton Hatches the Egg (1954), Horton Hears a Who! (1954), The Cat in the Hat (1957), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1957), One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (1960), and Green Eggs and Ham (1960). Dr. Seuss was the pseudonym of Theodor Seuss Geisel, whose birthday is now designated as National Read Across America Day by the National Education Association. Dr.Seuss first book was And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937). This is an illustration from that first book.

Poet Richard Wilbur won Pulitzer twice

It is the birthday of poet Richard Wilbur (1921), who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1957 and 1989 for his poetry collections Things of This World (1956) and New and Collected Poems (1988). Wilbur also translated works of the French playwright Moliére, including The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and The School For Wives. Here is a reading of his poem Museum Piece, a light look at classical artists.