David Price

January 1, 1997

Hi Daniel, I’m an anthropologist who has been using the Freedom of Information Act to write a tragic history of the Cold War (the paranoia, intellectual, social & financial costs). I’m one of your biggest fans & was thrilled to hear your piece on NPR a few months back on that Russian children’s book illustrator/writer… I can’t find the napkin on which I scrawled the artist/author’s name, or the name of the book you spoke of, would you be kind enough to tell me who this author is & provide a citation of the re-issued book you reviewed? Thanks.

I have been sparring with the FBI off and on over the last few years trying to pry loose their files on Ted Geisel (As Mr. Hoover used to say:…hmmmm….something suspicious about ANYONE who uses a pseudonym…). Once they finally turn it over I’d be happy to send on a copy of his file to you if you are interested in such things.

peace

PS: My son Milo (age 4) want to know you are riding inside the second car from the left on shown on page one of the last pages of your book “Aunt Lulu.” If it is a picture of you, where are you going? Inquiring minds want to know.

Did Hoover say anything about people over 40 who wear feather boas? I wonder if my FBI files contains any of those pictures they used to take of me at folk concerts in Chicago in the 50's. My father had brought me a genuine beret and a paisley scarf from Paris, and I always wore them, and the agents used to snap me with the long lenses, because of my un-American appearance, not to mention that I was going places to hear black musicians. Dr. Seuss had a file? My, my. 
Sorry, David Price, I forgot to say the book is FIRST, SECOND, published by the often-mentioned FS&G this past spring. The name of the translator and illustrator (good!) elude me at the moment.