The film adaptation of Crockett Johnson’s 1955 children’s book, Harold and the Purple Crayon, produced by Columbia Pictures, has yet to match the groundswell it experienced in its home nation, the United States, here across the Atlantic. Notwithstanding, it did leave a pronounced impression on worldwide pop-culture aficionados of a certain era. Moreover, in Neal Karlen’s chronicle, This Thing Called Life: Prince’s Odyssey, On and Off the Record, Prince’s mother, Mattie Shaw, suggests that Johnson’s evergreen children’s tale may have inspired the late artist’s fondness for the colour purple. Carlos Saldanha, helm of the latest film adaptation, learns of this connection for the first time.
Saldanha admits, “I was unaware of this. I reserved my curiosity about the prominence of the colour purple. Subsequently, it became the film’s theme, much to my delight.”
The Brazilian animator, acclaimed for his globally successful Ice Age franchise, has crafted an enjoyable family film based on Johnson’s narrative. Harold, an innocent man played by Zachary Levi, possesses a magical crayon that brings his sketches to life. For instance, when he outlines a bike, it expands to become a real, rideable vehicle. Dealing with Harold’s unconventional abilities in modern-day Rhode Island is Zooey Deschanel’s character, a considerate adult. A fusion of live action and animated scenes, the film delivers an ideal offering for the waning days of the school break.
Saldanha elaborates, “Being Brazilian, the book wasn’t familiar to me. However, my children, raised in the United States, and I pored over these books alongside numerous other parents. I was astonished to learn of the book’s age as it certainly didn’t feel outdated. Rather, it came across as fresh, unique and was marked by a straightforward yet compelling message. It’s the sort of book that incites conversation, despite its simple storyline.”
Johnson’s young hero, Harold, can be seen associating himself with the era’s jazz mavens and bebop enthusiasts.
The book’s esteemed standing in America is reflected in its long-drawn quest to secure a big screen representation, attracting various respected artistic figures throughout the process. More than three decades ago, Maurice Sendak, the mind behind ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ and a follower of Crockett Johnson, claimed the rights to the book and recruited Henry Selick, the director of ‘The Nightmare before Christmas’ for an adaptation. The project then went through the hands of Spike Jonze and David O Russell, until eventually it came to a halt. Early in 2010, the project found support in Columbia, initially partnered with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment. The book was also moulded into a TV series for HBO and a brief version produced in 1959. The book has indeed mesmerised numerous generations.
Ross Ellenhorn, in his 2022 essay in the Literary Hub, considers the publication date of the book to be critical to the US societal context. He portrays 1955 as an era of self-satisfaction in the white suburban landscapes and the cultural stronghold of commercial America. The upcoming generation, nourished by the wealth of the post-war era, demanded goods to stock their refrigerators and larger commodities for their garages. Ellenhorn also points out 1955 as the inaugural year of Disneyland—an emblem of artificial creativity and mechanical handling of our intimate experiences.
However, it is essential to mention, to pacify the fans of Crockett Johnson, that Ellenhorn does not criticise but positions his book as part of the cultural opposition. The resistance was conspicuously subtle in the prevailing culture of the time. Subtle portrayals of the battle could be seen in the deceptive grandeur of Douglas Sirk’s ‘Magnificent Obsession’ and ‘Leave Her to Heaven’. Television often displayed this combating spirit in Phil Silver’s satirical Sergeant Bilko (which also debuted in 1955). However, the true alternative was to be found in the music clubs, comedy bars, and independent publishers. As Ellenhorn suggests, Johnson’s little pal Harold aligned himself with the jazz legends, folk revivalists, modern dancers and rock-and-rollers, critical theorists, existentialists, Mattachinists and absurdists.
Harold from Harold and The Purple Crayon is a fictitious character marked by independence and imagination. Instead of conforming to the already established world, he takes charge and shapes his own universe according to his preferences. A glimpse at the life of the character’s creator, Johnson, reveals that he likely wouldn’t oppose being associated with unconventional poets and innovative saxophonists. Being more akin to Mingus than Mantovani, Johnson embraced communism and experimentalism. As his life progressed, he turned his attention to creating artworks based on mathematical principles and theorems, pieces which continue to be highly sought-after. His life has been portrayed in Philip Nel’s biography, where he and his wife, also a children’s author, are presented as an unlikely duo who dodged the FBI, fell in love, and revolutionized children’s literature.
Born in New York City in the early 20th century, Johnson, originally named David Johnson Leisk, was the child of a German mother and a father who grew up in the distant Shetland Islands. He claimed his pseudonym, “Crockett Johnson,” was necessitated by the difficulty many had in pronouncing “Leisk.” Trained at New York University, Johnson began his career as an art editor for several trade publications under McGraw-Hill. Like many of his politically inclined peers, he swayed towards communism during the 1930s’ Great Depression and found himself working at New Masses, a Marxist magazine, alongside writers like William Carlos Williams, John Dos Passos, Dorothy Parker, and Ernest Hemingway.
As evident in his cartoons from that time, Johnson cleverly balances radical elements with light self-mockery. One memorable quote highlights a society lady boasting about her near-expertise on communists and her articles featured in the New Yorker.
Ellenhorn’s interpretation of Harold being associated with the radicals, which was all due to his creator, is worth recognizing. Many renowned American authors, actors, and directors faced a similar journey, with some even being targeted during the McCarthyism era. The creator achieved significant recognition in 1942 with his syndicated comic strip, Barnaby, depicting the tale of an imaginative child and his dubious fairy godfather. The infamously difficult to please Dorothy Parker proclaimed, “Barnaby along with his oppressors and companions, are pivotal to American arts and literature for countless years.” The year 1955, characterized by barbecues and Chevrolets, saw Harold and the Purple Crayon boost his popularity.
During that era, any hint of communist leanings in the source materials of a studio film could lead to potential catastrophe. That argument no longer holds true today. Interestingly, it’s worth noting that Columbia Pictures, now a segment of Sony, is seamlessly taking us into late summer with their adaptation of a author who was devoted to the cause during the 1930s. Johnson’s political orientation’s impact on Saldanha is intriguing to speculate about. Did he consider the political undertones when adapting the source?
Saldanha’s statement was, “I never embarked on that journey, nor attempted to understand that sentiment deeper. Today’s context is much different than it was back then.”
Crockett Johnson, relatively unknown outside of America, passed away in 1975 at 68 years old. In the US, he is remembered as a trailblazer, similar to many of his generation who were children of immigrants, for preserving the radical creative spark amid the restrictive postwar period. He didn’t exactly lead a revolution but he certainly played a significant role in the emergence of Prince and the Revolution.
Harold and the Purple Crayon will be hitting cinema screens from Friday, August 2nd.