AShortHistoryofTheWorld’sMostPopularPooh
(Becausethat’salla“BearofVeryLittleBrain”canremember)
Itallbeganin1921whenyoungChristopherRobinMilnereceivedateddybearnamedEdwardasagiftforhisfirstbirthday.Overthenextfewyears,headdedotherstuffedtoystohiscollection,whichgrewtoincludeadonkey,akangarooortwo,apig,andastripedtiger.OwlandRabbitwerebasedonanimalsthatlivedneartheauthor’sCotchfordFarminEastSussex.WhenChristopherwasfour,hewenttotheLondonZooandstruckupafriendshipwithaCanadianblackbearnamedWinnie(shortforthebear’shometownofWinnipeg).Thisfascinationledtheboy’sfamousfather,notedplaywright/journalistA.A.Milne,toinventawonderfulseriesofstoriesandbooks.
Thebookswerewrittenatthesuggestionoftheauthor’swife,Daphne.OnDecember24,1925,thefirstPoohstorywaspublishedinthe“LondonEveningNews.”Ithadthedescriptivetitle“InWhichWeAreIntroducedtoWinnie-the-PoohandSomeBees,andtheStoriesBegin.”ThestoryprovedtobesopopularthatitwasbroadcastbyBBSradiothefollowingday(ChristmasDay).
Milne,wholivedfrom1882to1956,wasoneofEngland’smostsuccessfulplaywrights.Healsospentmanyyearswritinghumorousessaysfor“PunchMagazine”,whereheservedasanassistanteditorforeightyears.MilnewrotetheoriginalPoohstoriesprimarilytoamusehimself.InthegreattraditionofJ.M.BarrieandLewisCarroll,heusedachildasthecatalysttopenhisstories.Infact,hewastrulywritingofworldlyaffairs,politics,puzzles,andthebeautyofchildhood,
MilnewentontowritetwoPoohbooks–“Winnie-the-Pooh”(1926)and“TheHouseatPoohCorner”(1928).BothbookswerebeautifullyillustratedwithlinedrawingsbynoteartistE.H.Shepard.Thesameteamcollaboratedontwootheracclaimedbooksofchildren’sversethatfeaturedthebelovedcharacter–“WhereWeWereVeryYoung”(1924)and“NowWeAreSix”(1927).
ManyofthelocalesusedinthePoohstoriesarebaseonrealareasneartheauthor’shomeinEastSussex,England.TheForestandtheHundredAcreWoodwereInspiredbyAshdownForestandtheFiveHundredAcreWood.SeveralyearsbeforetherealChristopherRobinpassedaway(April20,1996),hebecameinvolvedineffortstopreserveandprotectthewoodedareanearhischildhoodhomethathadinspiredhisfather’smasterworks.
ThefirstDisneyPoohfeaturette,“WinniethePoohandtheHoneyTree,”wasreleasedin1966.Throughtheyears,Pooh,Tigger,andtheHundredAcreWoodganghaveappearedinmanyvideos,educationalfilms,holidayspecials,andTVseries,culminatinginthefirstPoohfull-lengthoriginalfeaturefilm,“TheTiggerMovie,”whichopenedintheatersnationwideFebruary11,2000.
AccordingtoleadingPoohauthorityPeterDennis,Milnedidn’tbasethecharacterofTiggeronatigerbutratheronaspiritedblackspanieldognamedChum.Chumwasalwaysbouncingorjumpingintothingsandcausingagreatdealoftroubleforhisowners.Tiggeronlyappearsinthreeofthe20Poohstoriesanddidn’tbounceontothesceneuntil1928.
