Dr. Seuss’ 108th Birthday Celebration Set for March 2

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The University of California, San Diego campus is making preparations for one of its favorite events: the annual birthday celebration to pay homage to the campus’s most beloved icon, Theodor Seuss Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss. Dr. Seuss’ birthday also coincides with the release of Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, a feature film by Universal Pictures, a 3D adaptation (from the creators of Despicable Me) of the classic tale of a forest creature who shares the enduring power of hope. The party, which is open to Dr. Seuss fans both on and off campus, will be held at 11:50 a.m., March 2, at the foot of Library Walk in front of Geisel Library, named in 1995 for Theodor Geisel and his wife, Audrey.

The party, which will be marked by a giant inflatable Cat in the Hat, will include free punch and cake—some 2,000 pieces of cake will be served to mark the occasion. UC San Diego Chancellor Marye Anne Fox and The Audrey Geisel University Librarian, Brian E.C. Schottlaender, will be on hand to dole out slices of cake and greet attendees. Musical entertainment will be provided by The Teeny Tiny Pit Orchestra, directed by the Libraries’ Scott Paulson, which will be playing songs from The Cat in the Hat Songbook. 

In addition to the birthday party, an exhibit of materials from the Dr. Seuss Collection will be on view from February 23 through March 9 in Geisel Library.

UC San Diego’s Mandeville Special Collections Library is the world’s main repository for the original works of Dr. Seuss. The approximately 10,000 items in the Dr. Seuss collection, which includes original drawings, manuscript drafts, books, notebooks, photographs and memorabilia, document the full range of Theodor Seuss Geisel’s creative achievements, beginning in 1919 with his high school activities and ending with his death in 1991.

The UC San Diego Libraries received Geisel’s collection of drawings, notebooks and other memorabilia following Theodor Geisel’s death in 1991, and four years later Audrey Geisel made a substantial donation to support the university’s libraries. In 2008, Audrey Geisel made a $1 million gift to the  Libraries to establish San Diego’s first university librarianship, held by Schottlaender.

About the UC San Diego Libraries

Ranked among the nation’s top 20 public academic research libraries, the UC San Diego Libraries play an integral role in advancing and supporting the university’s research, teaching, and public service missions. As the intellectual heart of the UC San Diego campus, the university libraries provide access to more than 7 million digital and print volumes, journals, and multimedia materials to meet the knowledge and information needs of faculty, students, and members of the public.  Each day, the Libraries vast resources are accessed nearly 90,000 times through the Libraries’ main Web site. For more information: http://libraries.ucsd.edu/