"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island." - Walt Disney

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen (April 2, 1805 - August 4, 1875) - a Danish author and poet whose works have delighted children worldwide and been translated into more than 150 languages. His stories have inspired motion pictures, plays, ballets and animated films.

Most everyone knows several of the adaptations, but they do not recognize the tale as his original work. He is best remembered for children’s stories such as “The Princess and the Pea”, “The Emperor’s New Suit”, "The Steadfast Tin Soldier”, “The Little Mermaid", “Thumbelina”, "The Little Match Girl” and "The Ugly Duckling”.

To see how many of his tales you can recognize, or learn more about him, check http://hca.gilead.org.il/#list.

The following is a scene from a biographical movie in which Danny Kaye portrays Anderson.

30 comments:

Bish Denham said...

LOVE Andersen, though his stories could be dark and not necessarily have a happy ending (The Little Mermaid.)One of my all time favorites is The Snow Queen. And Danny Kaye...delightful.

Anonymous said...

His are great stories. One of my favs is Princess and the Pea. I can so identify with how she would feel LOL!
I love the modern adaptations like Prince Cinders by Babette Cole, too :O)

エイプリル said...

Great author, and wonderful topic for "H" post. As a child, I liked Thumbelina best.

Unknown said...

Oh yes I remember Danny Kaye as Hans Christian Andersen (it was a long time ago). Awww...the Little Mermaid.

Rek Sesh said...

A fitting choice for H. I loved his tales and love them still....Specially little mermaid that made cry for her...

Anonymous said...

Lovely post! So glad to have found you via the A-Z Challenge.

Laura said...

His stories shaped my childhood - amazing to think I never attributed them to one man! Thanks for your comment over at Daily Dodo - lovely to meet you. Laura x

Susan Kane said...

Wonderful post. His stories shaped generations. Loved the Danny Kaye connection! Please check out my post for 'K'!

Linda H. said...

I haven't heard of The Little Match Girl. I guess I'll have to go google that one.

mymy said...

i loved reading his stories! we used to have a hardbound book of his stories at my parent's house...i wonder if it's still there.

thanks for visiting my 'H' post; followed you :)

Petra said...

I grew up on his tales. :-)

Tracy said...

Great 'H' word...I remember when I was a little girl, Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates use to be on TV during the Christmas holidays and then it wasn't but I certainly waited for that movie every Christmas.
I love the Little Match girl and read it to my students during the holidays :)
Thanks so much for sharing!

Unknown said...

My daughter's class is doing a section on Fairy tales at school right now, and she just took my Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tale book in to share with her class. I love his tales (but the pictures in our book are quite scary!)

Manzanita said...

The video was a delightful jog of a memory.Danny Kaye was always glib and light on his feet.I hope parents are still reading Anderson's stories to children.
Manzanita
Wanna buy a duck

Amanda Trought said...

I used to read his books as a young girl, I particularly remember the one I had about the mermaids that were beautifully illustrated and I have been looking for recently, great 'down memory lane post'. Thank you for your visit, stay blessed!

the writing pad said...

Thanks for triggering a visit to my childhood. I loved the Ugly Duckling story - gave me hope! Sadly, 50 years on, I'm still no swan but a great story, nonetheless :-) Thanks also for yesterday's Goal post (Eh? - I meant post about Goals ...) Some great tips and sorry I missed it on the day. Will be following from now on, so I don't miss others.
All best
Karla

Josie Two Shoes said...

I grew up loving these stories! I remember "The Little Match Girl" presented as an oratory piece at a contest in college that was so well done it moved us to tears. I saw the Danny Kaye movie too! Great choice for the letter H! :-)
~Josie Two Shoes~
Two Shoes In Texas 
Monday Memories
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Words In Motion

Luanne G. Smith said...

Oh, good H choice. So often the old stories get Disneyfied, but I love going back and reading the originals. Same with the Brothers Grimm.

Monica said...

Love these stories, especially the Princess and the Pea!! Nice post! Found you from the A-Z Challenge, I’m now following you on GFC and I hope you have a chance to check out my blog!
Monica
http://oldermommystillyummy.blogspot.com/

Stephanie V said...

I always loved those fairy tales. My grandkids are equally entranced. Isn't it wonderful how great characters and plots can satisfy all generations and times.

Bob Sanchez said...

A fine choice for H. I loved Danny Kaye's portrayal.

Sherri Lackey said...

Thanks for stopping by my site! Thanks for the link to Andersen's tales. I've been thinking about reading some of the originals which haven't been tainted by Disney.

ali cross said...

How could I not immediately fall in love with you when you have a clip of Danny Kaye?

Great "h" post ~ Anderson was a marvelous storyteller. :)

Bethe77 said...

Sylvia, thank you for stopping by. I so apperciate it.
I do recongize some of these tales.
Im having a great time with the A~Z challenge.
Blessings

Mama Chocolate said...

Love Anderson...so many great stories! :-)

Thanks for stopping by my blog! :-)

Anonymous said...

I'm reading a play by Sebastian Berry: Andersen's English. A fiction story of when he visited the Dickens. It's really good! So I was looking forward to your post :)
And I think it's really interesting how many times his stories were used. Such an inspiration!
- andrea

KM Nalle said...

I didn't know he was responsible for so many stories. Wow!

Heather Henry said...

Love Hans Christian Anderson, I have a book of all of his tales I used to read to my kids. Little Mermaid has always been a favorite of mine, since I used to think I actually was a mermaid. :)
Enjoying looking through all of your posts. Thanks!

Ilene (Kat) Snyder said...

Hans Brinker and Little Match Girl are my favorites. Thanks for writing about such a great author!

Darren Demers said...

The following is a scene from a biographical movie in which Danny Kaye portrays Anderson.
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