Shel Silverstein

Sheldon Allan "Shel" Silverstein (September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American writer known for his cartoons, stories and songs. His written works have been translated into more than 30 languages and have sold more than 20 million copies. He was the recipient of two Grammy Awards, as well as Golden Globe Award and Academy Award nominations.

Provenance: From a fascinating and diverse archive comprised of 500+ pages that sheds light on Silverstein’s career during his 30s and 40s, traveling the world and drawing cartoons for magazine and publications; writing songs for Johnny Cash, Helen Reddy, and Dr. Hook; and writing and illustrating books of poetry for children.

From a letter by Bryan Bilby of Appeldore Books, dated March 1, 2014. In part: "On or about 9/15 of 2013 I received a call from a person in New York about a collection of Shel Silverstein material. Naturally I became very interested because there is virtually no Silverstein manuscript material or art work on the market. The facts were revealed to me that Silverstein had dumped all this paper not in his own trash can...but in his neighbor's trash can instead...The treasures were incredible including...a selection of drawings..."