Adapted posthumously from an early concept drawing and the final illustration for the 1960 book, Green Eggs and Ham. “Green Eggs and Ham” was born out of a $50 wager between Dr. Seuss and his publisher, Bennett Cerf, who bet he couldn’t write an articulate, entertaining book using only fifty different words. The result was a 62-page volume composed of 49 monosyllabic words and a fiftieth three-syllable word “anywhere.”

When Cerf heard Ted’s first reading of the book, he seemed dazed, shaking his head over the clear triumph of Green Eggs and Ham, which had begun as their private joke. Although he conceded the fifty-dollar bet, Ted cheerily “complained” throughout his life that Cerf never paid up.

A small price for what ultimately became a national treasure. Ted Geisel had a unique ability to cut to the heart of the matter. He would spend as much as a year on a new book, tacking up written pages and pencil drawings across the corkboard walls of his studio. Slowly, over the course of many months, he would sift through his work in search of the simplest, most powerful ideas to propel his story forward. Ted’s dedication to such simplicity can be seen here in his concept drawing for this work. The lower right-hand corner reveals his “word count” to be certain he doesn’t exceed the 50-word challenge.

This piece is a Pigment Limited Edition on acid-free paper with an authorised printed signature by Dr. Seuss.

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