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| Our Madeline rag doll sits next to her dress-up trunk and her big hat box! |
Madeline is a media franchise that originated as a series of children's books written and illustrated by Ludwig Bemelmans, an Austrian-American author. The books have been adapted into numerous formats, spawning telefilms, television series and a live action feature film. As a closing line, the adaptations invoke a famous phrase Ethel Barrymore used to rebuff curtain calls, "That's all there is, there isn't any more." The stories take place in a Catholic boarding school in Paris. The teacher, Miss Clavel, is strict but loves the children, cares for them, and is open to their ideas.
Madeline Fan Video:
A bit about Ludwig Bemelmans and his stories...
Madeline was written by Ludwig Bemelmans and published in 1939. Bemelmans wrote five sequels between 1953 and 1961. Later books in the series were written by Bemelmans' grandson John Bemelmans Marciano. The books focus on 12 girls in a Catholic boarding school in Paris. Madeline is the smallest of the girls, only seven years old and the only girl with red hair. She is the bravest and most outgoing of the girls. The images seem classical and show scenery and landmarks of the location where the story takes place such as the Eiffel Tower and the Seine River.
Each Madeline story begins: "In an old house in Paris, that was covered with vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines... the smallest one was Madeline." The girls are cared for by Miss Clavel. She is likely a nun, as some French orders called themselves Madames, particularly that of St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, after which this convent school seems to be modeled; and "Mrs." would not be an appropriate equivalent in English. Some have argued that Miss Clavel's apparel looks more like that of a nurse (She is based upon a nurse who cared for Ludwig after he recooperated from surgery.)
Other characters in the book series include Pepito, son of the Spanish ambassador, who lives next door; Lord Cucuface, owner of the house; and Genevieve, a dog who rescues Madeline from drowning in the second book. Bemelmans published six Madeline stories in his lifetime, five as picture books and one in a magazine. A seventh was discovered after his death and published posthumously:
- Madeline, 1939: in which Madeline must have her appendix removed. - short video and read aloud
- Madeline's Rescue, 1953: in which Madeline is rescued from drowning by a dog (later named Genevieve). Winner of the Caldecott Medal for U.S. picture book illustration. - short video and read aloud
- Madeline and the Bad Hat, 1956: in which the "bad hat" is Pepito, the Spanish ambassador's son, whose cruel antics outrage Madeline. - short video and read aloud
- Madeline and the Gypsies, 1959: in which Madeline and Pepito have an adventure at a circus. - short video and read aloud
- Madeline in London, 1961: in which Pepito moves to London, and Madeline and the girls go to visit him. - short video and read aloud
- Madeline's Christmas, 1985: in which everyone in the house catches cold, except Madeline. (First published in McCall's in 1956). - short video and read aloud
- Madeline in America and Other Holiday Tales, 1999: in which Madeline inherits a fortune from her American great-grandfather. The book also reveals Madeline's full name, Madeline Fogg. - short video and read aloud
