Sendak Stories: Beyond Wild Things

5 - The Book is the Final Artwork: Maurice Sendak’s Legacy

Maurice Sendak didn’t lay out a specific agenda for his loved ones after he passed away in 2012. Instead, he said, “You’ll know what to do.” And they did. One of those actions was the formation of the Maurice Sendak Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving his legacy and celebrating the art of the picture book. The Foundation also runs the Sendak Fellowship, a residency for illustrators founded in 2010. Executive Director Lynn Caponera and Curator Jonathan Weinberg discuss how Sendak lives on.

4 - He Had a Profound Sense of Himself as Jewish

Friends Tony Kushner, Lynn Caponera, and Jonathan Weinberg talk about how important Maurice Sendak’s Jewish heritage was to him. Jewish traditions found their way into Sendak’s daily life, books (including Where the Wild Things Are), and theater productions, and he celebrated and memorialized diverse associations with Jewish heritage, from humor to the Holocaust.

3 - The Incredibly Difficult Business of Childhood

Maurice Sendak remembered and understood how difficult a time childhood is. Playwright Tony Kushner talks about how his friend never condescended to kids and approached his work with the thoughtfulness and respect that they deserve. Lynn Caponera and Jonathan Weinberg of the Maurice Sendak Foundation, who met Sendak as children, discuss their experiences as lifetime friends of the artist.

2 - Dave Eggers Remembers

Dave Eggers, author and the co-screenwriter of Where the Wild Things Are, a 2009 film adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s most famous book, recounts his friendship and collaboration with the author-illustrator. Eggers discusses everything from his own childhood memories of Sendak’s books (In the Night Kitchen “freaked me out”) to how Sendak’s strange and subconscious—not pedagogical or moralistic—storytelling aligns with his own writing for all ages.

1 - The Dybbuk, with Tony Kushner

Maurice Sendak’s storytelling prowess wasn’t confined to his books: he told fantastic stories – and would get angry if you didn’t believe them—in real life. Playwright Tony Kushner recalls Sendak’s first-hand account of his childhood encounter with a dybbuk (a malicious spirit in Jewish tradition). Lynn Caponera and Jonathan Weinberg of the Maurice Sendak Foundation also share how storytelling was part of the artist’s daily routine.