Colbert Nation has raised its flag at the Rosenbach Museum & Library…or, at least its flagpole.
In January 2012, millions of people watched television host Stephen Colbert and illustrator-author Maurice Sendak banter during an interview on Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report. When Sendak blessed Colbert’s idea for a “children’s book” called I Am a Pole (And So Can You!), Colbert followed through, producing and publishing the book just a few months later.
Recently, Colbert’s working materials for I Am a Pole took their rightful place alongside comparably great works of literature and Americana at the Rosenbach, including the manuscript for James Joyce’s Ulysses. These donated materials will remain in the Rosenbach’s collection permanently, alongside the museum’s vast Sendak Collection.
On view through November 11, 2012, this display of materials features items from the Sendak-Colbert interviews, items related to the publishing of I am a Pole (And So Can You!), The Colbert Report’s moving memorial tribute to Maurice Sendak that aired the evening of Sendak’s passing, and a sampling of fine poles found in the Rosenbach’s literary and artistic collections.