Flaming Herring

Adapted posthumously from the original 1930s plaster and oil on wood mount sculpture.

Every January the National Boat Show is held in New York City. In 1937 Standard Oil wanted something elaborate from Dr. Seuss for the show. Ted topped his previous efforts by using a collection of his seven Marine Muggs sculptures for the Essomarine booth. The January 1937 issue of Yachting magazine highlighted their appearance: “From the briny depths of the imagination of the famous designer, Dr. Seuss, whose murals have been a feature of Essomarine’s recent Show exhibits, comes a collection of the weirdest denizens of the deep ever imagined in the wildest nightmare of a skipper. The anatomy and peculiar appearance of certain of these creatures have caused so much speculation that their origin has at last been divulged. It is said that many of these monstrosities were sighted in out of the way spots by Seuss Admirals and reported to Admiral-in-Chief Seuss during the course of a year’s cruising.”

The Flaming Herring is one of the seven “Marine Muggs.”