“T double-E double-R double-R double-I double-F double-I double C, C, C!”
What an appropriate (if not mildly confusing to a child learning to spell) description of this classic tale! I’ve loved this E.B. White story since I was 6 years old. Our first grade teacher started reading the book to us toward the end of our school year, as a reward for how well we were all doing in our studies and our behavior. I remember being completely captivated by the tale she spun for us every day during our lunch break (and, yes, I did just make a cheesy spider web joke).
I also remember that the ultimate lesson from Charlotte’s Web about friendship and loss took on a more poignant meaning for us when our teacher had to leave before the school year or the book was finished. Her father had become critically ill and she needed to return home to China to take care of him.
So we got our first lesson in geography when we asked why she couldn’t just visit with her father in the evenings after school, and many of us got our first lesson in how much it stinks to have to say goodbye to someone we’ve grown to care about. She did return the following school year to resume her duties, but I remember the rest of our year was one far less bright. The substitute teacher brought in to take her place was fine and even finished reading Charlotte’s Web for us, but it wasn’t the same. Some teachers are simply irreplaceable.
Skip ahead a few years…actually, skip ahead several years to the first time I ever saw the 1973 animated version of Charlotte’s Web. I was well into my teens by the time I first saw this movie. Thank goodness I’ve yet to lose my ability to appreciate things that most people would deem “silly” or “childish” as they get older. I love this movie! First, it’s a veritable smorgasbord of 70s talent: Paul Lynde, Agnes Moorehead, Henry Gibson, Danny Bonaduce, Dave Madden, and the mellifluous voice of Debbie Reynolds. Plus, the movie was animated by Hanna-Barbera, co-directed by Scooby Doo creator Iwao Takomoto, and featured voice artist Don Messick, the original voice of that groovy Great Dane!
Yes, the movie is
