It’s the birthday of Peggy Bacon (1895-1987, #nicelonglife), who was the author and/or illustrator of 60-some books and won great recognition for both her art and her writing, including an Edgar Allen Poe Mystery Award nomination for her novel The Inward Eye (1952).

Margaret Frances Bacon was born in Ridgefield, Connecticut, to two artists; her two younger brothers died in infancy, so she was essentially an only child. She was close to her parents and while they were supposedly “poverty-stricken” (Bacon’s words), the family managed to enjoy gourmet food, lots of art, and tons of books, as well as travel to places like Paris and Bermuda and the services of a governess. (Where can I sign up to be poverty-stricken?) When Bacon was seven, the family went to Bermuda but her parents ended up in quarantine for typhoid fever and the governess wasn’t along, so Bacon explored the island and ran wild with other kids. (NB: There is no way on God’s green earth I am letting my children run around an island alone, typhoid or not. Ah, those good ol’ days…)

Until the age of 14, Bacon was taught by tutors and only had to study what she wanted, which included classical subjects like Latin, Greek, ancient history, and mythology. (My kids would choose Minecraft, kittens, volcanoes, and dinosaurs. Excellent prep for the real world.) From the ages of 14 to 18 Bacon went to boarding school; her father committed suicide the year she graduated. Bacon then entered the School of Applied Design for Women, dropped out almost immediately, and studied at other art schools, including the Art Students League of New York (where she later taught as well) and the New York School of Fine and Applied Arts. Bacon got into a printmaking technique called drypoint and would become famous for this. Her first book, The True Philosopher and Other Cat Tales, came out in 1919.

Bacon also worked in pastels, lithographs, etchings, and more, exhibiting and publishing throughout a very illustrious career. She became the first winner of a Guggenheim to be allowed to use the money for something other than travel, producing a collection of satirical portraits, Off With Their Heads! (1934-ish). Others of her many works include The Lion-Hearted Kitten and Other Stories, The Magic Touch, The Terrible Nuisance, The Ghost of Opalina, and the weirdly familiar-sounding album of drawings, Starting from Scratch.

Bacon married and had two children but divorced in 1940. She died at 91 in Kennebunk, Maine.

Have a splendid Saturday, may Baltimore orioles show up at your feeder so hopefully stocked with grape jelly and oranges, and stay scrupulously honest to the data.