But a story in The New York Times offers a different, somewhat seedier version. Geisel, it seems, remarried. His second wife was a woman named Audrey Diamond.
To let the Times pick up the tale:
Were you thinking the widow of the country's most beloved children's writer must have been a sentimental and devoted mom, admitting only the most traditional family values?
Sorry.
Audrey Dimond was married with two children when she fell in love with Ted Geisel. Mr. Geisel, 18 years her senior, was also married. In the wake of their affair, Mr. Geisel's wife, Helen, committed suicide, causing, as Mrs. Geisel puts it, ''a rather large ripple in the community of La Jolla.'' Mrs. Dimond divorced her husband to marry Mr. Geisel, 64, and when she did, her daughters, 9 and 14, were sent away to school.
''They wouldn't have been happy with Ted, and Ted wouldn't have been happy with them. He's the man who said of children, 'You have 'em and I'll entertain 'em.' ''
''Ted's a hard man to break down, but this is who he was. He lived his whole life without children and he was very happy without children. I've never been very maternal. There were too many other things I wanted to do. My life with him was what I wanted my life to be.'' ….
You can read the whole article by clicking on the URL above for the NY Times.
I must confess that in a previous blog entry, Play Day, I mistakenly posted a photo of Audrey Geisel and said that it was Helen. I have since corrected this mistake. It is Helen in today's entry.
I must confess that in a previous blog entry, Play Day, I mistakenly posted a photo of Audrey Geisel and said that it was Helen. I have since corrected this mistake. It is Helen in today's entry.
