Shirley Sliker Pinocchio collection, 1898-1997.

The Shirley Sliker Pinocchio collection is comprised of seven boxes and brings together Pinocchio fiction and related media, ranging from the late 1800's through the 1990's. The materials contained in the collection are Pinocchio fiction, from the original Carlo Collodi depictions of the character through to the contemporary Disney representations. The collection also includes audio media in the form of vinyl records and cassettes. Other media in the collection includes a flier and a Remco showboat stage and character set. A number of the children's books are pop-up or have movable components.

Gift; Shirley Brocker Sliker.

Carlo Collodi, born Carlo Lorenzini, wrote La avventure di Pinocchio (The Adventures of Pinocchio) in 1883, introducing the world to a small wood marionette puppet name Pinocchio. Upon publication, initially in serial form in a newspaper and subsequently as a book, The Adventure of Pinocchio became a widely read and popular children's tale in Italy. The book sought to give moral guidance on coming of age, what it means to be human, and truthfulness. Pinocchio's most lasting and defining characteristic, is a nose that grows when he is lying. Pinocchio was first translated into English in 1892 by Mary Alice Murray with illustrations by Enrico Mazzanti. Walt Disney was given a copy of Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio in 1937 while making his first animated feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Disney was drawn to the story and decided to purchase the rights. Originally set to be Disney's third feature film, after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Bambi, but because of difficulties in the production of Bambi, Pinocchio was released in 1940 as Disney's second animated feature film. The intervening years have seen Disney release a vast collection of Pinocchio media.