Free unabridged Dr. Seuss audio readings by celebs
July 2, 2006 11:39 AM   Subscribe

Unabridged audio readings (by celebrities) of Dr Seuss stories: Yertle the Turtle (7min). Oh, the Thinks You Can Think! (2min). One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (8min). I Can Read With My Eyes Shut (2min). I'm Not Going to Get Up Today (3min). Oh Say Can You Say? (8min). The Cat in the Hat (8min). Green Eggs and Ham (5min). Hop on Pop (5min). Fox in Socks (7min). Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are (8min). Dr. Seuss's ABC (5min). The Cat in the Hat Comes Back (9min). Clicking Sample is ample you see, the first 10 mins are free to you and me.
posted by stbalbach (24 comments total) 14 users marked this as a favorite
 
The best reading of a Seuss story was the one that Jesse Jackson did on Saturday Night Live, the weekend after Dr. Seuss died. He read "Green Eggs and Ham" like he was delivering the keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention, and the contrast was absolutely HILARIOUS.
posted by deadmessenger at 12:06 PM on July 2, 2006


i think audible caught on to your scheme, if it ever worked. i only seem to get about 30 seconds before it cuts out. nice thought though.
posted by casconed at 12:45 PM on July 2, 2006


If you're in Portland, the library has 13 copies on CD available for checkout.
posted by blueberry at 12:47 PM on July 2, 2006


It's working for me. My son and I just listened to a bunch of these, including Fox in Socks. What blessed relief to have someone else read him those 61 pages of pure torture.
Thanks for a wonderful link, stbalbach!
posted by maryh at 12:57 PM on July 2, 2006


green eggs and ham worked ok for me and is a great poem. my favourite that is not there is Oh, the Places You'll Go!
posted by wildster at 1:10 PM on July 2, 2006


Moxy Fruvous did a fun rap version of "Green Eggs and Ham" back in the day. At the moment someone has an mp3 here.
posted by yeti at 1:46 PM on July 2, 2006


Seuss owns.
posted by rinkjustice at 1:50 PM on July 2, 2006


Fans of Seuss audio might also enjoy the Gerald McBoing Boing record.
posted by box at 2:28 PM on July 2, 2006


Meh. Nothing compares to this version of Green Eggs and Ham. [Note: links to .mp3 file that is only half as funny as the video]
posted by scblackman at 2:43 PM on July 2, 2006


fox in socks worked perfectly fine, and was awesome. Thanks, stbalbach! My only complaint was that I couldn't figure out what celebrity voice was reading the book, and it wasn't readily apparent on the audible site.
posted by jonson at 2:45 PM on July 2, 2006


Clicking Sample is ample you see, the first 10 mins are free to you and me.

NEVER, EVER TRY TO BE DR. SEUSS. YOU WILL FAIL.
posted by Tlogmer at 3:08 PM on July 2, 2006


(jonson, I think that was David Hyde Pierce.)
posted by maryh at 3:41 PM on July 2, 2006


dr. frank, lead singer of the mr. t experience, noted ya author and former kalx dj, did the green eggs and ham rap for the 1984 fundraiser. it's an old time favourite around here.
posted by kendrak at 3:45 PM on July 2, 2006


My s. o. and I may not be celebrities, but we interpreted "The Glunk That Got Thunk" (MP3) and "Bartholomew and the Oobleck" (part 1, 2, 3) for a CD to be mailed to her younger sister & cousin. Oh, as well as the distinctly non-Seussian Von kleinem Maulwurf, der wissen wollte, wer ihm auf den Kopf gemacht hat ("Concerning Little Mole, Who Wants to Know Who Made on His Head"). Warning: recorded in a dorm room.
posted by aws17576 at 4:18 PM on July 2, 2006


The Simpsons once had Christopher Walken reading "Goodnight Moon" to children. I don't think it was really Walken, and it was only a few seconds long, but it was excellent.

I'd pay $0.99 to Apple to download Walken reading "Goodnight Moon."
posted by waldo at 5:45 PM on July 2, 2006


The Simpsons once had Christopher Walken reading "Goodnight Moon" to children.

"Scooch closer, children. Don't make me tell you again about the scooching."
posted by Dipsomaniac at 5:54 PM on July 2, 2006


I see they now have a listener plan for $10/year. Anyone know if the "free" content they offer under this plan is any good?
posted by Zinger at 5:56 PM on July 2, 2006


ugh. audible must not love casconed. i only get 30 seconds and it dies. =(.
posted by casconed at 6:26 PM on July 2, 2006


Thank you, thank you, for that Jesse Jackson clip, scblackman! A long-forgotten classic that made my day. Uh, night.
posted by shifafa at 10:20 PM on July 2, 2006


NEVER, EVER TRY TO BE DR. SEUSS. YOU WILL FAIL.

This is a slightly harsher / more emphatic version of my own ongoing crusade against journalists who write pieces about Dr. Seuss.

9 out of 10 of them seem to think they've got some kind of uniquely hilarious lede when they start with a few lines in rhyme.

First, stop it, it's been done to death, it's worse than a "Webster's defines..." lede. Second, what makes Dr. Seuss intoxicating is his command of rhythm, both in the repetition of rhymes and rhymed words and in his exacting scansion - the latter of which a journalist can almost never get right, being utterly clueless about it. Third, see sentence in all caps, above.

Nothing against stbalbach, of course, who did try to get some of that repeated rhyming stuff in, but dude, it just. doesn't. scan.
posted by soyjoy at 11:33 AM on July 3, 2006


The mistake that they make which is causing unrest
Is that seldom they write with a strict anapest
So the rhythm is wrong, neither herky nor jerky
In quite the right way, so the meter is murky
And comes to a halt at an unpleasant time.
But it's fun all the same! You try writing in rhyme!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 12:43 PM on July 3, 2006 [17 favorites]


Bravo, Jon Mitchell.
posted by maryh at 4:26 AM on July 4, 2006


The fun of Fox in Socks is in how FAST you can read it aloud without flubbing. At least, that's the fun for me. 7 minutes? Amateur.
posted by GhostintheMachine at 8:32 AM on July 4, 2006


I wonder if it's a coincidence that both "A Visit From Saint Nicholas ('Twas the Night Before Christmas)" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" are written in anapestic tetrameter.
posted by Faint of Butt at 11:58 AM on July 4, 2006


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