Line #29 Literature/HaroldAndThePurpleCrayon


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screen_shot_2020_06_23_at_103518_am.png]]
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3	''Harold and the Purple Crayon'' is an illustrated children’s book first published in 1955 by [[PenName Crockett Johnson]][[note]]His actual name was David Johnson Leisk[[/note]]. The story follows a little boy named Harold as he wanders around [[RealityWarper drawing his own reality]] with his purple crayon and [[TheHomewardJourney trying to get home]].
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5	Harold is colored in with a blue jumpsuit and Caucasian skin on the book's cover[[note]]and in the AnimatedAdaptation, as well[[/note]], and in black-and-white in the story itself. Everything else in the story is purple, since it was [[ArtInitiatesLife drawn with the crayon]]; this lets the reader see that Harold is somehow more real than everything else.
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7	It has received several sequels, and also been adapted into [[AnimatedAdaptation a series of children's animated shorts, as well as an animated series on]] Creator/{{HBO}} (produced by Creator/SonyPicturesTelevision). The series is completely available on DVD, so no need to hunt hard for it.
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9	A [[Film/HaroldAndThePurpleCrayon2024 live-action film]] is due to release in 2024, starring Creator/ZacharyLevi. No, really.
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11	The books are aimed at children ages 3 to 8, but each one is a good quick read for adults.
12	----
13	!!Titles in the series:
14	# ''Harold and the Purple Crayon'' (1955)
15	# ''Harold's Fairy Tale'' (1956)
16	# ''Harold's Trip to the Sky'' (1957)
17	# ''Harold at the North Pole'' (1958)
18	# ''Harold's Circus'' (1959)
19	# ''A Picture for Harold's Room'' (1960)
20	# ''Harold's ABC'' (1963)
21	----
22	!!''Harold and the Purple Crayon'' provides examples of:
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24	* AdaptationExpansion: The 13-episode HBO series narrated by Creator/SharonStone.
25	%% * AppliedPhlebotinum: The crayon.
26	* ArtInitiatesLife: Harold's crayon brings his drawings to life.
27	* ArtisticLicenseAnimalCare: In one episode, Harold has a goldfish that is kept in a fishbowl. [[spoiler: The fish later dies]].
28	* ArtShift: Each episode of the HBO series had BookEnds set in Harold's bedroom, which looked more realistic than the rest of the backgrounds.
29	%% * BigFriendlyDog: Lilac in the Animated Series.
30	%% * CharacterNameAndTheNounPhrase
31	* DeathByNewberyMedal: "I Remember Goldie", wherein Harold's fish Goldie dies and he learns about death.
32	* DeathIsASadThing: Harold learns about death when [[spoiler:his pet goldfish dies]].
33	* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: It's a series about a boy named Harold and his purple crayon.
34	* TheFaceless: Harold's mom in the animated series. The audience mainly got to see her hands; her body was seen once (from the back, so we can't see her face), she's a short-haired brunette woman with a red shirt.
35	* FaceOfAThug: The dragon who guards the apple tree has a menacing appearance that frightens Harold and his friends, but he later turns out to be a GentleGiant.
36	* GentleGiant: The dragon guarding the apple tree looks scary, but is actually very friendly.
37	* GentleGiantSauropod: Double subverted in "Blast From the Past". Harold goes to search for a giant sauropod to ride on, but when he finally encounters one, a ''Titanosaurus'', he seemingly menaces Harold, his ''Pteranodon'' friend, and a herd of other dinosaurs. But after Harold saves him from a tarpit, the ''Titanosaurus'' turns out be a GentleGiant and was only aggressive because the other dinosaurs ate his supply of pinecones that he had been saving for winter. Once Harold draws him giant pinecones to feed him, the sauropod returns the favor by giving him the ride that he wanted.
38	* TheHomewardJourney: In each of the books, Harold uses his crayon to go on adventures of his own invention, and then must use it to send him back home.
39	%% * LimitedAnimation: 3 classic shorts.
40	* MentalWorld: One possible explanation in the books. Played straight in the TV series.
41	* MimeAndMusicOnlyCartoon: Only Sharon Stone's narration contrasts this.
42	* NonstandardCharacterDesign: Harold contrasts against the people he draws, who have little more than purple outlines.
43	%%* PresentTenseNarrative
44	* RealityWarper: Harold can bend his created world to his wants.
45	* ShortRunner: The animated TV series on HBO Family only lasted 13 episodes.
46	* TemperCeratops: In "Blast From the Past", the first dinosaur Harold encounters is an aggressive ''Triceratops'' that tries to trample him before he gets saved by the timely arrival of a ''Pteranodon''. Subverted by the ''Centrosaurus'' that is among the friendly dinosaurs trying to flee from the volcanic eruption.
47	* TerrifyingTyrannosaur: Surprisingly subverted. While ''Tyrannosaurus'' does appear in "Blast From the Past", it is mainly in cameos and non-threatening. (It's ''[[TemperCeratops Triceratops]]'' that plays the role of the "antagonistic" dinosaur.)
48	* TheVoiceless: Harold. In some episodes of the HBO series, Harold would get to deliver one or two lines, but the narrator would still do most of the talking.
49	* WeirdMoon: Always accompanies Harold in his adventures.

Context Literature / HaroldAndThePurpleCrayon