Crockett Johnson was born in New York City on July 16, 1898. He was raised by his mother, who ran a theatrical costume business, and his grandmother, who had been a showgirl. His father had died when he was five years old. As a child, Johnson's mother had him doing fancy costuming and other odd jobs for her theatrical clients
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When he was 13, Johnson started making up stories to amuse his friends. He wrote and illustrated the first edition of The Sneetches (1921) for his mother to sell at her shop. Another popular story which he wrote and illustrated for his mother was What Makes the Tail Wag? (1924).
Later he worked as an illustrator for various magazines, including The Saturday Evening Post and Life magazine. The latter published several of his stories, including "The Big Sneeze" (1937), "What's Up Doc?" (1939), "Hopsie Pop" (1942), and "Pig Puddle" (1943).