Dan Gutman | |
|---|---|
 Gutman speaking at a school in 2011 | |
| Born | (1955-10-19)October 19, 1955 (age 69) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Alma mater | Rutgers University |
| Genre | Children'shistorical fiction, historical, fantasy, humor |
| Subject | Video games, baseball history, sports biography |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | |
| dangutman | |
Dan Gutman (born October 19, 1955)[1] is an American writer, primarily of children's fiction.
His works include theBaseball Card Adventures children's book series that began withHonus & Me,The Genius Files series, andMy Weird School series.
Gutman was born in New York City, moving with his family a year later toNewark, New Jersey, where on June 1, 1968, his father abandoned the family.[1] His homemaker mother Adeline became a secretary and cared for Dan and his older sister, Lucy.[2] AfterVailsburg High School in Newark, Gutman graduated fromRutgers University with a degree in psychology in 1977. He began a graduate program in psychology, but dropped out and moved toNew York City in 1980 to pursue a writing career.[1][2]
After moving to New York City, Gutman worked as a magazine editor and columnist focused on computing. He founded and edited the magazineVideo Games Player (renamed toComputer Games from its fourth issue until the end of its publication), which ran for 10 issues from 1982 to 1985. The magazine coveredpersonal computer games,video game consoles, andarcade games, including news, company profiles, interviews, hints and tips, humor, and reviews.[3][4] The magazine published an initial successful issue in 1982, and then began publishing bi-monthly.[5] From issue 3, its managing editor was Shay Addams.[6]Video Games Player was one of only a few magazines dedicated to the arcade and video game industry in the early 1980s, and played a role in shapingvideo game culture.[3]
Gutman describes the magazine as "a little quickie thing that was put out by a small company"; the magazine did not attract significant success with circulation or advertising. Goodman changed the name toComputer Games after sales slowed and after sales failed to pick up he killed off the magazine.[5] He later called his years editing the magazine as the only "real" job he ever had. He hired freelance illustrator Nina Wallace to draw for the magazine and the two married in 1983.[7]
He said, "I started a magazine about video games and suddenly I was an expert in video games. I started writing about them and computers. All for grownups. It took me a long time to realize that writing for grownups was not my thing. It took me a long time to realize that what I was good at was writing for kids."[8] His column appeared regularly in various computer-related magazines, such asGenie Livewire.
Gutman has written over 70 books in theMy Weird School series[9] illustrated byJim Paillot, plus related series includingMy Weird School Daze andMy Weirder School. He has also written theMillion Dollar series, featuring children who get a chance to win a million dollars in various sporting events; theGenius Files series;Tales from the Sandlot, a series of fantasy sports stories; and theFunny Boy series about an alien boy exiled to Earth. There have also been two about Judson Moon, who became President of the United States at 12; two about Qwerty Stevens and his time machine; and two about children who use a machine to do their homework. His standalone novels includeThey Came from Center Field, about extraterrestrials who want to learn baseball,Johnny Hangtime, about a young movie stuntman, andRace for the Sky, a historical novel in diary form about theWright brothers.[10]
Gutman'sBaseball Card Adventures series, illustrated bySteve Chorney, revolves around a child named Joe Stoshack who travels back in time to meet baseball legends. The first work is based on the premise of his finding aHonus WagnerT206 baseball card in the attic of his neighbor. Further books in the series featureJackie Robinson,Babe Ruth,Shoeless Joe Jackson,Dorothy Maguire,Abner Doubleday,Satchel Paige,Jim Thorpe,Ray Chapman,Roberto Clemente,Ted Williams, andWillie Mays. The original story,Honus & Me, was made into theTurner Network TelevisionTV-movieThe Winning Season, starringMatthew Modine andKristin Davis.[11]
Gutman's 1996 novelThe Kid Who Ran for President was compared to theDonald Trump's2016 presidential campaign by comedianJohn Oliver during an August 2016 segment of the showLast Week Tonight with John Oliver. As a result, the book jumped in sales.[12]
Gutman wrote The Genius Files series. The 5-book series followed twinsCoke andPepsi (Pep) McDonald on a cross-country road trip to their aunt's wedding inWashington D.C. In book 3,You Only Die Twice, the family'sRV explodes and for the remainder of the series the family drives in aFerrari.
Gutman met his future wife, Nina Wallace,[2] an illustrator, when she did freelance work forComputer Games. They married in 1983.[1] They have lived inHaddonfield, New Jersey,[13] andNew York City,[1] and have two children, Sam and Emma.[13]
Flashback Four Series (2016-2019)
The Kid (1996-1999)
Baseball Card Adventures (1997–2015)
Million Dollar (1997-2006)
My Weird School (2001-2008)
My Weird School Daze (2008-2011)
My Weirder School (2011-2014)
My Weird School Special (2013–2022)
My Weirdest School (2015-2018)
My Weird School: I Can Read (2016-2018)
My Weird School Fast Facts (2016-2019)
My Weirder-est School (2019–2022)
My Weird School Graphic Novel (2021–Present)
My Weirdtastic School (2023–Present)
Qwerty Stevens Books (2002-2005)
The Genius Files (2011-2015)
