John Cassidy (author)
Encyclopedia
John Cassidy is the chief executive and co-founder of Klutz Press
and author of over 200 instructional and children's books, including Juggling
for the Complete Klutz, The Klutz Book of Inventions, and The Klutz Book of Brilliantly Ridiculous Inventions.
Cassidy attended Stanford University
, where he studied English and Education. While at Stanford he also became friends with Darrell Lorentzen and B.C. Rimbeaux, with whom he would eventually found Klutz Press
.
In 1977, while working as a student teacher at a high school in Mountain View, California
, Cassidy began his career as a juggling pedagogue by handing out 75 tennis balls to his sophomore remedial-reading class, along with instructions on juggling. Pleased with his students' response, Cassidy, along with his college friends Lorentzen and Rimbeaux, wrote and published Juggling for the Complete Klutz. The book did well, selling 50,000 copies by the end of 1978. That same year Cassidy, Lorentzen, and Rimbeaux co-founded Klutz Press
in Palo Alto, California
.
Cassidy has remained the chief executive and "creative force" of the company since its founding. In that time he has written over 200 books for Klutz. Juggling for the Complete Klutz, the company's most popular title, has sold over 2.5 million copies.
In May, 2006, the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose awarded Cassidy the seventh annual Legacy for Children Award, which honors "an individual or organization whose work has significantly benefited the learning and lives of children." Previous awardees included Dr. Seuss
, Bil Keane
, and Fred Rogers.
Klutz Press
Klutz Press is a publishing company started in 1977 and acquired by Scholastic Inc. in 2002. The first Klutz book was a how-to guide titled Juggling for the Complete Klutz, which came provided with juggling beanbags attached in a mesh bag. The book was created by three friends who graduated from...
and author of over 200 instructional and children's books, including Juggling
Juggling
Juggling is a skill involving moving objects for entertainment or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling, in which the juggler throws objects up to catch and toss up again. This may be one object or many objects, at the same time with one or many hands. Jugglers often refer...
for the Complete Klutz, The Klutz Book of Inventions, and The Klutz Book of Brilliantly Ridiculous Inventions.
Cassidy attended Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, where he studied English and Education. While at Stanford he also became friends with Darrell Lorentzen and B.C. Rimbeaux, with whom he would eventually found Klutz Press
Klutz Press
Klutz Press is a publishing company started in 1977 and acquired by Scholastic Inc. in 2002. The first Klutz book was a how-to guide titled Juggling for the Complete Klutz, which came provided with juggling beanbags attached in a mesh bag. The book was created by three friends who graduated from...
.
In 1977, while working as a student teacher at a high school in Mountain View, California
Mountain View, California
-Downtown:Mountain View has a pedestrian-friendly downtown centered on Castro Street. The downtown area consists of the seven blocks of Castro Street from the Downtown Mountain View Station transit center in the north to the intersection with El Camino Real in the south...
, Cassidy began his career as a juggling pedagogue by handing out 75 tennis balls to his sophomore remedial-reading class, along with instructions on juggling. Pleased with his students' response, Cassidy, along with his college friends Lorentzen and Rimbeaux, wrote and published Juggling for the Complete Klutz. The book did well, selling 50,000 copies by the end of 1978. That same year Cassidy, Lorentzen, and Rimbeaux co-founded Klutz Press
Klutz Press
Klutz Press is a publishing company started in 1977 and acquired by Scholastic Inc. in 2002. The first Klutz book was a how-to guide titled Juggling for the Complete Klutz, which came provided with juggling beanbags attached in a mesh bag. The book was created by three friends who graduated from...
in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
.
Cassidy has remained the chief executive and "creative force" of the company since its founding. In that time he has written over 200 books for Klutz. Juggling for the Complete Klutz, the company's most popular title, has sold over 2.5 million copies.
In May, 2006, the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose awarded Cassidy the seventh annual Legacy for Children Award, which honors "an individual or organization whose work has significantly benefited the learning and lives of children." Previous awardees included Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
, Bil Keane
Bil Keane
William Aloysius Keane , better known as Bil Keane, was an American cartoonist. He is most notable for his work on the long-running newspaper comic The Family Circus, which began its run in 1960 and continues in syndication, drawn by his son Jeff Keane.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia,...
, and Fred Rogers.