About Leo Lionni
Leo Lionni (May 5, 1910 – October 11, 1999) was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Born in the Netherlands, he moved to Italy and lived there before moving to the United States in 1939, where he worked as an art director for several advertising agencies, and then for Fortune magazine. Lionni returned to Italy in 1962 and started writing and illustrating children's books. That same year his book Inch by Inch was awarded the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award. == Family == Lionni was born in Amsterdam but spent two years in Philadelphia before moving to Italy as a teenager. His father worked as an accountant and his mother was an opera singer. His father was assigned to an office in Italy part way through Leo's time in high school. He married Nora Maffi, the daughter of Fabrizio Maffi, a founder of the Italian Communist Party, and they had two sons, Louis and Paolo, grandchildren Pippo and Annie and Sylvan, and great-grandchildren Madeline, Luca, Sam, Nick, Alix, Henry, and Theo. Lonni died on October 11, 1999, at his home in Tuscany, Italy, at age 89. == Career == From 1931 to 1939, Lionni was a well-known and respected painter in Italy, where he worked in the Futurism and avant-garde styles.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.