Merced Mentions from Torme’ to Seuss-References in music and bedtime stories

Dr. Seuss’s Sleep Book is filled with the expected rhymes and alliteration the author is famous for including in his work.

This column is about references to Merced in popular culture including a Dr. Seuss book.  I promise not to try to rhyme the sentences in a way the famous Dr. Seuss would do.

Merced is mentioned as the town of Mercedd, with two “d”s in Dr. Seuss Sleep Book around page fourteen (the 1992 version of the book has no page numbers).

Way out west, in the town of Mercedd,
The Hinkle-Horn Honking Club just went to bed.

The Merced reference (Dr. Seuss spells it Mercedd) in the book Dr. Seuss’s Sleep Book.

Why Dr. Seuss chose to name the town “way out west” after our city was a question we put to the organization that handles business affairs and licensing of the brand (DrSeussEnterprises.com). We may never know why Dr. Seuss (real name: Theodore Geisel) chose to use Merced in that book.  It may be as simple as Merced rhymes with bed.

As the book has an original copyright date of 1962, asking for this information was a long shot.  As of the publication of this column, there has been no response from Dr. Seuss Enterprises.

California Suite,  by Mel Torme’

Another reference to Merced is found in the lyrics of a group of songs all centered on the beauty and charm of the golden state as envisioned in the late 1940s by one of America’s well known jazz singers.

California Suite, a thirty-minute composition of thirteen songs by the late singer, song writer Mel Torme’, mentions Merced along with the names of just about every larger city in the state.  Torme’ is perhaps best known for composing along with writing partner Bob Wells the holiday classic A Christmas Song.

Mel’s son Steve March Torme’ considers California Suite a brilliant example of his father’s depth as a composer and arranger.  “Dad never talked to me specifically about the California Suite but I’m very familiar with it,” he said.  “I have the CD and vinyl.  Great songs.”

Composing the suite represented a high point in creativity for Mel Torme’.  One of the challenges was cramming as many California city names into the lyrics as possible.

Like Dr. Seuss, Mel Torme probably used the city’s name because it fit well in the lyrics.

This display board from a Merced Courthouse Museum exhibit explains when and where actress Janet Leigh lived in the city.  Photo: Merced Courthouse Museum

Merced has a few well-known folks who were either born here or spent some time living here.  Actress Janet Leigh, who starred in Psycho lived in an apartment on twenty-second street as a young girl.  Demi Moore from A Few Good Men lived in the city briefly according to an entry in Wikipedia. 

Several pro athletes, a former YouTube CEO, and a singer in the Bob Wills western swing band are among the celebrities who have a connection to the community.

But it is that reference from one of the world’s best known authors that may be remembered for as long as parents continue buying his books and libraries keep stocking their shelves with his more than sixty stories ranging from How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Lorax, to Green Eggs and Ham.

So the next time you feel like topping a comment someone makes about their hometown, recall the names mentioned in this column.

Or invoke the words of the great Theodore Geisel from the Dr. Seuss’s Sleep Book:

Everywhere,
Creatures
Have shut off their voices.
They’ve all gone to bed
In the beds of their choices.

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Steve Newvine lives in Merced. 

Before getting his BA from Syracuse University, he attended Herkimer College in upstate NY.  That village is referenced as Herk Heimer Falls in the Dr. Seuss Sleep Book.

His latest book Jack & Johnny: Benny, Carson and a Friendship Made for Television, and all his books are available locally at the Merced Courthouse Museum gift shop or it can be ordered at Jack & Johnny (lulu.com).   The book recently received honors from the Regal Summit Book Awards.

His California books are also available for purchase at Bookish Modesto in the Roseburg Square Shopping Center, 811 W Roseburg Avenue in Modesto.