The illustrator Hilary Knight at the New-York Historical Society, where an exhibition showcasing his collaboration with Kay Thompson, “Eloise at the Museum,” is on view. CreditAgaton Strom for The New York Times I am a native Manhattanite, therefore Eloise was a particular heroine of mine growing up. At a time when New York was somewhat down in the dumps, Eloise made it seem highly desirable to be “a city child.” That she lived at the Plaza Hotel, a place I associated with tourists and an old Walter Matthau movie (then in grainy reruns on Channel 9), mattered not at all. So when the Books desk asked me to review an exhibition on “Eloise” that was opening at the New-York Historical Society, I

Long before there was millennial pink there was rose carthame, a chemical but warm paint hue favored by Katharine Sturges Dodge, mother of the artist Hilary Knight, and an artist herself. “She used it in cheeks, especially,” Mr. Knight said the other afternoon. “Think pink!” his most famous collaborator, Kay Thompson, belted in the 1957 movie “Funny Face.” And because of the blockbuster success of their fictional and widely franchised character Eloise, the 6-year-old girl who first appeared in “Eloise: A Book for Precocious Grown-Ups” in 1955 and has been running amok at (and raking it in for) the Plaza Hotel ever since, one might believe Mr. Knight not only thinks but bleeds pink ink. But a

New York Illustrator Hilary Knight is 90. He’s never been married. He never had any children. “It’s another reason you stay young,” he said, “from lack of harassment.” What he has done-and what he says kept him young-is fill the hearts of children and adults through his illustrations of the "fawnciest little lady" who lives in the "room on the tippy-top floor" of The Plaza Hotel in New York City with her Nanny, her pug dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee. And she’s making a comeback. Some of Knight’s most famous work—the beginnings of the American classic, Eloise—debuted at the New-York Historical Society (NYHS) today. The exhibition will continue through October 9. Eloise, the ever so cha

Photos by Robert Lorenzson

Back in the day it seemed like Eloise, the child who (fictionally) resided in The Plaza, lived the life. That majestic little latchkey monster got to order beers from room service, feed lawyers rubber candy, saw open dolls, and terrorize debutantes, plus she had a PET TURTLE. Eloise was a baller, and now she's getting her own show at the New York-Historical Society. Starting June 30th, the exhibition "Eloise at the Museum" will showcase memorabilia, manuscript pages, sketchbooks, dolls, and other objects that help define the collaboration between Kay Thompson, who authored the Eloise books, and Hilary Knight, who illustrated them. Highlights include unpublished illustrations from Eloise in P

The Plaza’s most famous resident has a charming backstory. Eloise COPYRIGHT © BY KAY THOMPSON The Plaza has known many famous guests over the years, but perhaps none is as famous as Eloise, the mischievous six-year-old girl who lives at the hotel with her nanny, her dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee. Created by actress and singer Kay Thompson and illustrator Hilary Knight, Eloise took the world by storm when it was first printed in 1955, selling 150,000 copies in two years. The success of Eloise prompted four sequels: Eloise in Paris, Eloise at Christmastime, Eloise in Moscow and, later, Eloise Takes a Bawth. More than 60 years later, Eloise has become one of New York City’s most beloved

​EAST HAMPTON, NY — Hundreds of people came to LongHouse Reserve in East Hampton for a free Family Day event on May 27, including tiny ballerinas hoping to meet a hero. In addition to the huge turnout at the third annual gathering, Long House welcomed special guests Hilary Knight, illustrator of iconic "Eloise" fame, and author Katharine Holabird, who has written the ever-popular "Angelina Ballerina" series.