Curious George and the Man in the Yellow Hat came close to never existingA new animated feature film has created a whole flurry of new curiosity over the classic fictional character Curious George.Everybody loves the mischievous monkey, but few know the harrowing story about his creators and how close "Curious George" came to never being published.Media Specialist Kim Schmidt at Luverne Elementary School played the role of the Man in the Yellow Hat for Read Across America Day on March 2. (See page 1B).Donned completely in yellow, from his wide-rimmed hat to his yellow tie, shirt and pants, Schmidt shared a little background on the "Curious George" tales with the students.The authors of "Curious George," Hans and Margret Rey, were German Jews living in Paris in 1940 during the time Hitler and his armies were making their way through Europe.Knowing they must escape before the Nazis took power, Hans pieced together two bicycles out of spare parts, and he and Margret set off for the border.That was the morning of June 14, 1940, only hours before the Nazis seized control of the city.They brought very little with them – only warm coats, a bit to eat and five manuscripts, one of which was "Curious George," the tale of the inquisitive monkey who became one of the most endearing characters in children’ s literature. They rode their makeshift bicycles for four long days until reaching the French-Spanish border, where they sold them for train fare to Lisbon. From there they made their way to Brazil, and on to New York City, beginning a whole new life as children’s book authors.The authors’ story is told in dramatic detail in a book of its own, "The Journey That Saved Curious George."Schmidt said he also talked to students about the fictional background of Curious George, since none of the seven stories talks about it.The "Curious George" movie apparently addresses this mystery:While visiting Africa, a man (the voice of Will Ferrell) who wears a yellow hat accidentally adopts a clumsy and curious chimpanzee named George, bringing him back to America to live with him.As the movie illustrates, the Man in the Yellow Hat soon discovers that George, as adorable as he is most of the time, can be a real handful when left alone. (In one scene we see what happens when George is left unattended with a large bowl of spaghetti in an Italian restaurant.)I haven’t seen the movie yet, but it can’t be as good as experiencing Curious George, page by page, with a child on your lap — the way Mr. and Mrs. Rey intended it.