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Dean Robbins

@deanprobbins

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Author of children's books for Scholastic, Penguin Random House, Candlewick, and Macmillan.

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National Public Radio interviewed me about dear departed Margaret Hamilton, the barrier-breaking computer scientist who helped put astronauts on the moon. I discussed my work with Margaret on my picture book “Margaret and the Moon: How Margaret Hamilton Saved the First Lunar Landing”—a collaboration that was a life highlight for me.
https://www.npr.org/2026/10/08/nx-s1-5994972/margaret-hamilton-whose-software-sent-humans-to-the-moon-dies-at-90 by @deanprobbins

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10 days ago

It’s sad to say goodbye to Margaret Hamilton, the pioneering computer scientist who surmounted every obstacle to put astronauts on the moon. I was lucky to get to know her during interviews for my children’s book “Margaret and the Moon: How Margaret Hamilton Saved the First Lunar Landing.” She recalled a childhood devoted to solving problems, a skill set she developed as director of software engineering for NASA’s Apollo missions. Her ingenious coding prevented last-minute disaster during Apollo 11’s lunar landing, an achievement that earned her widespread recognition only late in life. Now, you can find her LEGO likeness in the “Women of NASA” set, along with other heroines who broke down barriers. Rest in peace, Margaret. by @deanprobbins

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This would have been Otis Redding’s 85th birthday. He died in a Madison plane crash in 1967, but his soulful songs can still make anyone love music—even an infant. My essay collection WISCONSIN IDOLS outlines my own Otis Redding guide to child-rearing. It really works! by @deanprobbins

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a month ago

On this day in 1964, the Beatles arrived in Milwaukee amid pure chaos. They scolded the local police for mistreating their fans and mocked the local press for asking dumb questions. But they gave all their loving to the local kids who loved them back. Relive this lesser-known chapter of Beatlemania in my WISCONSIN LIFE broadcast (wisconsinlife.org) and my essay collection WISCONSIN IDOLS. by @deanprobbins

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“The Wizard of Oz” premiered on this date in 1939, with Meinhardt Raabe as the Munchkin coroner. His unforgettable moment on screen—informing Dorothy that the wicked witch was “really most sincerely dead”—ensured Raabe a seven-decade career that included an autobiography, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and mountains of fan mail. An essay in my book WISCONSIN IDOLS charts Raabe’s journey from farm kid to movie star who persistently defied the discrimination he faced as a little person. He proved, per “The Wizard of Oz,” that dreams really do come true. by @deanprobbins

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2 months ago

Happy 90th birthday to the pioneering computer scientist Margaret Hamilton, whose code sent the first @NASA astronauts to the moon and saved the first lunar landing when alarms started sounding. I had the honor of collaborating with Margaret on my children’s book MARGARET AND THE MOON (@knopfyoungreaders), with dazzling illustrations by @lucyknisley. by @deanprobbins

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2 months ago

Good place to do homework, take it from me.

From The Genius Next Door by @deanprobbins, coming from @scholastic in 2027 #einstein #princeton #illustration #collage by @deanprobbins

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3 months ago

On the anniversary of the first moon landing, a tip of the hat to Margaret Hamilton, the lesser-known hero who helped make it all possible—and whose brilliant computer programming saved the mission from disaster at the last minute. Link in bio. by @deanprobbins

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3 months ago

Over 250 years of American history, these are some of the change-makers and barrier-breakers I’m most proud of. by @deanprobbins

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4 months ago

Get a clew.

From The Genius Next Door by @deanprobbins, coming from @scholastic in 2027 #einstein #sailing #princeton by @deanprobbins

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4 months ago

Who loved the planet more than Jane Goodall? On #earthday, hats off to the dear departed scientist who put her environmental philosophy into action with the Jane Goodall Institute and the youth-oriented Roots & Shoots. by @deanprobbins

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6 months ago

Working at @isthmusmadison was the experience of a lifetime, and one article can’t capture all the wild highs and lows. But I took a shot at it for their 50th anniversary issue, which celebrates a publication widely recognized as one of the country’s best alternative weeklies. Before my six-year stint as editor in chief, I spent two decades as arts editor, wrangling a crew of individualists who obsessed over every dazzling sentence. See the article at isthmus.com/news/cover-story/welcome-to-arts-heaven-isthmus by @deanprobbins

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6 months ago