Remember the Madeline books? They were written by Ludwig Bemelmans (1898-1962) who only started writing children's books later in his life. He was a European gourmet and restaurateur. The Madeline books were first published in 1939 and they all began with the same lines (a stroke of genius in itself). "In an old house in Paris, that was covered in vines, lived twelve little girls, in two straight lines. The smallest one was Madeline." According to my sources the books were written out of love for his daughter but this creative genius didn't stop; the books have spun off into plays and movies. It is said of Bemelmans that he felt his art, like food, was to be enjoyed in the making and the eating. As Robert Genn so eloquently puts it in his newsletter "Passion is the coal that becomes the greater part of talent. The locomotive is unstoppable when powered by love."
Bemelmans also became a serious painter and showed in both public and commercial galleries. Check out some of his work at:

http://clicks.robertgenn.com/attention-focus.php