Shrek ! - Wikipedia Shrek ! For other uses, see Shrek ( disambiguation ). Shrek ! First edition cover Author William Steig Illustrator William Steig Cover artist William Steig Country United States Language English Genre Children 's Literature Publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux Publication date October 17, 1990 Media type Print ( Paperback and Hardcover ) Pages 30 ISBN 978 - 0 - 374 - 36877 - 7 OCLC 22497777 LC Class PZ7. S8177 Sh 1990 Shrek ! is a picture book published in 1990 by American cartoonist William Steig, about a repugnant and monstrous green ogre who leaves home to see the world and ends up saving a princess. The name `` Shrek '' is the romanization of the Yiddish word שרעק, corresponding to German Schreck and meaning `` fear '' or `` fright '', but also used as a common exclamation, often in the form Oy Shrek !. The book served as the basis for the popular Shrek film series over a decade after its publication. Contents 1 Plot 2 Awards 3 Adaptations 4 References Plot The story features a repugnant and monstrous green ogre, named Shrek, who leaves home to see the world and ends up saving a princess. Awards Publishers Weekly -- Best Children 's Books of the Year School Library Journal -- Best Books of the Year Adaptations Main article : Shrek ( franchise ) Steven Spielberg acquired the rights for the book in 1991, planning to produce a traditionally animated film based on the book. However, around the time DreamWorks was founded, producer John H. Williams brought the book to DreamWorks, and co founder Jeffrey Katzenberg was interested in the concept. As a result, DreamWorks ended up acquiring the rights for the book in 1995, and Katzenberg quickly put the film in active development. Shrek was released on May 18, 2001, starring the voices of Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, and John Lithgow. The film was a critical and commercial success and won the first ever Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. The film 's triumph ultimately led to the releases of three sequels : Shrek 2 ( 2004 ), Shrek the Third ( 2007 ), and Shrek Forever After ( 2010 ). A fifth film will be released in 2019 or 2020. Spin offs of the Shrek film series include the holiday specials Shrek the Halls ( November 2007 ) and Scared Shrekless ( October 2010 ) ; a musical adaptation ( 2008 ) ; and the film Puss in Boots ( October 2011 ), a spin off prequel starring the franchise 's character of the same name. Shrek ! was also used in the movie Indian Summer ( 1993 ). It was spoken by Kevin Pollak, Bill Paxton, Matt Craven and Kimberly Williams, and was an insider 's reference to a `` camp gag or joke ''. References Jump up ^ Day, Patrick Kevin ( May 20, 2010 ). `` Shrek -- Hollywood Star Walk ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 29, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Shrek ! '' ( first edition ). LC Online Catalog. Library of Congress ( lccn.loc.gov ). Retrieved 2016 - 10 - 30. Jump up ^ Shrek !. Macmillan. 2008. Retrieved August 14, 2010. Children 's literature portal Shrek Films Main films Shrek ( 2001 ) Shrek 2 ( 2004 ) Shrek the Third ( 2007 ) Shrek Forever After ( 2010 ) Shrek 5 ( 2019 ) Spin - off films Puss in Boots ( 2011 ) Shorts Shrek the Halls ( 2007 ) Scared Shrekless ( 2010 ) The Three Diablos ( 2012 ) TV series The Adventures of Puss in Boots ( 2015 -- 2018 ) Attractions Shrek 4 - D Donkey 's Photo Finish Enchanted Airways Shrek 's Faire Faire Away Characters Shrek Donkey Princess Fiona Lord Farquaad Video games Shrek Treasure Hunt Hassle at the Castle Shrek Super Party Shrek 2 Shrek SuperSlam Shrek Smash n ' Crash Racing Shrek the Third Shrek Forever After DreamWorks Super Star Kartz Puss in Boots Miscellaneous Shrek ! by William Steig Shrek The Musical Music Fandom Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shrek!&oldid=843417067 '' Categories : 1990 children 's books Shrek Books adapted into films Books by William Steig American picture books Hidden categories : Pages to import images to Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Deutsch Español Français 한국어 Italiano Nederlands 日本 語 Português Русский Svenska 中文 5 more Edit links This page was last edited on 29 May 2018, at 01 : 08. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who acquired the rights for the book 'shrek ' in 1991
Answer: Steven Spielberg