Victor E. Cheer was born and reared in rural Upstate New York. At a very young age his extended family relocated and he suddenly fund himself a resident of the busy Upper West Side of Manhattan. There he was to explore a whole new world through the eyes of a child.

From early on, he was interested in nature, science and tinkering. His early childhood days had been filled with camping trips, weenie roasts, marshmallows toasted on twigs, hobo-popcorn, and an elaborate plan to create a machine that would explode the popcorn using recycled steam. Now he explored the trails of Central Park, learned the names of birds, and looked for worms in water puddles along the sidewalks. When winter came and it was time to hibernate, he turned to the kitchen to explore his culinary talents. There, amid puffs of white flour clouds, he created the tastiest, lightest blueberry pancakes know to his family and friends.

It wasn't long before he had taken up exploring the art of popcorn popping. If there had been an award for testing all the popcorn varieties available he certainly would have received it. The challenge of finding the correct oil temperature, the best popping pan, and the best variety of popcorn was one he couldn't resist. If he didn't eat the popcorn while watching a home video, he would creatively study each popped kernel to discover a wild animal shape or trigger an idea for a new invention.

Inevitably Victor was dubbed “Mr. Pencil”. He always had to carry one sharpened pencil, just in case, tucked behind his ear. He'd always kept his notebook filled with special words, lists, new recipes, drawings of inventions, and various unrelated topics to explore.

Hr recently confided that his next literary project would be a compilation of tasty campfire recipes. Bur before that book is published, he will personally supervise every taste test.