Edward Albee

Conversations with Miller

Mel Gussow, Arthur Miller

(Applause Books). Conversations with Miller offers a personal and revealing account of one of the major playwrights of our time. Arthur Miller is revealed in deep and candid conversation with the highly regarded dramatic critic, Mel Gussow. In this series of interviews, which took place over 40 years, Miller is astonishingly forthcoming about his creative sources, his accomplishments and his disappointment; about his staunch resistance to the McCarthy witch hunts of the 1950's; about his private life including his five-year marriage to Marilyn Monroe. The result is an intimate portrait of a cultural giant who is both refreshingly down to earth and a fiercely original writer and thinker.

Conversations with Pinter

Harold Pinter, Mel Gussow

Score

Edward Albee: A Singular Journey

A Biography

Mel Gussow

In 1960, Edward Albee electrified the theater world with the American premiere of The Zoo Story, and followed it two years later with his extraordinary first Broadway play, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Proclaimed as the playwright of his generation, he went on to win three Pulitzer Prizes for his searing and innovative plays. Mel Gussow, author, critic, and cultural writer for The New York Times, has known Albee and followed his career since its inception, and in this fascinating biography he creates a compelling firsthand portrait of a complex genius. The book describes Albee's life as the adopted child of rich, unloving parents and covers the highs and lows of his career. A core myth of Albee's life, perpetuated by the playwright, is that The Zoo Story was his first play, written as a thirtieth birthday present to himself. As Gussow relates, Albee has been writing since adolescence, and through close analysis the author traces the genesis of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Tiny Alice, A Delicate Balance, and other plays. After his early triumphs, Albee endured years of critical neglect and public disfavor. Overcoming artistic and personal difficulties, he returned in 1994 with Three Tall Women. In this prizewinning play he came to terms with the towering figure of his mother, the woman who dominated so much of his early life. With frankness and critical acumen, and drawing on extensive conversations with the playwright, Gussow offers fresh insights into Albee's life. At the same time he provides vivid portraits of Albee's relationships with the people who have been closest to him, including William Flanagan (his first mentor), Thornton Wilder, Richard Barr, John Steinbeck, Alan Schneider, John Gielgud, and his leading ladies, Uta Hagen, Colleen Dewhurst, Irene Worth, Myra Carter, Elaine Stritch, Marian Seldes, and Maggie Smith. And then there are, most famously, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, who starred in Mike Nichols's acclaimed film version of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The book places Albee in context as a playwright who inspired writers as diverse as John Guare and Sam Shepard, and as a teacher and champion of human rights. Edward Albee: A Singular Journey is rich with colorful details about this uniquely American life. It also contains previously unpublished photographs and letters from and to Albee. It is the essential book about one of the major artists of the American theater.

Conversations with and about Beckett

Mel Gussow

Rounding off the book are interviews with Beckett's chief collaborators and interpreters: among them Bert Lahr, Gogo in the first American Godot; Jack MacGowran and Billie Whitelaw, Beckett's own favorite actors; directors Mike Nichols and Deborah Warner; and Edward Beckett, his nephew and literary executor.

Theatre on the Edge

New Visions, New Voices

Mel Gussow

(Applause Books). Compiled by Mel Gussow, this collection of sideshow American and international theatre includes: Deeply American Roots (Sam Shepard) * The Man Who Made Theatre Ridiculous (Charles Ludlam) * From the City Streets, a Poet of the Stage (Miguel Pinero) * The Clark Kent of Modern Theatre (Robert Wilson) * Speaks the Language of Illusion (Martha Clarke) * The Lonely World of Displaced Persons (Lanford Wilson) * A Virtuoso Who Specializes in Everything (Michael Gambon) * Actress, Clown, and Social Critic (Whoopi Goldberg) * Comedy, Tragedy and Mystical Fantasy (Peter Brook) * Celebrating the Fallen World (Richard Foreman).

Michael Gambon

A Life in Acting

Mel Gussow

"At the age of 23 and with no formal acting training, Gambon joined England's National Theatre under the artistic directorship of Sir Laurence Olivier. His breakthrough came in 1980 in Brecht's Galileo, followed by a daring King Lear at the Royal Shakespeare Company. More recently he has taken the leads in David Hare's Skylight, Caryl Churchill's A Number, and in a notable revival of Pinter's The Caretaker.".

My Grandfather's Son

A Memoir

Clarence Thomas

Provocative, inspiring, and unflinchingly honest, My Grandfather's Son is the story of one of America's most remarkable and controversial leaders, Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas, told in his own words. Thomas was born in rural Georgia on June 23, 1948, into a life marked by poverty and hunger. His parents divorced when Thomas was still a baby, and his father moved north to Philadelphia, leaving his young mother to raise him and his brother and sister on the ten dollars a week she earned as a maid. At age seven, Thomas and his six-year-old brother were sent to live with his mother's father, Myers Anderson, and her stepmother in their Savannah home. It was a move that would forever change Thomas's life. His grandfather, whom he called "Daddy," was a black man with a strict work ethic, trying to raise a family in the years of Jim Crow. Thomas witnessed his grandparents' steadfastness despite injustices, their hopefulness despite bigotry, and their deep love for their country. His own quiet ambition would propel him to Holy Cross and Yale Law School, and eventually—despite a bitter, highly contested public confirmation—to the highest court in the land. In this candid and deeply moving memoir, a quintessential American tale of hardship and grit, Clarence Thomas recounts his astonishing journey for the first time, and pays homage to the man who made it possible. Intimately and eloquently, Thomas speaks out, revealing the pieces of his life he holds dear, detailing the suffering and injustices he has overcome, including the acrimonious and polarizing Senate hearing involving a former aide, Anita Hill, and the depression and despair it created in his own life and the lives of those closest to him. My Grandfather's Son is the story of a determined man whose faith, courage, and perseverance inspired him to rise up against all odds and achieve his dreams.

Mark Rothko

A Biography

James E. B. Breslin

This first full-length biography of one of the greatest artists of the 20th century draws on exclusive access to Mark Rothko's personal papers and hundreds of interviews with artists, patrons, and dealers. Breslin reveals the complexities and contradictions of the man, his art, and his time. 21 color plates. 52 halftones.

Child of the Dark

The Diary of Carolina Maria de Jesus

Carolina Maria de Jesus

A first-hand account of life in the streets of Sao Paulo from 1955 to 1960, details the plight of an artist, writer and single mother of three children who, while living in a hovel, supported her family by digging through the garbage for paper and scraps to sell.

My Life Between Japan and America

Edwin Oldfather Reischauer

Description unavailable for this volume in the current provider response.

The Generals

Andrew Jackson, Sir Edward Pakenham, and the Road to the Battle of New Orleans

Benton Rain Patterson

The fight for the "booty and beauty" of New Orleans that propelled one general to the presidency.

Let the Trumpet Sound

The Life of Martin Luther King, Jr

Stephen B. Oates

Winner of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Book Award and the Christopher Award, this brilliant examination of the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. portrays a very real man and his dream that shaped America's history.

Edward Albee: A Singular Journey

A Biography

Mel Gussow

In 1960, Edward Albee electrified the theater world with the American premiere of The Zoo Story, and followed it two years later with his extraordinary first Broadway play, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Proclaimed as the playwright of his generation, he went on to win three Pulitzer Prizes for his searing and innovative plays. Mel Gussow, author, critic, and cultural writer for The New York Times, has known Albee and followed his career since its inception, and in this fascinating biography he creates a compelling firsthand portrait of a complex genius. The book describes Albee's life as the adopted child of rich, unloving parents and covers the highs and lows of his career. A core myth of Albee's life, perpetuated by the playwright, is that The Zoo Story was his first play, written as a thirtieth birthday present to himself. As Gussow relates, Albee has been writing since adolescence, and through close analysis the author traces the genesis of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Tiny Alice, A Delicate Balance, and other plays. After his early triumphs, Albee endured years of critical neglect and public disfavor. Overcoming artistic and personal difficulties, he returned in 1994 with Three Tall Women. In this prizewinning play he came to terms with the towering figure of his mother, the woman who dominated so much of his early life. With frankness and critical acumen, and drawing on extensive conversations with the playwright, Gussow offers fresh insights into Albee's life. At the same time he provides vivid portraits of Albee's relationships with the people who have been closest to him, including William Flanagan (his first mentor), Thornton Wilder, Richard Barr, John Steinbeck, Alan Schneider, John Gielgud, and his leading ladies, Uta Hagen, Colleen Dewhurst, Irene Worth, Myra Carter, Elaine Stritch, Marian Seldes, and Maggie Smith. And then there are, most famously, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, who starred in Mike Nichols's acclaimed film version of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The book places Albee in context as a playwright who inspired writers as diverse as John Guare and Sam Shepard, and as a teacher and champion of human rights. Edward Albee: A Singular Journey is rich with colorful details about this uniquely American life. It also contains previously unpublished photographs and letters from and to Albee. It is the essential book about one of the major artists of the American theater.

Sean Scully: The Albee Barn, Montauk

Mónica Ramírez-Montagut, Kaitlin Halloran

This richly illustrated catalogue brings together over 70 works created by Sean Scully between 1981 and 2024, focusing on the artist's transformative encounter with the natural landscape of Montauk, Long Island. During a residency at the Edward F. Albee Foundation in 1982, Scully found profound inspiration in the region's quiet expanses and coastal light. His palette shifted dramatically: earthy tones, whites, and organic rhythms entered his work, marking a key development in his visual language and laying the foundation for his distinctive approach to abstraction. Sean Scully: The Albee Barn, Montauk not only presents a visual journey through four decades but also highlights the crucial role landscape played in his evolving artistic expression. Key Features of the Book: Comprehensive overview of 40+ years of work by a major figure in contemporary abstraction New insights into the artist's transformative Montauk period Published on the occasion of the exhibition at the Parrish Art Museum, NY A must-have for collectors, scholars, and all those who follow the legacy of abstraction in painting. Discover the powerful dialogue between landscape and geometry in Scully's iconic works. SEAN SCULLY (*1945, Dublin) is one of the world's most acclaimed contemporary artists. The oeuvre of the irish-born artist, who grew up in London and moved to New York in 1975, is characterized by an intense confrontation with Abstract Expressionism, Action Painting, and Minimalism—matched by intellectually engaging writings and lectures. Scully lives and works in New York, Aix-en-Provence, and Bavaria.

Modern American Drama: Playwriting in the 1960s

Voices, Documents, New Interpretations

Mike Sell

The Decades of Modern American Drama series provides a comprehensive survey and study of the theatre produced in each decade from the 1930s to 2009 in eight volumes. Each volume equips readers with a detailed understanding of the context from which work emerged: an introduction considers life in the decade with a focus on domestic life and conditions, social changes, culture, media, technology, industry and political events; while a chapter on the theatre of the decade offers a wide-ranging and thorough survey of theatres, companies, dramatists, new movements and developments in response to the economic and political conditions of the day. The work of the four most prominent playwrights from the decade receives in-depth analysis and re-evaluation by a team of experts, together with commentary on their subsequent work and legacy. A final section brings together original documents such as interviews with the playwrights and with directors, drafts of play scenes, and other previously unpublished material. The major playwrights and their plays to receive in-depth coverage in this volume include: * Edward Albee: The American Dream (1960), Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1962), A Delicate Balance (1966) and Tiny Alice (1964 ); * Amiri Baraka: Dutchman (1964), The Slave (1964) and Slaveship (1967); * Adrienne Kennedy: Funnyhouse of a Negro (1964), Cities in Bezique (The Owl Answers and A Beast's Story, 1969), and A Rat's Mass (1967); * Jean-Claude van Itallie: American Hurrah (1966), The Serpent (1968) and War (1963).

Conversations with Miller

Mel Gussow, Arthur Miller

(Applause Books). Conversations with Miller offers a personal and revealing account of one of the major playwrights of our time. Arthur Miller is revealed in deep and candid conversation with the highly regarded dramatic critic, Mel Gussow. In this series of interviews, which took place over 40 years, Miller is astonishingly forthcoming about his creative sources, his accomplishments and his disappointment; about his staunch resistance to the McCarthy witch hunts of the 1950's; about his private life including his five-year marriage to Marilyn Monroe. The result is an intimate portrait of a cultural giant who is both refreshingly down to earth and a fiercely original writer and thinker.

Albee and Influence

Unknown author

Albee and Influence is the fourth volume in the series New Directions in Edward Albee Studies sponsored by the Edward Albee Society. The volume contains essays, written by leading Albee scholars, that focus on literary and philosophical influences on Edward Albee’s plays as well as essays on writers and works that Albee influenced. Essays focus on Albee’s relationship with such major American playwrights as Thornton Wilder, Amiri Baraka, Sam Shepard, Lanford Wilson and John Guare. There are also contributions on Albee’s work as mentor to young playwrights. The volume also includes an interview with award-winning director Pam McKinnon.

Dark Humor

Harold Bloom, Blake Hobby

Provides an examination of the use of dark humor in classic literary works.