1997 William Inge Honoree

16th Annual
William Inge Theatre Festival
Salutes

Neil Simon

Neil Simon

Neil Simon, born on the Fourth of July in 1927 in the Bronx, New York, is one of America's most popular and prolific playwrights. After a brief military service at the end of World War II, he began his writing career in radio and television including writing material for Sid Caesar's Caesar's Hour and Phil Silvers' show Sergeant Bilko. His first play was Come Blow Your Horn (1961), followed by the book of the musical Little Me (1962). Other plays include Barefoot in the Park (1963), The Odd Couple (1965), The Star-Spangled Girl (1966), Plaza Suite (1968), Last of the Red Hot Lovers (1969), The Gingerbread Lady (1970), The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1971), The Sunshine Boys (1972), The Good Doctor (1973), God's Favorite (1974), California Suite (1976), Chapter Two (1977), I Ought to Be in Pictures (1980), Fools (1981), Brighton Beach Memoirs (1983), Biloxi Blues (1985), Broadway Bound (1986), Rumors (1988), Lost in Yonkers (1991), Jake's Women (1992), Laughter on the 23rd Floor (1993), and London Suite (1994). He has written the books for the musicals Sweet Charity, Promises, Promises, They're Playing Our Song, and The Goodbye Girl. Besides adapting several of his plays for the movies, he has written the screenplays for The Out-of-Towners, The Heartbreak Kid, Murder by Death, The Goodbye Girl, The Cheap Detective, Seems Like Old Times, Only When I Laugh, Max Dugan Returns, The Slugger's Wife, and The Marrying Man. He has won Tony Awards for The Odd Couple in 1965, Biloxi Blues in 1985, and Lost in Yonkers in 1991, which also received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild and the Writers Guild of America and divides his time between New York and Los Angeles. His autobiography REWRITES: A MEMOIR was published in 1996.  He participated in "A Conversation With Neil Simon" on Friday, April 18 at 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. in the Inge Theatre and participated in the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre. He also participated in the panel discussion "What's Serious About Comedy?" on Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. at the Independence Museum. He attended "A Gala Dinner with Neil Simon and Friends" on Friday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the Independence Country Club and was presented with the William Inge Theatre Festival's "Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre" award at the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19 at 8:00 p.m. in the William Inge Theatre.

Schedule of Events

8:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.--REGISTRATION in the Margaret Goheen Foyer of the William Inge Theatre, Fine Arts Building. FILM FESTIVAL featured "Penn Avenue to Broadway" (documentary on Inge) and other Inge films: Splendor in the Grass, Picnic, Bus Stop, The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, and Come Back, Little Sheba. Fine Arts Room114, Fine Arts Building. FREE

8:00 A.M. - 9:00 P.M.--THE WILLIAM INGE COLLECTION was opened to visitors. College Library, Academic Building.

10:00 A.M. - 12:00 P.M.-"HOW TO WRITE A NOVEL WITHOUT GETTING SUED BY YOUR MOTHER." Faith Sullivan, author of The Cape Ann, discussed her new novel, The Empress of One. Independence Arts Council, 113 West Myrtle.

12:00 P.M. - 1:00 P.M.--Tour of "WILLIAM INGE'S INDEPENDENCE." Sign up was at the Registration desk in the Margaret Goheen Foyer, Fine Arts Building. Fee: $2

1:00 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.--"COME BACK, LITTLE SHEBA AT THE GOGOL THEATRE IN MOSCOW." Director Ed Hastings and actors Vladimir Samoilov and Svetlana Bragarnik discussed their 1995 production of Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theatre in Moscow. Lecture Hall, Academic Building.

4:00 P.M. - 5:00 P.M.--Tour of "WILLIAM INGE'S INDEPENDENCE." Sign up was at the Registration desk in the Margaret Goheen Foyer, Fine Arts Building. Fee: $2

7:30 P.M.--PLAZA SUITE Neil Simon's full-length play performed by Independence community members. Adults $8.00/Students $5.00 (ICC students free). All seats reserved. William Inge Theatre, Fine Arts Building. (Also performed Wednesday, April 16 at 7:30 p.m.)

9:30 P.M.--"MOONGLOW AT THE HOTEL BOOTH." After-theatre party at the historic Hotel Booth, 8th & Main, Independence. Attendees listened to jazz band, Plush, and mingled with Inge Festival special guests. TICKETS: $12.00 (Includes light hors d'oeuvres and wine)

8:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M. --REGISTRATION in the Margaret Goheen Foyer of the William Inge Theatre, Fine Arts Building. THE WILLIAM INGE COLLECTION open to visitors. College Library, Academic Building. FILM FESTIVAL continues in FA114, Fine Arts Building. (Check schedule at Registration Desk) FREE

9:00 A.M. - 10:30 A.M.--"A CONVERSATION WITH NEIL SIMON." Mr. Simon discussed the theatre and responded to questions. Inge Theatre, Fine Arts Building.

10:45 A.M. - 12:00 P.M.--"PLAYWRIGHTS, ACTORS, DIRECTORS: A VIEW OF THEATRE TODAY." A panel discussion with playwrights Neil Simon, Robert Anderson, Mary Hanes, and Joe DiPietro; Director Scott Ellis; and actors Eileen Heckart and Polly Holliday. Inge Theatre, Fine Arts Building.

12:00 P.M.--"A MOVEABLE FEAST" LUNCH. A keepsake lunchbag with contents that could be eaten at numerous locations. Margaret Goheen Foyer, Fine Arts Bldg. Fee: $7.50

12:30 P.M. - 2:00 P.M.--"POLISHING YOUR CRAFT." A workshop with actress and jazz singer Queen Bey. Music Hall, Fine Arts Bldg.

1:15 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.-SCHOLAR'S CONFERENCE with Conference Director: Dr. Jackson Bryer, The University of Maryland. Lecture Hall, Academic Building.

2:15 P.M. - 3:45 P.M.--"ACTING WORKSHOP WITH KEN HANES." Actor Ken Hanes, "Mike Guthrie" on the CBS daytime series The Bold and The Beautiful, conducted a workshop on theatre and film acting techniques. Music Hall, Fine Arts Building.

3:00 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.--Tour of "WILLIAM INGE'S INDEPENDENCE." Sign up at the Registration desk in the Margaret Goheen Foyer, Fine Arts Building. Fee: $2

7:00 P.M.--"A GALA DINNER WITH NEIL SIMON AND FRIENDS." A Gala Dinner Party at the Independence Country Club . The awarding of the 1996 Margo Jones Award and Medal. All seats reserved. $50.00 (RESERVE EARLY-LIMITED SEATS AVAILABLE)

8:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.--REGISTRATION at the Independence Museum, 8th & Myrtle, Independence.

10:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M.--THE WILLIAM INGE COLLECTION opened to visitors. College Library, Academic Building, ICC campus. FILM FESTIVAL continues in the College Library, Academic Building.

8:45 A.M. - 10:00 A.M.--"DIRECTING ON BROADWAY." Director Scott Ellis discussed the role of the director in a major Broadway production. Independence Museum, 8th & Myrtle.

10:00 A.M. - 11:45 A.M.--"NEW VOICES IN AMERICAN THEATRE:1997." Scenes from playwright Joe Di Pietro's new play Over The River and Through The Woods with discussion afterwards directed by the 1995 "New Voices" playwright Mary Hanes. Independence Museum, 8th & Myrtle.

11:45 A.M. - 1:00 P.M.-"PICNIC LUNCHEON" at Riverside Park, 4-H Building. Fee: $7.50

1:30 P.M. - 2:30 P.M.--"WHAT'S SERIOUS ABOUT COMEDY?" A panel discussion with playwrights Neil Simon, Robert Anderson, and Jerome Lawrence. Also includes Best Plays editor Otis L. Guernsey, Jr. and comedy writer Hoite Caston. Moderated by Dan Sullivan, former theatre critic for the L.A. Times. Independence Museum, 8th and Myrtle.

3:00 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.--TOUR OF "WILLIAM INGE'S INDEPENDENCE." Sign up was at the Registration desk at the Museum. Fee: $2

8:00 P.M.-"TRIBUTE TO NEIL SIMON." Presentation of "THE WILLIAM INGE THEATRE FESTIVAL AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT IN THE AMERICAN THEATRE." William Inge Theatre. All seats reserved. $10.00

Festival Participants

Robert Anderson's (Inge Award Recipient in 1985) participated in the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre. He also participated in the panel discussion "What's Serious About Comedy?" on Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. at the Independence Museum. See updated bio in 1998 - Stephen Sondheim.

Richard Benjamin's first professional acting job was in Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare production of Taming of the Shrew. In 1964, he landed the lead role in the national company of Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park and later directed the London production of the now-classic romantic comedy. Upon his return from London, Benjamin was signed to co-star with Dan Dailey in the road company of another Neil Simon classic The Odd Couple. Benjamin made his Broadway debut in Simon's The Star Spangled Girl. His other Broadway credits include The Little Black Book and The Norman Conquests. Benjamin's auspicious film debut came in 1969, starring opposite Ali MacGraw in Goodbye, Columbus. He went on to appear in more than twenty feature films, including Catch-22, Diary of a Mad Housewife, The Marriage of a Young Stockbroker, The Steagle, Portnoy's Complaint, House Calls, Love at First Bite, Scavenger Hunt and Saturday the 14th. He was honored in 1975 with the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Simon's The Sunshine Boys. In 1982, Benjamin made the transition from acting to directing with My Favorite Year, a film that brought Peter O'Toole an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Benjamin has since directed ten films: Racing With The Moon, City Heat, The Money Pit, Little Nikita, My Stepmother is an Alien, Downtown, Mermaids, Made in America, Milk Money, and Mrs. Winterbourne with Shirley MacLaine and Ricky Lake. On television, Benjamin co-starred with his wife Paula Prentiss in the CBS series He and She, and starred in the Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation of Arthur Miller's Fame. Benjamin also hosted two top-rated episodes of NBC's Saturday Night Live, one of which earned an Emmy nomination. Returning to screen acting, Benjamin recently completed a role in Woody Allen's new film, Deconstructing Harry. He hosted the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19 at 8:00 p.m. in the William Inge Theatre.

Queen Bey was born and raised in Kansas City, Kansas where she started singing at the age of twelve in the famous Orchid Room, a Kansas City jazz club, popular in the 1950's. She received her basic training from jazz greats such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald and Linda Hopkins. She has performed with B.B. King, The Platters and the late jazz pianist Earl Garner. She recently received rave reviews in the national entertainment magazine Variety and The New York Times for her act at New York's Michael's Pub. Queen recorded her two albums called "Comin' Thru" and "Dues Paid in Full" and a CD entitled "So this Is London." Added to her credits, Ms. Bey has acted on stage and television and in film, including Broadway musicals - Ain't Misbehavin, One Mo' Time and Blues in the Night. Her television debut was an NBC mini-series, Matter of Justice co-starring with Patty Duke and Martin Sheen. Her film debut was in the movie Ninth Street with Martin Sheen and Isaac Hayes. In 1980, Ms. Bey received the Governor's Arts Award and was one of the honorees at the 1991 induction of the Elder Statesman of Kansas City Jazz, Inc. She conducted a workshop "Polishing Your Craft" on Friday, April 18 at 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. in the Music Hall.

Svetlana Bragarnik recently won a Moscow critics' award for her portrayal of Lola in William Inge's Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theater in Moscow. A leading actress of the Gogol Theater, Bragarnik is widely regarded as one of the most accomplished performers in Russia today. A native of Latvia, she graduated from the drama faculty of the Institute of Theatrical Art in Moscow. Ms. Bragarnik worked in many Russian companies before coming to the Gogol in 1971. Her greatest performances include the title roles in plays by Dostoevsky, Anton Chekov, Leo Tolstoy, Giovanny Boccacio, Victor Hugo, Arthur Miller, and Euguene O'Neill. Svetlana Bragarnik is a Laureate of the prestigious International and Russian Festivals of Cinema and Theater. Her roles as Zelda Fitzgerald in Tennessee Williams's Clothes For A Summer Hotel and of Mary Tyrone in Long Day's Journey Into Night were a special delight for theatrical critics and audiences. She participated in the discussion "Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theatre in Moscow" on Thursday, April 17 at 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre.

Hoite Caston is an ACE award-winning, Emmy nominated director, as well as a comedy writer and producer. He participated in the panel discussion "What's Serious About Comedy?" on Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. at the Independence Museum.

Joe DiPietro, the Inge Festival's 1997 "New Voice in American Theatre," wrote the book and lyrics for the current off-Broadway musical comedy hit, I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change. His comedy Over the River and Through the Woods was selected for the 1994 Eugene O'Neill National Playwright's Conference where it was awarded the Charles MacArthur Fellowship for comic writing. Subsequently, Over The River had a record-breaking run at American Stage Company and was produced at the Berkshire Theater Festival. Joe has also written a farce, The Virgin Weeps, which debuted at Sacramento's B Street Theater. He has just completed a new romantic comedy and is starting work on a new musical with his I Love You, You're Perfect... collaborator, Jimmy Roberts. Joe is the playwright-in-residence at American Stage Company in Teaneck, New Jersey, and lives in Manhattan. He participated on the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" in Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre. He also participated in "New Voices in American Theatre: 1997" on Saturday, April 19 at 10:00 - 11:45 a.m. at the Independence Museum.

Otis L. Guernsey Jr., editor of The Best Plays yearbook and former editor of the Dramatists Guild Quarterly, was educated at Yale University. After graduation, he joined John Gassner's playwriting seminar in New York but soon started working for the New York Herald Tribune, beginning as a copy boy and then graduating to reporter, film and drama critic, and drama editor until 1960. His credits include authoring two original film stories, one of them Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest. In 1964 he took charge of the Best Plays series of theatre yearbooks started in 1919 by Burns Mantle. Mr. Guernsey's resumes of the seasons from 1965 to 1987 were combined in a single volume titled Curtain Times. A veteran of both the New York Film Critics and the New York Drama Critics Circle, Guernsey helped to found the American Theater Critics Association in 1974. He received a special award from the New England Theater Conference in 1988 and the Margo Jones Medal in 1991. He participated in the panel discussion "What's Serious About Comedy?" on Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. at the Independence Museum.

Ken Hanes began his acting career in Seattle, WA, and trained at the University of Washington in their B.A. and M.F.A. acting programs. Since arriving in Los Angeles his theater credits include The Real Inspector Hound, K.D. Dufford, The Suicide, Buck Fever, Today's Special, The Exile of Ezra Pound, The Dragon, Slam, Senor Galindez, Tiny Alice and Doin' Time At The Alamo. In 1993 he traveled to eastern Europe to perform in Don't Blame The Bedouins, with Grace Zabriskie at the National Theater in Bucharest, Romania, for the "International Festival of Contemporary Theater." He's been seen on television in Among Friends, The Famous Teddy Z, Beverly Hills 90210, Men Behaving Badly, Crossroads Cafe on PBS, and had a recurring role on the Mark Harmon television series Charlie Grace. Ken's film credits include Perfect Weapon, The Ice Cream Man and The Camping Trip. Ken worked with Michael Keaton and Harold Ramis on the feature film Multiplicity and recently starred in the independent feature film, Shangri-LA. Ken is now in his fourth year playing Mike Guthrie on The Bold And The Beautiful at CBS. He is married to writer Mary Hanes with whom he has collaborated on many projects over the years. He conducted "Acting Workshop with Ken Hanes" on Friday, April 18 at 2:15 - 3:45 p.m. in the Music Hall. He also participated in "New Voices in American Theatre: 1997" on Saturday, April 19 at 10:00 - 11:45 a.m. at the Independence Museum and in the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19.

Mary Hanes was the Inge Festival's 1995 "New Voices in American Theatre" playwright which featured a reading of her play Doin' Time at the Alamo. Mary has had many one-acts and comedy shows produced in Southern California, and her sketch comedy, The New Rotics, won the "Best Comedy of the Year" award from the Los Angeles Weekly. She served as playwright-in-residence at the Company of Angels, the oldest equity-waiver theatre in Los Angeles. Her first full-length play, The Crimson Thread, was first produced on National Public Radio as part of their "The Play's The Thing" radio series and starred JoBeth Williams, Marsha Mason and Megan Gallagher. The Crimson Thread has received regional theatre stage productions at Seven Angels in Waterbury, CT, and at the Contemporary Theatre in Seattle, WA, and was also produced at the historic Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA. Mary has just recently completed a new screenplay, Hoodwinked, and a new play, In Service, which had its first reading as part of the "Playwrights Kitchen Ensemble Reading Series" at the Coronet Theatre in Los Angeles. She participated in the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre.

Ed Hastings was a founding member of San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater and its Artistic Director from 1986 to 1992. He directed more than 30 productions with an emphasis on American classics which led in 1995 to the invitation from Sergei Yashin to direct William Inge's Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theater in Moscow. Ed has been involved in many aspects of cultural exchange, having taught acting in Shanghai and directed in Hong Kong; his production of Agee/Mosel's All the Way Home was presented in Tokyo, and he directed the Australian premiere of Wilson's Hot L Baltimore. He restaged his ACT production of Shepard's Buried Child in Belgrade. A recent project has been a national touring company of the British mystery Dial M for Murder. A career-long commitment to new plays led to the formation of ACT's Plays in Progress Program and the Square Valley Playwright's Conference inspired by his work at the Eugene O'Neill Playwright's Conference in Connecticut. He has recently helped create a reading series at O'Neill's Tao House in Danville, CA. He directed Mabel based on the writing of Mabel Dodge Lohan by Leslie Dillen. Ed is a graduate of Yale, attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and has been elected to the College of Fellows of the American Theater. He participated in the discussion "Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theatre in Moscow" on Thursday, April 17 at 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre.

Eileen Heckart is a favorite character actress of the Broadway stage, motion pictures, and television drama and was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame. She starred in the original productions of William Inge's Picnic, as Rosemary, and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, as Lottie. She also starred as Gladys in the movie version of Inge's Bus Stop. Among her many honors are an Academy Award she won in 1973 for best actress in the movie Butterflies Are Free, two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe, four Tony nominations, and three honorary doctorates. Miss Heckart has ties with playwrights John Patrick, Robert Anderson, Jerome Lawrence, all previous recipients of the William Inge Award, and Neil Simon, this year's honoree. She attended Ohio State University with Lawrence, was in Anderson's play You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running, starred in Patrick's play Everybody Loves Opal, and replaced Mildred Natwick in Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park on Broadway. She participated in the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre. She also participated in "A Retrospective with Eileen Heckart" on Saturday, April 19 at 8:45 - 10:00 a.m. at the Independence Museum and in the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19.

Polly Holliday, who appeared as the mother, "Flo," in the 1994 Roundabout Theatre production of Picnic, has also starred in other Broadway productions including All Over Town, and the revivals of Arsenic and Old Lace, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, for which she received a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actress. In 1996, she co-starred with JoBeth Williams in the CBS TV series The Client. She just finished performing in Horton Foote's new play The Death of Papa at the Carolina Playmakers Repertory Company in Chapel Hill, N.C. She has also appeared in the films All the President's Men, The One and Only, Gremlins, and Mrs. Doubtfire. Her television credits include the movies, Missing Children, The Gift of Love, You Can't Take it With You, and All the Way Home. For four years, she played the character of "Flo" on the television series Alice. She has been nominated five times for an Emmy and has twice received the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a TV series. She participated in the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre and in the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19.

David E. LeVine moderated for the panel discussion "Playwrights, Actors, Directors: A View of Theatre Today" on Friday, April 18 at 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre. See updated bio in 1998 - Stephen Sondheim.

Vladimir Samoilov portrayed Doc in the Gogol Theater's production of William Inge's Come Back, Little Sheba in Moscow and is one of the most popular actors in Russia today. This prominent Russian actor of cinema and theater is the winner of the State Award of Russia. Born in 1924 in Odessa, he served in World War II and was heavily wounded. After the war he returned to Odessa and graduated from its theatrical college. He has worked in various theaters in Odessa, Kemerovo, and Nizhni Novgorod. Since 1968 he has worked on the stage of the Mayakovsky Theater in Moscow. His successes on stage include various roles in plays by Gogol, Tolstoy, Turgenev, Dostoevsky, and Chekov. He is a Laureate of the prestigious International and Russian Festivals of Cinema and Theater and has toured in many countries around the world. In 1993 Mr. Samoilov was invited to the Gogol Theater to play the roles of Lear in Shakespeare's King Lear, and James Tyrone in Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night. He participated in the discussion "Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theatre in Moscow" on Thursday, April 17 at 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre.

George Segal, born in Great Neck, New York, began his career playing banjo with Bruno Lynch and The Impressive Jazz Band, and went on to an acclaimed film career. After appearing in several movies in the 1960's, he drew attention for his role as a distraught newlywed in Ship of Fools. He earned an Academy Award nomination for his performance in the 1966 Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? He continued to win raves for his roles in such films as The St. Valentine's Day Massacre, No Way to Treat a Lady, The Owl and the Pussycat, Loving, Born to Win, A Touch of Class, and as a gourmet in Who's Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? In 1975, he appeared in a spoof of the classic Maltese Falcon titled The Blackbird and was reunited with his Touch of Class co-star Glenda Jackson in the 1979 film Lost and Found. After taking some time off in the early 1980's, he starred as the father of Kirstie Alley's baby in Look Who's Talking and reprised the role in the sequel Look Who's Talking Now. He also appeared in For the Boys, The Cable Guy, Flirting With Disaster, and The Mirror Has Two Faces with Barbra Streisand. Segal starred in the television series Murphy's Law, in which he portrayed an insurance investigator, as well as the 1986 series Take Five and the 1993 series High Tide. He currently stars in the NBC series Just Shoot Me and has a recurring role on the HBO series Tracy Takes On with Tracy Ullman. He has also appeared in numerous television movies including Death of a Salesman, Of Mice and Men, and most recently The Paul Fleiss Story. Segal resides in Los Angeles and continues to play the banjo in a jazz band every Tuesday night. Mr. Segal participated in the "Tribute to Neil Simon" on Saturday, April 19.

Dan Sullivan moderated the panel discussion "What's Serious About Comedy?" on Saturday, April 19 at 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. at the Independence Museum. See updated bio in 1998 - Stephen Sondheim.

Faith Sullivan's new novel, The Empress of One, has just been published by Milkweed Editions. It extends and continues the story begun in Ms. Sullivan's best-known book, The Cape Ann. Her other books include Repent, Lanny Merkel, Watchdog, and Mrs. Demming and the Mythical Beast. At present she's working on a short novel, Dabbling in Futures. She and her husband Dan have three children: Maggie, Ben, and Kate-all writers. She presented "How to Write a Novel Without Getting Sued by Your Mother" on Thursday, April 17 at 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon at the Independence Arts Council.

Luke Yankee conducted a workshop "Perspectives on Directing" on Friday, April 18 at 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. in the Cessna Learning Center. See updated bio in 1998 - Stephen Sondheim.

Sergei Yashin participated in the discussion "Come Back, Little Sheba at the Gogol Theatre in Moscow" on Thursday, April 17 at 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Inge Theatre    

                              Margo Jones Award

Mr. Hirschfeld is known worldwide for his caricature line drawings of theatrical personalities and is the subject of a new documentary called The Line King. He was born in St. Louis, lived in Paris, and in 1943 married the late Dolly Haas. Their daughter, Nina, has been made famous by having her name hidden at least once in each of his drawings. Hirschfeld calls it his "harmless insanity." In 1991, Hirschfeld became the first artist in history to have his name on a U.S. Postage Stamp booklet when the Postal Service released the five stamps they commissioned Hirschfeld to design. In 1991, his book, Hirschfeld: Art & Recollections From Eight Decades, was published to stunning reviews. His work is displayed in art museums around the world and he is represented exclusively by the Margot Feiden Galleries, where 70 years of his drawings, etchings, and lithographs are on permanent exhibition. Mr. Hirschfeld, who was unable to attend the Festival, accepted his award via videotape.

Conference Scholars

1997 Conference Scholars

Conference Director:
Jackson R. Bryer, Ph. D, University of Maryland, College Park, MD. See updated bio in 1998 - Stephen Sondheim.

Scholars:
Robin B. Balthrope, Ph.D, California State University, San Bernardino, CA presented "William Inge's Bus Stop, Marilyn Monroe and the Cult of True Womanhood."
Jane K. Dominik, San Joaquin Delta College, Stockton, CA presented "Inge's and Simon's Dramatic Portrayal of Young Married Life: Where's Daddy and Barefoot in the Park."
Tammy Horn, Ph.D, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL presented "The Lover and the Beloved in Picnic: The Literary Kinship Between McCullers and Inge."
Gary Konas, Ph.D, University of California, Davis, CA presented "Inge-ing Toward Neil Simon: Dark at the Top of the Stairs and the Brighton Beach Trilogy."