|
The National Health (play)
''The National Health'' is a 1969 British play by Peter Nichols. Reminiscent of the ''Carry On'' film series, this black comedy with tragic overtones focuses on the appalling conditions in an under-funded National Health Service hospital, which are contrasted comically with a ''Dr. Kildare''-style soap opera airing on the ward television. History Originally titled ''The End Beds'', the play – based on Nichols' time in hospitals where he received treatment for a collapsed lung – originally was written for television, but the playwright received no enthusiastic response from anyone to whom he submitted it. When Kenneth Tynan and Laurence Olivier approached him to write a play for the National Theatre, Nichols offered them the slightly revised work, retitled ''The National Health''. It premiered at The Old Vic in 1969 and proved to be a critical and commercial success, named Best New Play by the ''Evening Standard''. The BBC then asked Nichols if he would adapt the play for a t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Nichols (playwright)
Peter Richard Nichols (31 July 1927 – 7 September 2019) was an English playwright, screenwriter, director and journalist. Life and career Born in Bristol, England, he was educated at Bristol Grammar School, and served his compulsory National Service as a clerk in Calcutta and later in the British Army's Combined Services Entertainment Unit in Singapore where he entertained the troops alongside John Schlesinger, Stanley Baxter, Peter Vaughan and Kenneth Williams, before going on to study acting at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He later claimed to have studied acting because there were no dedicated courses for playwrights. While working as a teacher, he began to write television plays that achieved notice. His first play for the stage was ''The Hooded Terror'', part of a season of new plays at the Little Theatre in Bristol. He later wrote ''A Day in the Death of Joe Egg'' for the stage. ''A Day in the Death of Joe Egg'' is a one-set drama in music hall style. '' The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clive Swift
Clive Walter Swift (9 February 1936 – 1 February 2019) was an English actor and songwriter. A classically trained actor, his stage work included performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, but he was best known to television viewers for his role as Richard Bucket in the BBC sitcom ''Keeping Up Appearances''. He played many other television and film roles. Life and career Swift was born in Liverpool on 9 February 1936, the son of Abram Sampson Swift, who owned a furniture shop in Bootle, and Lily Rebecca, née Greenman. His elder brother David was also an actor. Both were educated at Clifton College and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where Clive read English literature. He was previously a teacher at LAMDA and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. His family was Jewish. He appeared as Snug in the Royal Shakespeare Company's 1968 film production of ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' as part of a cast that included Diana Rigg, Helen Mirren and Ian Richardson. During the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1969 Plays
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to London's Gatwick Airport, killing 50 of the 62 people on board and two of the home's occupants. * January 14 – An explosion aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN-65), USS ''Enterprise'' near Hawaii kills 27 and injures 314. * January 19 – End of the siege of the University of Tokyo, marking the beginning of the end for the 1968–69 Japanese university protests. * January 20 – Richard Nixon is First inauguration of Richard Nixon, sworn in as the 37th President of the United States. * January 22 – Attempted assassination of Leonid Brezhnev, An assassination attempt is carried out on Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev by deserter Viktor Ilyin. One person is killed, several are injured. Leonid Brezhnev, Brezhnev es ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Following the 1964 renaming as the Drama Desk Awards, Broadway productions were included beginning with the 1968–69 award season. The awards are considered a significant American theater distinction. History The Drama Desk organization was formed in 1949 by a group of New York theater critics, editors, reporters and publishers, in order to make the public aware of the vital issues concerning the theatrical industry. They debuted the presentations of the ''Vernon Rice Awards''. The name honors the ''New York Post'' critic Vernon Rice, who had pioneered Off-Broadway coverage in the New York press. The name was changed for the 1963–1964 awards season to the ''Drama Desk Awards''. In 1974, the Drama Desk became incorporated as a not-for-pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in Midtown Manhattan. The awards are given for Broadway productions and performances. One is also given for regional theatre. Several discretionary non-competitive awards are given as well, including a Special Tony Award, the Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, and the Isabelle Stevenson Award. The awards were founded by theatre producer and director Brock Pemberton and are named after Antoinette "Tony" Perry, an actress, producer and theatre director who was co-founder and secretary of the American Theatre Wing. The trophy consists of a spinnable medallion, with faces portraying an adaptation of the comedy and tragedy masks, mounted on a black base with a pewter swivel. The rules for the Tony Awards are set forth in the off ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and theater projects throughout her extensive career spanning over seven decades. Her work includes supporting roles in the classic musical films '' Singin' in the Rain'' (1952), ''The King and I'' (1956), and the 1961 and 2021 film adaptations of ''West Side Story''. Her other notable films include ''Popi'' (1969), ''Carnal Knowledge'' (1971), '' The Four Seasons'' (1981), '' I Like It Like That'' (1994) and the cult film ''Slums of Beverly Hills'' (1998). She is also known for her work on television including the children's television series ''The Electric Company'' (1971–1977), and as Sister Peter Marie Reimondo on the HBO series '' Oz'' (1997–2003). She voiced the titular role of in ''Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?'' from 1994 to 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Olivia Cole
Olivia Carlena Cole (November 26, 1942 – January 19, 2018) was an American actress, best known for her Emmy Award-winning role in the 1977 miniseries ''Roots''. Early life and education Cole was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the daughter of Arvelia Cole (née Cage), a tennis player, instructor, entrepreneur and William Calvin Cole, a worker for Grumman. After graduating from Manhattan's Hunter College High School in 1960, she studied drama at Bard College in New York and earned a scholarship to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, where she graduated with honors in 1964. After returning to the United States, she earned a master's degree in theater arts with minor in Scandinavian studies in 1967 from the University of Minnesota. Career Cole made her screen debut in the daytime soap opera ''Guiding Light'' in 1969 and later appeared in over 30 shows and films. Cole won an Emmy Award for her performance as Matilda, Chicken George's wife, in the 1977 miniseries '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leonard Frey
Leonard Frey (September 4, 1938 – August 24, 1988) was an American actor. Frey received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 1971 musical film ''Fiddler on the Roof''. He made his stage debut in an Off-Broadway production of ''Little Mary Sunshine'' and received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for '' The National Health''. Life & career Frey was born in Brooklyn, New York. After attending James Madison High School, he studied art at Cooper Union, with designs on becoming a painter, then switched to acting at New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse under acting coach Sanford Meisner, and pursued a career in theater. Frey received critical acclaim in 1968 for his performance as Harold in off-Broadway's '' The Boys in the Band''. He appeared with the rest of the original cast in the 1970 film version, directed by William Friedkin. Frey was nominated for a 1975 Tony Award as Best Featured Actor in a Pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Circle In The Square Theatre
The Circle in the Square Theatre is a Broadway theater at 235 West 50th Street, in the basement of Paramount Plaza, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It is one of two Broadway theaters that use a thrust stage that extends into the audience on three sides. History Previous locations The original Circle in the Square was founded by Theodore Mann, José Quintero, Jason Wingreen, Aileen Cramer and Emily Stevens in 1951 and was located at 5 Sheridan Square (a former nightclub) in Greenwich Village. The original Circle in the Square did not have a theater license, but Mann was able to get a cabaret license; the production staff and off duty actors served as waiters if anyone insisted on ordering food or drinks. Many of the theater personnel, both acting and technical, lived on the premises. Even classical performances took place here: Pianist Grete Sultan, who later became a well-known interpreter of New Music and was John Cage's close friend, performed the ''Go ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arvin Brown
Arvin Brown (born May 24, 1940) is an American theatre and television director. He was the Artistic Director of the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut for 30 years. Life and career Born in Los Angeles, California, Brown made his Broadway directorial debut with a 1970 revival of Noël Coward's '' Hay Fever''. Under Brown, Long Wharf produced more than 200 plays, some 70 of which were staged by Brown himself. His specialty at Long Wharf and in New York was realistic American plays of the mid 20th century, often in revival. Notable Brown-directed productions include works by Arthur Miller (''The Crucible'', '' A View From the Bridge)'', Eugene O'Neill (''A Touch of the Poet''), and Rod Serling (''Requiem for a Heavyweight''). His directing credits also include '' The National Health'' (1974), ''Ah, Wilderness!'' (1975), ''Watch on the Rhine'' (1980),'' Privates On Parade (1982),'' ''American Buffalo'' (1983), ''Open Admissions'' (1984), ''Private Lives'' (1992), and '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theodore Mann
Theodore Mann, birth name Goldman, (May 13, 1924 – February 24, 2012) was an American theatre producer and director and the Artistic Director of the Circle in the Square Theatre School. Mann co-founded Circle in the Square Theatre, widely regarded as the birth of the off-Broadway theatre movement with José Quintero in 1951. Ten years later, he established the Circle in the Square Theatre School to provide training for aspiring actors. It presently offers a two-year program including courses in scene study, text analysis, speech, dance, and singing technique. Career Mann produced and/or directed more than two hundred productions starring actors including Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, Jason Robards, Geraldine Page, Colleen Dewhurst, James Earl Jones, Kevin Kline, Maureen Stapleton, Rip Torn, George C. Scott, and Jane Alexander. In addition to his Broadway and off-Broadway credits, he directed ''The Turn of the Screw'' for the New York City Opera, ''La Boheme'' for the Juil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colin Blakely
Colin George Blakely (23 September 1930 – 7 May 1987) was a Northern Irish actor. He had roles in the films '' A Man for All Seasons'' (1966), ''The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes'' (1970), ''Murder on the Orient Express'' (1974), and '' Equus'' (1977). Early life Born in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland, Blakely attended Sedbergh School in Yorkshire (now Cumbria), England. At the age of 18 he started work in his family's sports goods shop in Belfast, before going on to work as a timber-loader on the railways. In 1957, after a spell of amateur dramatics with the Bangor Drama Club, he turned professional with the Group Theatre, Belfast. Career In 1957, at the age of 27, Blakely made his stage debut as Dick McCardle in ''Master of the House''. He also appeared in several Ulster Group Theatre productions, including Gerard McLarnon's ''Bonefire'' (1958) and Patricia O'Connor's ''A Sparrow Falls'' (1959). From 1957 to 1959 he was at the Royal Court Theatre, appearing in ''C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> 1969 Plays")
