Michael Charlies Kuchwara (February 28, 1947 – May 22, 2010) was an American

theater critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as Art criticism, art, Literary criticism, literature, Music journalism, music, Film criticism, cinema, Theater criticism, theater, Fas ...

, columnist and journalist. Kuchwara worked as both a critic and journalist for the ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

'' for more than from 1984 until 2010, writing pieces that were read worldwide. Kuchwara, who was based in New York City, reviewed as many as 200 theater productions a year.

Biography

Early life

Kuchwara was born on February 28, 1947, in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U ...

. His father, a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

pilot, worked for the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collecti ...

. Kuchwara's interest in theater and the entertainment industry began when he saw his first play during the late-1950s, the comedic '' Third Best Sport'', by Leo G. Bayer and

Eleanor Perry Eleanor Perry (née Rosenfeld; nom-de-plume Oliver Weld Bayer, October 13, 1914 – March 14, 1981) was an American screenwriter and author.''Variety'' "Eleanor Perry Obituary" March 17, 1981 Film critic Charles Champlin fondly remembered Perry ...

, at the Poconos Playhouse in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. He received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

and his master's degree from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

Career

Kuchwara worked for the ''

'' for more than 40 years, first as a reporter and then as a theater critic. He began his career as a journalist for the

' bureau in Chicago, Illinois. He moved to New York City to work as an AP editor on the wire service's national desk. In 1984, Kuchwara became the ''Associated Press'' chief theater critic, a position he held until his death in 2010. Michael Kuchwara died at Beth Israel Hospital in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

idiopathic An idiopathic disease is any disease with an unknown cause or mechanism of apparent wikt:spontaneous, spontaneous origin. From Ancient Greek, Greek ἴδιος ''idios'' "one's own" and πάθος ''pathos'' "suffering", ''idiopathy'' means approxi ...

ischemic Ischemia or ischaemia is a restriction in blood supply to any tissue, muscle group, or organ of the body, causing a shortage of oxygen that is needed for cellular metabolism (to keep tissue alive). Ischemia is generally caused by problems wi ...

lung disease The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of t ...

on May 22, 2010, at the age of 63. He is survived by his sister, Patricia Henley, and wife, Jonnie Kay Kitchen; the couple had been married since 1975.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuchwara, Michael 1947 births 2010 deaths Associated Press reporters American theater critics American male journalists Syracuse University alumni University of Missouri alumni Writers from Scranton, Pennsylvania Deaths from lung disease Journalists from New York City Journalists from Pennsylvania