Stephen F. Kolzak (February 19, 1953 – September, 19 1990) was an American

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

casting director In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra (acting), extra for a particular role or part in a scr ...

. He is best known for ''

Altered States ''Altered States'' is a 1980 American science fiction body horror film directed by Ken Russell and based on the novel of the same name by playwright and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky. The film was adapted from Chayefsky's 1978 novel and is his f ...

'' (1980), ''

Cheers ''Cheers'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on NBC from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993, with a total of 275 half-hour episodes across 11 seasons. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association w ...

'' (1982) and ''

Bachelor Party A bachelor party (in the United States and sometimes in Canada), also known as a stag weekend, stag do or stag party (in the United Kingdom, Commonwealth countries, and Ireland), or a buck's night (in Australia), is a party held/arranged by th ...

'' (1984). He is reported to have chosen the ''Cheers'' cast. In the last two years of his life, he was in a long-term relationship with his partner

Paul Monette Paul Landry Monette (October 16, 1945 – February 10, 1995) was an American author, poet, and activist best known for his books about gay relationships. Early life and career Monette was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and graduated from Phil ...

. He devoted the last part of his life to fighting

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

and AIDS-phobia within the entertainment industry. The

GLAAD Stephen F. Kolzak Award The GLAAD Stephen F. Kolzak Award is a special GLAAD Media Award presented annually by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. It is named in honor of the Los Angeles casting director Stephen F. Kolzak, who devoted the last part of his life ...

given to an openly LGBT member of the entertainment or media community for his or her work toward eliminating homophobia has been awarded since 1991, with Kolzak being the posthumous inaugural recipient.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolzak, Stephen American casting directors 1953 births 1990 deaths American LGBT rights activists People from Hartford, Connecticut People from Los Angeles AIDS-related deaths in California