FOR me, directing goes hand in hand with writing and acting. They are the three supreme elements that go into creating and presenting works intended for performance. Beginning in high school I wrote AND directed student films which were very popular and which eventually led to my acceptance at the UCLA Motion Picture/Television Department (only 13 admitted nation wide in 1973). I directed a number of film and TV projects there.

 

Playing director in 1971 having made numerous 8mm and Super 8mm movies throughout high school, including receiving Honorable Mention in the Kodak Teenage Movie Awards for my documentary "THE CANYON."

 

Some stills from my high school comedies:

 

"DON'T COUNT ON DRACULA"

 

 

"A LOVE STORY?"

 

"SOMETHING TO APPLY TO MY SORE"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"MAID FOR EACH OTHER"

 

Then it was many months living and traveling throughout Mexico, filming everywhere, and eventually creating a 40 minute documentary which in part was responsible for my acceptance to the UCLA Motion Picture/Television Department.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"LAS TRES CULTURAS DE MEXICO"

 

 

 

But a funny thing happened upon graduating from film school: I became a professional stage actor. Hence, I began directing plays myself. One of my favorite shows was Tennessee Williams's "A PERFECT ANALYSIS GIVEN BY A PARROT" performed in San Diego, California.

A couple of Tennessee Williams ladies just waiting for a couple of gentlemen callers....

 

I appeared briefly at the end as a partygoer. (See below -- I'm on the left blowing the party favor. If the woman on the right looks familiar to you, maybe you recall her from the very end of "THE BLUES BROTHERS" movie. Sue Strain was an extra in that classic, and wears the exact same outfit!)

Sue Strain and Jane Wenman played Tennessee Williams's ladies to perfection.

I directed a reading of the first draft of "THE TURN OF THE CENTURY" for The Old Globe Theatre Play Discovery Project. The young man on the right is future TV star Kelsey Grammer.

 

Below is yours truly performing with the wonderful Gillian Farrell in my own play "MALAGASY FIGS" which I directed shortly before moving to New York City. Gillian later married Larry Beinhart, the author of the book upon which "WAG THE DOG" was based. Gillian is an accomplished writer herself, with the "Annie McGrogan" series of detective tales.

 

"A DAY FOR SURPRISES" is a hilarious farce by John Guare which I directed and performed with the funny Laura Rankin. We play a couple of repressed librarians working in the basement of the Rare Book Room:

 

By the end of the play our librarians are in the throes of an ecstatic passion:

A CLARIFICATION:

I am not an advocate of the actor directing himself on the stage. The above situations were unique; these were simple one-act plays that the theatrical management in all instances ASKED me to direct as well as act in. (An actor directing himself on film and video is another matter since the actor-director can step back and look at rushes and video playback and make appropriate adjustments. Charlie Chaplin and Woody Allen are prime examples. But that is really NOT a desire of mine.)

However, there are those who are opposed to the idea of a writer directing his own work. My philosophy is this: who is more intimately knowledgeable about the work? Who is more aware of what the overall effect should be as well as of the intricate nuances of the piece? There are many examples of successful writer-directors and if the author can communicate well with the actors and convey his ideas and concepts with grace, style, power and effect, let the results speak for themselves!

Another issue is that of stage versus film. I have studied deeply and practiced professionally in theatrical stage production, dramatic writing as well as film history, theory and technique. I've learned first hand the process of adapting stage plays to the screen. (William Wyler was a supremely successful practitioner of stage to screen adaptations, as were John Huston and the earlier work of John Ford and with Michael Curtiz, David O. Selznick, etc. novels were wonderfully adapted to the screen as well.) I started out in film school but realized that if the script is no good, the film wouldn't be either. Theatre is the pure expression of dramatic writing and that is where I went to further and deepen my education. I am proud to know that I have LIVED (as an actor) many of the great classics of the past several centuries. I have gained a confidence earned from years of experience.

Should a writer direct his own work? Effective RESULTS should silence those nay-sayers who put up their road blocks through prejudice or jealousy or as mere echoers of abstract theories.

I am not interested in ego trips. "The play's the thing!" I personally relish the opportunity to meet and work with the many talented and brilliant directors employed today on stage, film and television. I welcome showing any and all interested and serious-minded directors and producers my scripts! Successful artistic collaboration among talented artists and professionals united in a shared vision is my goal!

 

Since 2000 I have been a member of The Actors Studio West Playwright/Director Unit headed by Mark Rydell and Lyle Kessler. Although they frown upon a playwright directing his own work for the purposes of their particular workshop, whose aim is to pair directors with writers, I have been permitted to direct staged readings of selections from several of my plays there when directors were unavailable.. Below are rehearsal photos for a reading of "THE TURN OF THE CENTURY":

 

Helen Wilson and Danna Hansen emote dramatically in my Victorian murder-mystery-comedy.

 

A frightening moment -- Agnes the maid (Rosanna Potter) terrifies Pierre (Giampierro Judica) and Roxanne (Peggy McCay). Emmy winner Peggy McCay stars on "Days of Our Lives" and I am so proud of her enthusiasm for my work!

 

Arnold Weiss as Ashton; Danna Hansen as his 100-year-old Shakespearean star mother Lady Eulalia Winceworth, a role Bette Davis wanted to play in her 80th year.

Jamieson Stern and Frances Bay prepare for a reading of "September" at The Actors Studio West.

Veteran actress Frances Bay prepares for a reading of my one-act "SEPTEMBER."

 

In October 2003 I was invited to become an observer in the new Director Unit headed by Mark Rydell and Mark Travis at the Actors Studio West.

 

Mark Rydell, Artistic Director and Co-Executive Director of The Actors Studio West. Among his acclaimed films as director are "The Fox," "The Reivers," "The Cowboys," "The Rose," "On Golden Pond," "James Dean," etc. As an actor he's played everything from the vicious gangster in "The Long Goodbye" to Woody Allen's sidekick agent in "Hollywood Ending."

 

 

 

 

In February 2007 I returned to directing behind the camera once again as production commenced on "THE CALISTRA ZIPPER STORY."

 

 

 

 

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