William M. Hoffman (April 12, 1939 – April 29, 2017) was an American playwright, theatre director, editor, and professor.

Life and career

Hoffman was born in New York City to Johanna (Papiermeister), a jeweler, and Morton Hoffman, a caterer. Hoffman's early work was produced in

off-off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commercialism of the pro ...

theaters, such as La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. His first production with La MaMa was the play ''Thank You, Miss Victoria'', produced alongside works by Jean-Claude van Itallie and Leonard Melfi on tour in Copenhagen in 1965. La MaMa then presented the works by Hoffman, van Itallie, and Melfi alongside works by Paul Foster,

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...

, and

Lanford Wilson Lanford Wilson (April 13, 1937March 24, 2011) was an American playwright. His work, as described by ''The New York Times'', was "earthy, realist, greatly admired ndwidely performed." Fox, Margalit"Lanford Wilson, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Playwright ...

in New York in 1966 as "Six Plays from the 1965-1966 European Tour". He was the narrator for Louis Mofsie's production of ''Three Mask Plays'' with the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers at La MaMa in 1966. Lee Hickman directed Hoffman's ''Spring Play'', which featured a performance by

Harvey Keitel Harvey Keitel ( ; born May 13, 1939) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of morally ambiguous and "tough guy" characters. He first rose to prominence during the New Hollywood movement, and has held a long-running association with ...

, at La MaMa in 1967. John Vaccaro directed the Playhouse of the Ridiculous in Hoffman's ''XXXXX'' at La MaMa in 1972. Jacque Lynn Colton directed Hoffman's ''A Quick Nutbread to Make Your Mouth Water'' in California in 1974, and Vaccaro directed La MaMa's C.E.T.A. company in Hoffman's adaptation of '' Gulliver's Travels'' in 1978. Vaccaro also directed La MaMa - C.E.T.A. in a production of Hoffman's ''A Book of Etiquette'' in 1978 and again in 1979. In 1981, Vaccaro directed a production of ''XXXXX'' featuring music by John Braden. In 1985, Hoffman achieved critical acclaim and public recognition when the Broadway production of his play ''

As Is As is, when employed as a term with legal effect, is used to disclaim some implied warranties for an item being sold. Certain types of implied warranties must be specifically disclaimed, such as the implied warranty of title. "As is" denotes tha ...

'', one of the early plays about AIDS, opened at the Lyceum Theatre in New York, where it ran for 285 performances. He won a

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. The award was initially introduced in 1955 as the Ver ...

(1985) and an Obie Award for playwriting (1984–1985), and was nominated for a

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 ce ...

for Best Play (1985). The following year, he adapted ''As Is'' for a television production directed by

Michael Lindsay-Hogg Sir Michael Edward Lindsay-Hogg, 5th Baronet (born 5 May 1940) is an American-born television, film, music video, and theatre director. Beginning his career in British television, Lindsay-Hogg became a pioneer in music film production, directing ...

. In 1991, Hoffman was commissioned by the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is oper ...

to write the libretto for ''

The Ghosts of Versailles ''The Ghosts of Versailles'' is an opera in two acts, with music by John Corigliano to an English libretto by William M. Hoffman. The Metropolitan Opera had commissioned the work from Corigliano in 1980 in celebration of its 100th anniversary, ...

,'' first produced in celebration of the opera company's centennial. A 1993 television production starring

Teresa Stratas Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a retired operatic soprano from Canada of Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's '' Lulu''. Early life and career Stratas was born Anastasia Stratakis t ...

Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nominated for ...

, and Graham Clark was released in 1993, and Hoffman received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. Hoffman worked as an editor at

Hill and Wang Hill & Wang is an American book publishing company focused on American history, world history, and politics. It is a division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Hill & Wang was founded as an independent publishing house in 1956 by Arthur Wang (1917/1 ...

and promoted the careers of

Tom Eyen Tom Eyen (August 14, 1940 – May 26, 1991) was an American playwright, lyricist, television writer and director. He received a Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical for ''Dreamgirls'' in 1981. Eyen is best known for works at opposite e ...

, and Joe Orton, including their work in his "New American Plays" series or his anthology ''Gay Plays: A First Collection''. Until the time of his death in 2017, Hoffman was an associate professor of theatre at Lehman College at the City University of New York.CUNY-TV
Biography of host (Hoffman).

Published plays

Year listed is when the play was first produced. * ''

'' (1985) * ''A Book of Etiquette'' (1978) * ''The Cherry Orchard, Part II'' (1983) * ''Children's Crusade'' (1972) * ''Cornbury'' (with Anthony Holland) (1979) * ''From Fool to Hanged Man'' (1972) * ''Giles De Rais'' (1975) * ''Good Night, I Love You'' (1966) * ''Gulliver's Travels'' (1978) * ''Incantation'' (1967) * ''Luna'' (1970) * ''A Quick Nutbread to Make Your Mouth Water'' (1970) * ''Saturday Night at the Movies'' (1966) * ''Shoe Palace Murray'' (1978) * ''Thank You, Miss Victoria'' (1965) * ''xxx'' (aka ''Nativity Play'') (1969) * ''

'' (1991)

Additional credits

*'' One Life to Live'' (scriptwriter, mid-1990s)

Additional awards

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

nomination for Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team, ''One Life to Live'' (1992; as part of 15-person team) * Writers Guild of America Award for Best Writing, ''One Life to Live'' (1996)

References

External links

* *
W. M. Hoffman at doollee

Robert Patrick's page on William M. Hoffman

Hoffman's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections

Hoffman bio on GLBTQ Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, William M. 1939 births 2017 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights American soap opera writers Drama Desk Award winners American gay writers American opera librettists Writers from New York City Lehman College faculty LGBT people from New York (state) 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from New York (state) American male television writers