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Mark Medoff (March 18, 1940 – April 23, 2019) was an American
playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...
,
screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
,
film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
and
theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...
,
actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
, and
professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...
. His play '' Children of a Lesser God'' received both the
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a 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 ...
and the Olivier Award. He was nominated for an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
and a Writers Guild of America Best Adapted Screenplay Award for the film script of '' Children of a Lesser God'' and for a Cable ACE Award for his HBO Premiere movie, ''Apology''. He also received an
Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given since 1956 by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theater artists and groups involved in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. Starting just after th ...
for his play '' When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?'' Medoff's feature film ''Refuge'' was released in 2010. '' When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?'' was adapted into a film with a screenplay by Medoff in 1979.


Early life and education

Medoff was born on March 18, 1940, in Mount Carmel, Illinois, to a
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
family, the son of Thelma Irene (Butt), a psychologist, and Lawrence R. Medoff, a physician. He was raised in
Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean ...
, and graduated from Miami Beach Senior High School. Medoff received his
Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree from the
University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...
and his Master's from
Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
. Medoff also received an honorary degree in 1981 from
Gallaudet University Gallaudet University ( ) is a private federally chartered university in Washington, D.C., for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing. It was founded in 1864 as a grammar school for both deaf and blind children. It was the first school ...
.


Career

In 1967, while working as an instructor at the Capitol Radio Engineering Institute in Washington, D.C., he wrote his first play, ''The Wager''. His first play to be staged in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
was '' When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?'', which won him the 1974 Drama Desk and Obie Awards for Outstanding New Playwright.


Awards and nominations

Medoff's big breakthrough and most famous work was 1979's '' Children of a Lesser God'', which won him the Tony, Drama Desk, and
Laurence Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in West End theatre, professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of We ...
s for Best Play. Medoff was back on Broadway again with the staging of his play ''Prymate'' in 2005. Medoff's screen credits include adaptations of his plays ''Red Ryder'' and ''Children of a Lesser God'', for which he was nominated for an
Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
,
BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
, and
Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...
Award, '' Clara's Heart'' (for which he cast, and subsequently "discovered", Neil Patrick Harris), and '' City of Joy''. In 2000, he produced and directed the documentary ''Who Fly on Angels’ Wings'', about a mobile pediatric unit traveling through the under-served regions of southern
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, and the following year he directed the feature film '' Children on Their Birthdays'', based on the
short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...
by
Truman Capote Truman Garcia Capote ( ; born Truman Streckfus Persons; September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. Several of his short stories, novels, and plays have been praised as literary classics ...
.


Teaching

Medoff was co-founder of the American Southwest Theatre Company and head of the Department of Theatre Arts for nine years at New Mexico State University, where he was a professor for a total of twenty-seven years and taught Screenwriting and Acting for Film, Short Film Production, and Film Directing and Producing. He was also the Creative Director of the Creative Media Institute at NMSU, the film department at the university. The theater department is still the American Southwest Theater Company. For one semester a year between 2003 and 2006, he worked at
Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...
as a Reynolds Eminent Scholar in the School of Theatre. In the spring semester of 2008 he joined the faculty of the
University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...
School of Theatre and Dance as Distinguished Lecturer. He was the winner of the
Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...
Medallion for Excellence in Education and Artistic Achievement, given periodically to professionals in theater who also teach and mentor students.


Personal life

Medoff was married to second wife Stephanie Thorne from 1972 until his death in 2019; they had three daughters.


Death

In April 2019, he entered hospice care after battling cancer in his later years and suffering a fall. He died on April 23, 2019, in
Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; ; lit. 'the crosses') is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the county seat, seat of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 United States ce ...
, from complications at age 79.Dramatist and educator Mark Medoff, author of 'Children of a Lesser God,' dies at 79
/ref>


Bibliography


Plays

*''The Wager'', 1966 *''The Odyssey of Jeremy Jack'', (w/ Carleene Johnson, 1973) *''The Kramer'', 1973 *'' When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?'', 1974 *''The Halloween Bandit'', 1978 *''The Conversion of Aaron Weiss'', 1978 *''Firekeeper'', 1978 *''The Last Chance Saloon'', 1979 *''The Froegle Dictum'', 1980 *'' Children of a Lesser God'', 1980 *''The Majestic Kid'', 1981 *''The Hands of Its Enemy'', 1984 *''Kringle's Window'', 1985. *''The Heart Outright'', 1986 *''The Homage That Follows'', 1995 *''Showdown on Rio Road'' (with Ross Marks, 1998). * ''Crunch Time'', (with Phil Treon, 1998). * ''Gila'', 1996. * ''Gunfighter - A Gulf War Chronicle'', 1997 * ''A Christmas Carousel'', 1997. * ''Tommy J and Sally,'' 2000. * ''The Same Life Over,'' 2002. * '' Prymate'', 2003. * ''The Dramaturgy of Mark Medoff,'' 2004. * ''Marilee and Baby Lamb: Assassination of an American Goddess,'' 2015.


Radio plays

*''The Disintegration of Aaron Weiss'', 1979 *''The Last Chance Saloon'', 1980


Screenplays

*''Good Guys Wear Black'', 1978 *'' When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder'', 1979 *''Off Beat'', 1986 *''Apology'', 1986 *'' Children of a Lesser God'', 1986 *'' Clara's Heart'', 1987 *'' City of Joy'', 1992 *''Showdown on Rio Road'', 1993 *'' Homage'', 1995 *''Santa Fe'', 1997 *''100 MPG'', 2006 *''Refuge'', 2010 *'' Walking with Herb'', 2021


Acting and directing

Medoff's theatre directing credits include '' Waiting for Godot'', '' The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds'', '' Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris'', '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'', '' Equus'', and '' Hot L Baltimore.'' As an actor, he has appeared in the plays '' Marat/Sade'', '' Black Comedy/White Lies'', and '' Old Times'', among others, and the films ''The Twilight of the Golds'', ''Santa Fe'', ''Homage'', ''Red Ryder'', and ''Clara's Heart''.


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Medoff, Mark 1940 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American male writers Accidental deaths from falls American male dramatists and playwrights American male screenwriters Film directors from Illinois Jewish American dramatists and playwrights Jewish American screenwriters New Mexico State University faculty People from Mount Carmel, Illinois Screenwriters from Illinois Screenwriters from New Mexico Screenwriters from New York (state) Screenwriters from Texas Stanford University alumni Tony Award winners University of Houston faculty University of Miami alumni