Richard Franklin Stockton (

Akron, Ohio Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Akron metr ...

February 3, 1932 – April 5, 1997) 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 ...

. He was the first American Playwright to receive a world premiere at the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

’s National Theatre, for his play ''Prisoner of the Crown'', co-produced by Sir

Alfred Drake Alfred Drake (October 7, 1914 – July 25, 1992) was an American actor and singer. Biography Born as Alfred Capurro in New York City, the son of parents emigrated from Recco, Genoa, Drake began his Broadway career while still a student at Bro ...

. The play received its American premiere by the Repertory Company of the Virginia Museum Theater, under the title ''The Royal Rape of Ruari Macasmunde'', with

Keith Fowler Keith Franklin Fowler (February 23, 1939 – December 30, 2023) was an American actor, director, producer, and educator. He was a professor of drama and former head of directing in the Drama Department of the Claire Trevor School of the Arts o ...

in the title role and under Alfred Drake's direction. The play dramatizes the jury deliberations in the

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

trial of

Roger Casement Roger David Casement (; 1 September 1864 – 3 August 1916), known as Sir Roger Casement, CMG, between 1911 and 1916, was a diplomat and Irish nationalist executed by the United Kingdom for treason during World War I. He worked for the Britis ...

. He received his Bachelor's Degree at Akron University in 1954, followed by a Master's Degree in playwriting at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

in 1960 and a playwriting fellowship at the

State University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 colleges offer ...

. He was a speech writer for various CEOs: Chase Manhattan Bank, J. P. Morgan, City Bank and Exxon. Notably David Rockefeller of Chase Manhattan Bank in 1972. He is survived by his wife, Irene Schaeffer Stockton, three children: David Stockton, Jessica Stockton Clancy and Carlisle Stockton. Followed by five grandchildren: Gray, Avalon, and Talis Stockton; and Maya and Keira Clancy.

Works

Plays

* ''Prisoner of the Crown'',

, Dublin, Ireland, co-produced by Sir Alfred Drake in 1972. . * ''Prisoner of the Crown'' (as ''The Royal Rape of Ruari Macasmunde''), the American premiere, directed by

, at the Virginia Museum Theater in 1972. * ''Prisoner of the Crown'', The Milwaukee Repertory Theater, directed by Nagle Jackson in 1973; * ''Prisoner of the Crown'', The Irish Repertory Theatre in New York directed by Ciaran O'Reilly in 2008. * ''Speak of the Devil'', produced in New York City: at the Lambs Theatre in 1972 under the title ''One World at a Time'' * Speak of the Devil produced in New York City at The Chernuchin under the title ''Royal Bob'' in 1983 starring Larry Bryggman * Speak of the Devil staged reading at The Players in New York City on 01/31/11. Directed by Robert Kalfin. * ''Love Among the Platypi'' (Bucks County Playhouse) * ''Till The Day Break'' (Old Salem Corporation) * ''The Trial of Captain John Brown'', (Louisville Little Theatre) * ''The House Shall Tremble'' (UCLA) * ''The Weed Bouquet'' (The Playwrights Showcase in New Orleans) * ''The Litter of Flowers'' (The Little Theatre of Jacksonville). * ''Seven Short Plays'' (UCLA and The Tokyo English Theatre).

Books for musical adaptations of classics

* ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (Town Hall) * ''The Prince and The Pauper'' * ''Androcles and The Lion'', produced by The National Theatre Company and toured nationally by Fran and Barry Weissler. Numerous television dramas for

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

, The Great Adventure,

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

, and The U.S. Steel Hour, starring James Whitmore, Anne Baxter, Jeanne Crain, Mona Freeman, Barry Sullivan, and Jack Klugman. A dozen

radio plays Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

produced internationally for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, and

Radio New Zealand Radio New Zealand (), commonly known as RNZ or Radio NZ, is a New Zealand public service broadcaster and Crown entity. Established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995, it operates news and current affairs station, RNZ National, and a classi ...

Awards

Stockton received the Samuel Goldwyn Creative Writing Award for ''The House Shall Tremble''. He also received first place awards in the

Samuel French Samuel French (1821–1898) was an American entrepreneur who, together with British actor, playwright and theatrical manager Thomas Hailes Lacy, pioneered in the field of theatrical publishing and the licensing A license (American Englis ...

National Playwriting Competition, the Bellows Prize For Drama, and The Alden Award of the Dramatists Alliance.

References

External links

CurtainUp Review: ''Prisoner of the Crown''

NY Theater Review "Prisoner of the Crown"

Irish Abroad - review of "Prisoner of the Crown"

Variety - review of "Prisoner of the Crown"

Chelsea Now - review of "Prisoner of the Crown"

The New Yorker - review of "Prisoner of the Crown"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stockton, Richard 1932 births 1997 deaths University of Akron alumni UCLA Film School alumni American television writers American male television writers 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters