Elaine May

Veteran motion picture, television, and Broadway producer Julian Schlossberg grew up in New York City with an early love of entertainment. As a child, he was an avid fan of radio, film, and the new art of television, and harbored ambitions of meeting his favorite stars one day. Little did he know that in the course of his career, he would not only meet many of them, but also become their producer, representative, and friend. During his nearly 60 years in show business, Schlossberg has worked as a producer, director, distributor, exhibitor, radio and television host, and record executive. At 27 he was the youngest head film buyer of a national theater chain; after working at the ABC network, the Walter Reade Organization, and Paramount Pictures, he would start his own motion-picture company, Castle Hill Productions, which would become one of the largest independent film-distribution companies in the world with a library of over 500 films. Not willing to restrict his efforts to film and television, he has also produced award-winning plays and musicals for Broadway and off-Broadway, working closely with brilliant writers and directors like Mike Nichols, Larry Gelbart, Susan Stroman, Woody Allen, and David Mamet. Now, in his memoir Try Not to Hold It Against Me, Schlossberg shares stories from a lifetime in entertainment, from his childhood in the Bronx to his years as a producer for screen and stage. Schlossberg takes us through the trials and triumphs of work and play in every avenue of the business: negotiating with Al Pacino, Burt Reynolds, and Lillian Hellman; hosting the syndicated radio and television production Movie Talk, which introduced him to hundreds of stars; experiencing the paranormal with Shirley MacLaine and Betty Hill; running the Orson Welles estate and restoring Welles’ masterly film adaptation of Othello; partying with Barbra Streisand and Liza Minelli; testifying in a lawsuit against The Beatles; and interviewing over 120 of the most influential figures of the 20th century for his series Witnesses to the 20th Century. Written with engaging humor and self-deprecation—and with a foreword by Academy Award winner Elaine May—Try Not to Hold It Against Me gives readers a behind-the-scenes pass to Cannes and Las Vegas, the lives and homes of the stars, and the rarely seen but crucial work of the producer in the midst of it all. It’s a compelling read for film, television, and theater enthusiasts alike—and a one-of-a-kind autobiography by one of entertainment’s true insiders.

When Homeward Bound first appeared in 1988, it forever changed the way we understand Cold War America. Previously, scholars understood the post-World War II era as a time when Americans turned away from politics to enjoy the fruits of peace and prosperity after decades of depression and war, while their leaders remained preoccupied with the Soviet threat and the dangers of the Atomic Age. Homeward Bound challenged the idea of an apolitical private arena, demonstrating that the Atomic Age and the Cold War were not merely the concerns of experts and policy makers, but infused American life on every level, from the boardroom to the bedroom. As Elaine Tyler May argues, the official foreign policy of "containment" toward the Soviet Union had a domestic corollary, in which the perceived dangers of the age--nuclear war, communist subversion, consumer excess, sexual experimentation, and women's emancipation--were "contained" within the family, an institution now expected to fulfill its members hopes and dreams for security and the good life in the midst of a frightening world. "Domestic containment" is now the standard interpretation of the era, and Homeward Bound has become a classic. This new edition includes an updated introduction and a new epilogue examining the legacy of Cold War obsessions with personal and family security in the present day.

There is a cloud over porn queen Heidi the Hos usually cheery cable TV show. Her guests are wearing armbands to mourn the passing of their employer and mentor, a legendary porn filmmaker. Tired of working for others, this motley group of adult video veterans decides to write and shoot their own extravaganza, an 'art' film. The script doesnt live up to their expectations so they bring in a new writer, one who insists they read the classics to prepare for their roles. Unexpected ideas develop as the hilarity escalates bringing the play to a raucous and riotous conclusion.

Short Plays, Comedy Charatcers: 2 male, 2 female 3 interior sets Consists of The Way of All Fish, Virtual Reality and In and Out of the Light, three short plays about the collision of wills that were an Off Broadway comedy sensation starring the authors. "Classic comedies ...with subversive details that keep catching you off guard...The evening ...percolates with actorly inventiveness and a willingness to pursue a warped logic step by step into the land of absurdity. Has a heady sense of discovery, of seeing prototypical situations being twisted and spun to the point of dizziness, of disparate comic minds bouncing off each other."-N.Y. Times "A giddy delight."-N.Y. Post "Hilarious as well as thoughtful."-N.Y. Daily News