About the Author

John Heilpern is the author of the classic book about theater Conference of the Birds: The Story of Peter Brook in Africa and of How Good is David Mamet, Anyway?, a collection of his theater essays and reviews. Born in England and educated at Oxford, his interviews for The Observer (London) received a British Press Award. In 1980 he moved to New York, where he became a weekly columnist for The Times of London. An adjunct professor of drama at Columbia University, he is drama critic for the New York Observer.

Reviews

“Miraculous. . . . A model of what a literary biography ought to be. . . . The Osborne who emerges from these pages is a character of almost Shakespearean dimensions, grand as Falstaff, volatile as Hamlet, mad as Lear.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer"A terrific story. . . . An appealing, rollicking portrait. . . . The best literary biography I have read in a long time." —Harold Evans, The Wall Street Journal"I cannot recall a biography that was so amusing and intense. . . . If there is going to be a better-written, more entertaining, or more sharply observed performance this year, I'll be mighty surprised." —Carl Rollyson, The New York Sun

John Osborne was one of the most successful British playwrights of the late 1950s and 1960s. Although his later plays never achieved the success of earlier works like Look Back in Anger, he broke new ground by challenging Britain's class-conscious society. Theater critic Heilpern's (How Good Is David Mamet, Anyway?) excellent biography covers every aspect of this complicated and tormented dramatist's life, from his unhappy childhood to his ultimate withdrawal from the theater and London scene. Osborne married five times, frequently battled depression, maintained a difficult relationship with his mother, and never fully recovered from his father's death. Heilpern was granted access to Osborne's journals and letters by the playwright's widow and interviewed many of Osborne's friends and contemporaries. His definitive biography rivets, especially the chapters describing British society and theater life during the inter- and postwar periods. Highly recommended for all libraries.-Erica Swenson Danowitz, Delaware Cty. Community Coll., Media, PA Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

"Miraculous. . . . A model of what a literary biography ought to be. . . . The Osborne who emerges from these pages is a character of almost Shakespearean dimensions, grand as Falstaff, volatile as Hamlet, mad as Lear." -The Philadelphia Inquirer"A terrific story. . . . An appealing, rollicking portrait. . . . The best literary biography I have read in a long time." -Harold Evans, The Wall Street Journal"I cannot recall a biography that was so amusing and intense. . . . If there is going to be a better-written, more entertaining, or more sharply observed performance this year, I'll be mighty surprised." -Carl Rollyson, The New York Sun