Sir Peter Reginald Frederick Hall, CBE (born 22 November 1930) is an English theatre and film director. Hall founded the Royal Shakespeare Company (1960–68) and directed the National Theatre (1973–88), and has been prominent in defending public subsidy of the arts in Britain.

Early years[link]

Hall was born at Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England, the son of Grace Florence (née Pamment) and Reginald Edward Arthur Hall, a stationmaster.^[1][2][3] Hall attended The Perse School in Cambridge and went on to the Joint Services School for Linguists during his National Service, where he learned to speak Russian. He produced and acted in several productions while at the University of Cambridge, was on the Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club Committee 1952-3,^[4] and graduated in 1953 from St Catharine's College. During the same year, he staged his first professional play at the Theatre Royal, Windsor.

Career[link]

From 1954 to 1955 he was at the Oxford Playhouse where he directed several notable young actors such as Ronnie Barker and Roderick Cook. In August 1955, he directed the English-language premiere of Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett at the Arts Theatre, London. From 1956–1959 he ran the Arts Theatre and directed several plays including the English-language premiere of The Waltz of the Toreadors by the French dramatist Jean Anouilh.^[5] He was at Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford-on-Avon for the 1957 to 1959 seasons.^[5] There, his productions included: Cymbeline with Peggy Ashcroft; Coriolanus with Laurence Olivier and Edith Evans; and A Midsummer Night's Dream with Charles Laughton.

Hall founded the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1960, at the age of 29. He served as its artistic director from that time until 1968. He was director of the National Theatre from 1973 to 1988 and was also a member of the Arts Council of Great Britain resigning from the latter role in protest over cuts in public funding. After leaving the National Theatre he founded his own company directing a series of productions at the Old Vic.

From 1970 onwards, he directed a number of operas for Glyndebourne Festival Opera, including Francesco Cavalli's L'Ormindo, Benjamin Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream and Albert Herring, and the Mozart/Da Ponte operas The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni and Così Fan Tutte. He also directed operas at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, before taking up the directorship of the National Theatre. In 1983 he presented a new production of Wagner's Ring Cycle at Bayreuth, with Sir Georg Solti conducting. This production was in honour of the 100th anniversary of Wagner's death.

In 1988 he opened a production of Tennessee Williams' Orpheus Descending in London. He later presented the production, starring Vanessa Redgrave on Broadway in 1989. A year later, he directed the a TV film adaptation of the play, Orpheus Descending.

In 1990, at the Chichester Festival Theatre he directed Born Again, a musical version of Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros. Hall wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the libretto with Julian Barry, and British composer Jason Carr in Carr's first professional musical. Many years later one of the show's song's "When I Was Out This Morning" (with lyrics by Hall) was included on Carr's composer compilation album.

Sir Peter Hall is Director Emeritus of the Rose Theatre in Kingston upon Thames which opened in January 2008, and which draws design inspiration from the original Rose theatre. In 2010 the Rose had a sellout run of his production of A Midsummer Night's Dream with Judi Dench playing Titania.

Personal life[link]

Hall was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1963 and in 1977 was knighted for his services to the theatre. In 1999, he was presented with a Laurence Olivier Award. He was appointed Chancellor of Kingston University in 2000. He was awarded an Honorary Degree (Doctor of Letters) from the University of Bath in 2006.

Hall has married four times. His first wife was French actress Leslie Caron, followed by Jacqueline Taylor, opera soprano Maria Ewing, and present wife Nikki Frei. His diaries were published in 1983. One of his children is the actress Rebecca Hall and another is the director Edward Hall. One of his sons-in-law is Glenn Wilhide who was also the producer of The Camomile Lawn which Hall directed for television in 1992.

Stage productions[link]

• Twelfth Night (at the Oxford Playhouse) 1954
• Waiting for Godot (Samuel Beckett English-language première) (at the Arts Theatre) August 1955
• The Waltz of the Toreadors (Jean Anouilh English-language première at the Arts Theatre) 1956
• Wars of the Roses, adaptation of the Henry VI and Richard III plays, the Royal Shakespeare Company 1963-1964
• The Homecoming (Harold Pinter Original production by Peter Hall; By arrangement with the Governors of the Royal Shakespeare Company) 5 January 1967 - 14 October 1967
• Old Times (Harold Pinter) 16 November 1971 - 26 February 1972
• Via Galactica (rock musical) 28 November 1972 - 2 December 1972
• Saturday Sunday Monday (Eduardo De Filippo Produced by arrangement with the National Theatre) 21 November 1974 - 30 November 1974
• As You Like It (Produced by arrangement with the National Theatre) 3 December 1974 - 8 December 1974
• The Misanthrope (Molière in a version by Tony Harrison Originally produced by the National Theatre) 12 March 1975 - 31 May 1975
• No Man's Land (Pinter, Originally produced by the National Theatre) 9 November 1976 - 18 December 1976
• Bedroom Farce (Alan Ayckbourn Originally produced by the National Theatre) 29 March 1979 - 24 November 1979
• Betrayal (Pinter) 5 January 1980 - 31 May 1980, the National Theatre
• Amadeus (Peter Shaffer world première at the National Theatre) 17 December 1980 - 16 October 1983
• Wagner's Ring Cycle at Bayreuth 1983
• Jean Seberg (Marvin Hamlisch world première at the National Theatre) 1 December 1983 - 4 April 1984
• The Petition (Brian Clark) 24 April 1986 - 29 June 1986
• Wild Honey (Michael Frayn adaptation of Chekhov) 18 December 1986 - 11 January 1987
• Orpheus Descending (Tennessee Williams) 24 September 1989 - 17 December 1989
• The Merchant of Venice 19 December 1989 - 10 March 1990
• Born Again September 1990 Chichester Festival Theatre
• Four Baboons Adoring the Sun (John Guare) 18 March 1992 - 19 April 1992
• An Ideal Husband (Oscar Wilde) 1 May 1996 - 26 Jan 1997
• Amadeus 15 December 1999 - 14 May 2000
• "Troilus and Cressida" (Only Off-Broadway Production) (Idris Elba as Achilles Joey Kern as Troilus) March/April 2001
• Amy's View (David Hare) 28 November 2006 - 17 February 2007
• The Vortex (Noël Coward) 13 November 2007 - 1 December 2007 Theatre Royal Windsor.
• An Ideal Husband (Oscar Wilde) 25 August 2008 - 29 November 2008.
• Pygmalion (George Bernard Shaw) 6 February 2009 - 8 March 2009, Hong Kong Arts Festival

Film and Television[link]

• Work is a Four Letter Word (1968)
• A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968)
• Three Into Two Won't Go (1969) Film
• Perfect Friday (1970) Film
• The Homecoming (1973) Film
• Akenfield (1974) Film
• Aquarius TV (presenter) Episodes from 1975-1976
• She's Been Away (1980) TV (Awarded at the Venice_FIlm_Festival )
• The Camomile Lawn (1992) (TV mini-series)
• Jacob (1994) TV movie
• Never Talk to Strangers (1995) Film
• The Final Passage (1996) TV

Hall has also filmed many of his stage productions and operas for television

Books[link]

• Making An Exhibition of Myself Autobiography
• The Peter Hall Diaries: The Story of a Dramatic Battle
• Shakespeare's Advice To The Players

Acting[link]

Peter Hall began acting as a student at Cambridge university, where Dadie_Rylands taught him to speak Shakespearean verse. He subsequently acted in three German films, directed by Maximilian_Schell 1973-1975.

Further reading[link]

• Pearson, Richard (1990). A Band of Arrogant and United Heroes. London: Adelphi Press. ISBN 1-85654-005-7. 
• Trowbridge, Simon (2010). The Company: A Biographical Dictionary of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Oxford: Editions Albert Creed. ISBN 978-0-9559830-2-3

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Company: A Biographical Dictionary of the RSC: Online database
• Peter Hall at the Internet Broadway Database
• Peter Hall at the Internet Movie Database
• Peter Hall video at Web of Stories
• Fathom biography
• Godot almighty by Peter Hall

Kevin Peter Hall (May 9, 1955 – April 10, 1991) was an American actor known for his roles in Misfits of Science, Prophecy, Without Warning, and Harry and the Hendersons. He was also best known as the title character in the first two films in the Predator franchise.

Early life[link]

Hall was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[1] His parents were of above-average stature; his father, Charles Hall, was 6' 6", and his mother, Sylvia Hall, was 6' 2". At 7' 2" tall,^[2] he was the tallest of seven brothers, all over 6' 5". During his high school years at Penn Hills High School, he excelled at basketball and earned a scholarship to George Washington University in Washington, D.C.. In college, Hall continued to play basketball and majored in Theatrical Arts.^[3] After graduation, Hall moved to Venezuela to play basketball.

Career[link]

Hall made his acting debut in the 1979 horror film Prophecy. Due to his tall stature, he was often cast in monster roles. He appeared as "the alien" in the 1980 horror film Without Warning and as "Gorvil" in the 1982 television movie Mazes and Monsters. In 1985, he co-starred in the short-lived series Misfits of Science. He guest starred on the sitcom Night Court as a huge but gentle mental patient who humorously towered over bailiff Bull Shannon (played by Richard Moll, who is 6'8"). The next year, Hall portrayed yet another monster in the horror film Monster in the Closet, followed by the role of "Harry" in Harry and the Hendersons.

In 1986, Hall was cast as the main antagonist in Predator, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. During its developmental stages, the Predator was going to be played by Jean-Claude Van Damme, who played the Predator for the first few scenes and wasn't billed on end credits. The producers decided to recast with Hall so that the Predator could realistically physically dominate the film's human characters. Hall would go on to reprise the role in the 1990 sequel.

Following his role in Predator, Hall appeared in the film Big Top Pee-wee (1988) and had a guest spot on Star Trek: The Next Generation (a series for which he had once been a leading contender for two key roles, Geordi LaForge and Lt. Commander Data).^[4] From 1989 to 1990, he had a recurring role on the NBC sitcom 227. In 1990, Hall reprised his role as Harry on the television series based on the film. He died during the series' first season.

Personal life and death[link]

Hall met actress Alaina Reed while filming a guest spot on the television show 227. The couple would marry both on the show and in real life.^[5]

While working on the series Harry and the Hendersons, Hall announced that he had contracted HIV from a contaminated blood transfusion.^[6] On April 10, 1991, Hall died from pneumonia.^[7] He was 35 years old.

Honors[link]

Hall was posthumously inducted into the Penn Hills Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class on May 8, 2009.^[8]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Biography portal

• Kevin Peter Hall at the Internet Movie Database
• Kevin Peter Hall at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Kevin Peter Hall at Find a Grave

Vladimir Jurowski in 2011.

Vladimir Mikhailovich Jurowski (Russian: Владимир Михайлович Юровский; born 4 April 1972, Moscow, Russia) is a Russian conductor. He is the son of conductor Mikhail Jurowski.

Jurowski began his musical studies at the Moscow Conservatory. In 1990, he moved with his family, including his brother Dmitri, to Germany, where he completed his education at the music schools at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden and the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler. He studied conducting with Rolf Reuter and vocal coaching with Semion Skigin.^[1] He participated in a conducting master class with Sir Colin Davis on Sibelius' Symphony No. 7 in 1991.^[2][3]

Jurowski first appeared on the international scene in 1995 at the Wexford Festival, where he conducted Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's opera May Night, and he returned the following year for Giacomo Meyerbeer's L'étoile du nord, which was recorded by Naxos Records. In April 1996, he made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducting Nabucco.^[4]

In the 1996/1997 season, Jurowski joined the ensemble of the Komische Oper Berlin, as an assistant to Yakov Kreizberg and second Kapellmeister.^[5] He received the title first Kapellmeister a year later, and continued to work there full-time until 2001. He was the principal guest conductor of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna between 2000 and 2003.

In August 2000, Jurowski was named the Music Director of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, and he took on the post in January 2001.^[6] His conducting debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) was in December 2001.^[7] In 2003, he was appointed the LPO's Principal Guest Conductor and a member of the Russian National Orchestra Conductor Collegium^[8] He is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Russian National Orchestra, and a Principal Artist of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Jurowski was reported to have been offered the music directorship of Welsh National Opera upon the 2004 departure of Carlo Rizzi, but he declined the position.^[9] His tenure with Glyndebourne has been highly acclaimed, and Jurowski has spoken of the favourable working conditions at Glyndebourne.^[10] Jurowski is scheduled to step down from the Glyndebourne music directorship after the 2013 season.^{[11] [12]}

In May 2006, Jurowski was announced as the LPO's 11th Principal Conductor, effective with the 2007/2008 season, with an initial contract of 5 years.^[13][14] Several CD recordings of Jurowski conducting the LPO have been released.^[15] In April 2007, Jurowski was one of eight conductors of British orchestras to endorse the 10-year classical music outreach manifesto, "Building on Excellence: Orchestras for the 21st Century", to increase the presence of classical music in the UK, including giving free entry to all British schoolchildren to a classical music concert.^[16] In May 2007, Jurowski received the 2007 Royal Philharmonic Society Music Award for Conductor of the Year. In May 2010, the LPO announced the extension of his principal conductorship through the 2014-2015 season.^[17] In October 2011, the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Russian Federation announced the appointment of Jurowski as its principal conductor, with immediate effect, for an initial contract of 3 years.^[18]

In the USA, Jurowski first conducted at the Metropolitan Opera in December 1999.^[19] He made an acclaimed conducting debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra in October 2005.^[20] He returned in February 2007 to Philadelphia for a second guest conducting engagement which also received critical praise.^[21] Jurowski has since become a regular guest conductor with the Philadelphia Orchestra, including appearances in March 2009,^[22] October 2009, March 2010.^[23] and November 2011.

Jurowski and his wife Patricia have two children, Martha and Yuri. The family resides in Berlin.^[3][24]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Category:Vladimir Jurowski

References[link]

External links[link]

• Vladimir Jurowski biography
• Interview
• Royal Philharmonic Society Music Award, 2007 Conductor of the Year, announcement

John Lithgow
John Lithgow in 2007
Born	John Arthur Lithgow (1945-10-19) October 19, 1945 (age 66) Rochester, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	Harvard College
Occupation	Actor, musician, poet, author
Years active	1972–present
Spouse	Jean Taynton (1966–1980) Mary Yeager (1981–present)
Children	Ian Lithgow Phoebe Lithgow Nathan Lithgow

John Arthur Lithgow ( /ˈlɪθɡoʊ/ LITH-goh; born October 19, 1945) is an American actor, musician, and author. Presently, he is involved with a wide range of media projects, including stage, television, film, and radio. He also has written and published several books of poetry and children's literature.

He appeared in the films The World According to Garp (1982) and Terms of Endearment (1983), receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for each. Lithgow is known for his roles as the Reverend Shaw Moore in Footloose, Dick Solomon on the NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, the voice of Lord Farquaad in Shrek, and Arthur Mitchell on Showtime's Dexter, for which he won Golden Globe and Emmy awards.

On the stage, he appeared in the musical adaptation of Sweet Smell of Success, winning the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. He again appeared in a musical, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, again receiving a Tony nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Musical.

He has also recorded music, such as the 1999 album of children's music, Singin' in the Bathtub, and has written poetry and short stories for children, such as Marsupial Sue.

Early life[link]

Lithgow was born in Rochester, New York. His mother, Sarah Jane (née Price), was a retired actress, and his father, Arthur Washington Lithgow III, was a theatrical producer and director who ran the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, New Jersey.^[1][2] Because of his father's job, the family moved frequently during Lithgow's childhood; he spent his teenage years in Akron and Lakewood, Ohio.^[3]

Lithgow attended Harvard College, and graduated with an A.B. magna cum laude in 1967, in history and literature. He lived in Adams House as an undergraduate. Lithgow later served on Harvard's Board of Overseers. Lithgow credits a performance at Harvard of Gilbert and Sullivan's Utopia Limited with helping him decide to become an actor.^[4] After graduation, Lithgow won a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

Stage career[link]

In 1973, Lithgow debuted on Broadway in David Storey's The Changing Room, for which he received both the Tony and Drama Desk Award as Best Featured Actor in a Play. The following year he starred opposite Lynn Redgrave in My Fat Friend, and in 1976 he starred opposite Meryl Streep in Arthur Miller's A Memory of Two Mondays. He was nominated for the Best Actor Tony Awards for Requiem for a Heavyweight (1985) and M. Butterfly (directed by John Dexter, 1988).

In 2002, Lithgow won a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of J.J. Hunsecker in the Broadway adaptation of the 1957 film Sweet Smell of Success. In 2005, Lithgow was elected into the American Theatre Hall of Fame for his work on Broadway. He was also nominated for a Best Leading Actor in a Musical Tony for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

In 2007, Lithgow played Malvolio in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Twelfth Night, at The Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom.^[5]

In 2008 through 2009, Lithgow played Joe Keller in a Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's All My Sons.^[6]

Lithgow starred alongside Jennifer Ehle in Douglas Carter Beane's comedy Mr & Mrs Fitch presented Off-Broadway by Second Stage Theatre from February 22, 2010 to April 4, 2010.^[7]

Lithgow returns to Broadway as Joseph Alsop in the Manhattan Theatre Club production of David Auburn's new play The Columnist, with previews starting on April 4, 2012.^[8]

Film career[link]

In 1979, Lithgow portrayed Lucas Sergeant in Bob Fosse's semi-autobiographical movie All That Jazz. The character was loosely based on the real-life director/choreographer Michael Bennett, best known for his work on Dreamgirls and A Chorus Line.

In 1983 and 1984, Lithgow was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances as Roberta Muldoon in The World According to Garp and as Sam Burns in Terms of Endearment. Both films were screen adaptations of popular novels. Lithgow originated the character of Dr. Emilio Lizardo/Lord John Whorfin, an Italian physicist inhabited by an evil alien, which he played in the 1984 cult film The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. In 1984, Lithgow also played a pastor who condemns dancing in Footloose. He later played the role of American space engineer Walter Curnow in 2010, the sequel to the science fiction classic 2001: A Space Odyssey.

John Lithgow on the red carpet at the 40th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on August 28, 1988.

In 1983, Lithgow appeared in a remake of the classic Twilight Zone episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" in Twilight Zone: The Movie as the paranoid passenger made famous on the television show by William Shatner. In 1991, he starred in the movie Ricochet opposite Denzel Washington as Earl Talbot Blake, a criminal seeking revenge against the policeman who sent him to prison. In 1992, he starred as a man with multiple personality disorder in Brian De Palma's film Raising Cain, and in 1993, starred as the villainous Eric Qualen in the Sylvester Stallone movie Cliffhanger.

In 1987, Lithgow starred in the Bigfoot-themed family comedy Harry and the Hendersons. In 2002, he narrated Life's Greatest Miracle, a documentary about human embryonic development, while in 2004, he portrayed the moralistic, rigid father of Alfred Kinsey in that year's biopic Kinsey. In 2006, Lithgow had a small role in the Academy Award-winning film Dreamgirls, as Jerry Harris, a film producer offering Deena Jones (Beyoncé Knowles) a film role.^[9] He starred in a lead role in the science fiction film Rise of the Planet of the Apes.^[10]

As a voice actor, Lithgow is well known for his role as the evil Lord Farquaad in the Shrek movie franchise. His appearances as Farquaad include Shrek, Shrek in the Swamp Karaoke Dance Party, Shrek 4-D which was originally Shrek 3-D and used as an amusement park attraction, and Shrek the Third. He also was in Confessions of a Shopaholic as Edgar West.

Television career[link]

In terms of his television career, Lithgow is probably most widely known for his starring role as Dick Solomon in the 1996–2001 NBC sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in the category Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in each of the program's six seasons and won three times, in 1996, 1997, and 1999. His son Ian regularly appeared alongside him as Leon, one of his physics students.

In 1986, Lithgow received a Primetime Emmy Award in the category Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series for his appearance in the episode The Doll of the Amazing Stories anthology series.

Additionally, Lithgow has been nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Special for The Day After (1983), and two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special for Resting Place (1986) and My Brother's Keeper (1995). Lithgow was approached about playing Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers, but turned it down. Lithgow starred with Jeffrey Tambor in the NBC sitcom Twenty Good Years.

Since 2006 he has starred in Campbell Soup Company's commercials advertising their Campbell's Select premium soup brand.

On March 5, 2009, Lithgow made a cameo on NBC's 30 Rock, in the episode "Goodbye, My Friend," with several references to his role in Harry and the Hendersons.

In September 2009, Lithgow joined the cast of Dexter as Arthur Mitchell, a serial killer and Dexter Morgan's nemesis.^[11] He won a Golden Globe Award for this role,^[12] and won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series.^[13]

He guest starred on How I Met Your Mother in the role of Barney Stinson's father, Jerry.^[14]

Children's entertainment[link]

Lithgow reading a book to children in 2007

Lithgow has done extensive work for children, including several books and albums. Some of his book titles are Marsupial Sue, Marsupial Sue Presents "The Runaway Pancake," Lithgow Party Paloozas!: 52 Unexpected Ways to Make a Birthday, Holiday, or Any Day a Celebration for Kids, Carnival of the Animals, A Lithgow Palooza: 101 Ways to Entertain and Inspire Your Kids, I'm a Manatee, Micawber, The Remarkable Farkle McBride, Mahalia Mouse Goes to College and I Got Two Dogs. He also appeared as a guest on the Canadian children's program, Ants in Your Pants.

Lithgow launched into a career as a recording artist with the 1999 album of children's music, Singin' in the Bathtub. In June 2002, Lithgow released his second children's album Farkle and Friends. It was the musical companion to his book The Remarkable Farkle McBride, which tells the story of a young musical genius. Farkle and Friends features the vocal talents of Lithgow and Bebe Neuwirth backed by the Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra. In August 2006, Lithgow released The Sunny Side of the Street, his third children's album and first with Razor & Tie. This album features versions of classic songs from The Great American Songbook including “Getting to Know You” and “Ya Gotta Have Pep,” with decidedly animated performances geared towards children. Produced by JC Hopkins (Victoria Williams, JC Hopkins Biggish Band featuring Norah Jones), the album features guest appearances by Madeleine Peyroux, Wayne Knight (Seinfeld's Newman), Broadway's Sherie Rene Scott (Aida, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) and cabaret star Maude Maggart. Lithgow also makes occasional appearances on stage and television singing children's songs and accompanying himself on guitar.

Podcasts[link]

On October 1, 2010, Lithgow appeared on Doug Benson's podcast Doug Loves Movies, along with fellow guests Paul F. Tompkins and Jimmy Pardo.

Other appearances[link]

Lithgow voiced the character of Yoda in the National Public Radio adaptations of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. He provided narration for the IMAX film Special Effects: Anything Can Happen. He hosts Paloozaville, a children's Video on Demand program on Mag Rack based on his best-selling children's books. He appeared in the most recent Campbell's SelectSoups commercials, portraying a restaurant waiter serving "customers" in their own household. He often delivers commencement addresses at American universities. Lithgow also appears in Books By You, a children's computer game, and guides them through the steps to finish a pre-designed book.^[15]

In 2005, he became the first actor ever to deliver a commencement speech at Harvard University.^[16] He was featured at Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on December 4–6, 2009 for performances of Mozart's Requiem with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He narrated some letters written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, some poems, and sections from the Book of Revelation in certain parts of the performance.^[17]

In 2011, he performed a dramatic reading of a Newt Gingrich press release on The Colbert Report^[18] and mistakenly called in to apologize on Colbert's yearly Atone Phone.^[19] He also voiced a South Carolina TV ad for Colbert Super PAC humorously attacking Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.^[20]

In September 2011, Lithgow was featured in a one-night only production of Dustin Lance Black's play, '8' — a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage — as Attorney Theodore Olson to raise money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.^[21]

Awards and nominations[link]

Lithgow has won five Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, an American Comedy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards.^[22] He has also been nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.^[22][23] He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for his appearance as Arthur Mitchell on Dexter.^[24]

Work[link]

Filmography[link]

Stage[link]

• 1973 The Changing Room (Tony Award – Best Featured Actor in a Play)
• 1974 My Fat Friend
• 1975 Trelawny of the \"Wells\" (revival)
• 1976 A Memory of Two Mondays
• 1976 Boy Meets Girl (revival)(Director) and Secret Service (revival)
• 1976 Comedians
• 1977 Anna Christie (revival)
• 1978 Once in a Lifetime (revival)
• 1979 Spokesong
• 1980 Division Street
• 1982 Beyond Therapy
• 1985 Requiem for a Heavyweight (Tony Nomination – Best Actor in a Play)
• 1986 The Front Page (revival)
• 1988 M. Butterfly (Tony Nomination – Best Actor in a Play)
• 2002 Sweet Smell of Success (Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical)
• 2003 The Retreat From Moscow
• 2005 Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (Tony Nomination – Best Actor in a Musical)
• 2007 Twelfth Night, Royal Shakespeare Company
• 2008 All My Sons
• 2010 Mr. &Mrs. Fitch, Second Stage Theatre
• 2012 The Columnist, Manhattan Theatre Club

Discography[link]

• Singin' in the Bathtub (1999, Sony Wonder)
• The Sunny Side of the Street (2006, Razor & Tie)

Bibliography[link]

• Remarkable Farkle Mcbride (2000, Simon & Schuster)
• Marsupial Sue (2001, Simon & Schuster)
• Micawber (2002, Simon & Schuster)
• I'm a Manatee (2003, Simon & Schuster)
• A Lithgow Palooza (2004, Simon & Schuster)
• Carnival of the Animals, (2004, Simon & Schuster)
• Lithgow Party Paloozas!: 52 Unexpected Ways to Make a Birthday, Holiday, or Any Day a Celebration for Kids, (2005, Simon & Schuster)
• Marsupial Sue Presents "The Runaway Pancake", (2005, Simon & Schuster)
• Mahalia Mouse Goes to College, (2007, Simon & Schuster)
• I Got Two Dogs, (2008, Simon & Schuster)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: John Lithgow

• Official website
• John Lithgow at the Internet Broadway Database
• John Lithgow at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• John Lithgow at the Internet Movie Database
• John Lithgow at the TCM Movie Database
• John Lithgow at FEARnet
• Profile of John Lithgow – Downstage Center
• American Theatre Wing – 2005 interview
• 2006 bio article on Lithgow
• Razor and Tie Artist Page
• Razor and Tie Media Page
• TonyAwards.com Interview with John Lithgow
• John Lithgow speaks at the Oxonian Society November 15, 2007
• NYPL gallery of selected stage production photographs, 1967-1988