Tony Kushner

Tony Kushner - Hollywood and Socialism - The Laura Flanders Show 2

Tony Kushner (born July 16, 1956) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is best known for his play Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes, which earned him the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1993 and the Tony Award for Best Play in 1993 and 1994. Kushner has also received acclaim for his work in film, including his collaboration with director Steven Spielberg.

Early Life and Education

Tony Kushner was born in Manhattan, New York City, to William Kushner and Sylvia Deutscher. He was raised in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where his father was a clarinetist and conductor, and his mother was a bassoonist. Kushner attended Columbia University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Medieval Studies in 1978. He later studied at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts, earning a Master of Fine Arts in directing in 1984.

Career

Theatre

Kushner's early works include A Bright Room Called Day (1985), which explores the rise of Nazism in Germany and its parallels to the Reagan administration in the United States. However, it was Angels in America that brought him widespread recognition. The play is a complex, multi-layered examination of AIDS and homosexuality in America during the 1980s. It consists of two parts: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika. The play has been adapted into an HBO miniseries and has been revived multiple times on Broadway and in London's West End.

Other notable works by Kushner include Homebody/Kabul (2001), which deals with the Afghanistan conflict, and Caroline, or Change (2003), a musical set during the Civil Rights Movement.

Film

Kushner has also made significant contributions to film. He wrote the screenplay for Munich (2005), directed by Steven Spielberg, which examines the aftermath of the 1972 Munich massacre. He also collaborated with Spielberg on the screenplay for Lincoln (2012), a biographical drama about Abraham Lincoln's efforts to pass the Thirteenth Amendment.

Personal Life

Kushner is openly gay and has been an advocate for LGBT rights. He married journalist Mark Harris in 2003. The couple resides in New York City.

Awards and Honors

Kushner has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including:

• Pulitzer Prize for Drama (1993)
• Tony Award for Best Play (1993, 1994)
• Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie, or a Dramatic Special (2004)
• National Medal of Arts (2013)

Selected Works

• A Bright Room Called Day (1985)
• Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes (1991)
• Slavs! (1994)
• Homebody/Kabul (2001)
• Caroline, or Change (2003)
• The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures (2009)

See Also

• List of American playwrights
• LGBT culture in New York City
• Steven Spielberg