Date of Death: July 27, 2017 (73)
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Celebrated playwright, actor and novelist Sam Shepard, passed away on Thursday, July 27, 2017 at age 73.
Shepard is the author of forty-four plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs. Shepard received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of pilot Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff (1983).
Shepard received the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award as a master American dramatist in 2009. New York described him as "the greatest American playwright of his generation."
His many plays include: Cowboys, The Rock Garden, Chicago, Icarus's Mother, 4-H Club, Red Cross, La Turista, Cowboys #2, Forensic & the Navigators, The Unseen Hand, Oh! Calcutta! (contributed sketches), The Holy Ghostly, Operation Sidewinder, Mad Dog Blues, Back Bog Beast Bait, Cowboy Mouth, The Tooth of Crime, Geography of a Horse Dreamer, Action, Angel City, Suicide in B Flat, Inacoma, Curse of the Starving Class, Buried Child, Tongues, True West, Savage/Love, Fool for Love, A Lie of the Mind, A Short Life of Trouble, Baby Boom, States of Shock, Simpatico, Tooth of Crime, Eyes for Consuela, The Late Henry Moss, The God of Hell, Kicking a Dead Horse, Ages of the Moon, Heartless and A Particle of Dread.
Shepard's plays are chiefly known for their bleak, poetic, often surrealist elements, black humor and rootless characters living on the outskirts of American society. His style has evolved over the years, from the absurdism of his early Off-Off-Broadway work to the realism of Buried Child and Curse of the Starving Class (both 1978).
Shepard began his acting career in earnest when he was cast as the handsome land baron in Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven (1978), opposite Richard Gere and Brooke Adams. This led to other important film roles, including that of Cal, Ellen Burstyn's love interest, in the film "Resurrection" (1980), and most notably his portrayal of Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff (1983). The latter performance earned Shepard an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. By 1986, his play Fool for Love was getting a film adaptation directed by Robert Altman, in which Shepard played the lead role; his play A Lie of the Mind was being performed Off-Broadway with an all-star cast (including Harvey Keitel and Geraldine Page); and Shepard was subsequently working steadily as a film actor - all of these achievements put him on the cover of Newsweek.
Throughout the years, Shepard has done a considerable amount of teaching on writing plays and other aspects of theatre. His classes and seminars have occurred at various theatre workshops, festivals, and universities. Shepard was elected to The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1986. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1986.
His screenwriting credits include Zabriskie Point; Paris, Texas; and Fool for Love; he wrote and directed the films Far North and Silent Tongue. His first novel “The One Inside” was published in February of 2017.
Mr. Shepard appeared in numerous films, including The Right Stuff (Academy Award nomination, Best Actor in a Supporting Role), Fool for Love, Crimes of the Heart, Baby Boom, Steel Magnolias, Bright Angel, The Notebook, Black Hawk Down, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Brothers, Safe House, and August: Osage County among many others. In 1999 he received Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominations for his performance in the TV movie “Dash and Lilly.” Most recently Mr. Shepard appeared in The Netflix original series “Bloodline.”
[1969]Me and My Brother writer
[1970]Zabriskie Point writer
[1978]Days of Heaven The Farmer
[1980]Resurrection Cal
[1981]Raggedy Man Bailey
[1982]Frances Harry York
[1983]The Right Stuff Chuck Yeager
[1984]Paris, Texas writer
[1984]Country Gil Ivy
[1985]Fool for Love Eddie, May's half-brother
[1986]Crimes of the Heart Doc Porter
[1987]Baby Boom Dr. Jeff Cooper
[1988]Far North writer
[1989]Steel Magnolias Spud Jones
[1990]Bright Angel Jack
[1991]Voyager Walter Faber
[1991]Defenseless Det. Beutel
[1992]Thunderheart Frank Coutelle
[1993]Silent Tongue writer
[1993]The Pelican Brief Thom Callahan
[1994]Safe Passage Patrick
[1997]The Only Thrill Reece McHenry
[1998]It All Came True Will Dodge
[1999]Snow Falling on Cedars Arthur Chambers
[1999]Simpatico writer
[2000]All the Pretty Horses J.C. Franklin
[2000]Hamlet Ghost
[2001]Swordfish Senator Reisman
[2001]The Pledge Eric Pollack
[2001]Black Hawk Down Garrison
[2002]Leo Vic
[2003]Blind Horizon Sheriff Jack Kolb
[2004]The Notebook Frank Calhoun
[2005]Stealth Captain George Cummings
[2005]The Return Ed Mills
[2005]Don't Come Knocking Howard Spence
[2006]Bandidas Bill Buck
[2006]Walker Payne Syrus
[2006]Charlotte's Web The Narrator
[2007]The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford Frank James
[2008]Felon Gordon
[2008]The Accidental Husband Wilder
[2009]Brothers Hank Cahill
[2010]Fair Game Sam Plame
[2010]Inhale James Harrison
[2011]Blackthorn James
[2012]Darling Companion Sheriff Morris
[2012]Mud Tom
[2012]Killing Them Softly Dillon
[2012]Safe House Harlan Whitford
[2013]August: Osage County Beverly Weston
[2013]Out of the Furnace GeraldRedBaze
[2013]Savannah Mr. Stubbs
[2014]Cold in July Russel
[2015]Ithaca Willie Grogan
[2016]Midnight Special Calvin Meyer
[2016]In Dubious Battle Mr. Anderson
[2017]Never Here Paul Stark
Bloodline Robert Rayburn
Sam Shepard, True West
Sam Shepard, Buried Child
Sam Shepard, A Lie of the Mind
Sam Shepard, Fool for Love
Sam Shepard, True West
Sam Shepard, True West
Sam Shepard, Buried Child
Sam Shepard Forensic and the Navigator
Sam Shepard, La Turista
Sam ShepardChicago
Sam ShepardIcarus's Mother
Sam ShepardRed Cross
Sam Shepard has written 6 shows including Operation Sidewinder (Playwright), Buried Child (Playwright), True West (Playwright), Ages Of The Moon (Playwright), Heartless (Playwright), A Particle of Dread (Oedipus Variations) (Writer).
Best Play (Tony Awards) for True West , Best Play (Tony Awards) for Buried Child , Best Play (New York Drama Critics Circle Awards) for A Lie of the Mind , The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for Fool for Love , Outstanding Play (Drama Desk Awards) for True West , The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for True West , The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for Buried Child , Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Forensic and the Navigator , Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for La Turista , Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Chicago Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Icarus's Mother and Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Red Cross .
Best Play (New York Drama Critics Circle Awards) for A Lie of the Mind, The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for Buried Child, Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Forensic and the Navigator, Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for La Turista, Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Chicago Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Icarus's Motherand Distinguished Plays (Obie Awards) for Red Cross.
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