I Think Without Writing I Would Feel

I Was Shot In The Wrist When I Was A Kid. Deliberately.

For Me, Playwriting Is And Has Always Been Like Making A Chair. Your Concerns Are Balance, Form, Timing, Lights, Space, Music. If You Don't Have These Essentials, You Might As Well Be Writing A Theoretical Essay, Not A Play.

My First Job Was With The Burns Detective Agency. They Sent Me Over To The East River To Guard Coal Barges During These God-awful Hours Like Three To Six In The Morning. It Wasn't A Very Difficult Job -- All I Had To Do Was Make A Round Every Fifteen Minutes -- But It Turned Out To Be A Great Environment For Writing. I Was Completely Alone In A Little Outhouse With An Electric Heater And A Little Desk.

People Talk About The 1960s In A Nostalgic Way, But To Me It Was Terrifying. People Were Getting Assassinated. There Was Vietnam. There Were Race Riots. It Felt Like Everything Was Going To Get Blown Up Sky-high. It Didn’t Feel Like Flower Power. It Felt Like Armageddon.

All That Stuff About My Father And My Childhood Is Interesting Up To A Certain Point, But I Kind Of Capsized With The Family Drama A Long Time Ago. Now I Want To Get Away From That. Not That I Won't Return To It, But A Certain Element Has Been Exhausted, And It Feels Like Why Regurgitate All This Stuff?