"Elaine May might be the least sentimental woman storyteller since Flannery O'Connor in her stark refusal to sweeten the pill. If her relentless realism evokes the epic sweep of Erich von Stroheim's Greed, her narrative still manages to cram a lifetime of troubled friendship, rivalry, money, and pain into the vicissitudes of a single night." --Jonathan Rosenbaum on Mikey and Nicky
Elaine May (born 1932)--highly regarded as a comedian, screenwriter, playwright, and actress--had a more tempestuous ride as a film director. She was the first female director since Ida Lupino to secure a Hollywood deal with her debut feature, the black screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971), which she followed up the next year with the bitter satire The Heartbreak Kid (1972). May then faced challenges with the studio executives on her next two films: the edgy and masterful Mikey and Nicky (1976) and Ishtar (1987), infamous for its production cost overruns, studio sabotage, and failed initial release. In recent years, May's contributions as a screenwriter and director have been reevaluated and celebrated.
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Elaine May (born 1932)--highly regarded as a comedian, screenwriter, playwright, and actress--had a more tempestuous ride as a film director. She was the first female director since Ida Lupino to secure a Hollywood deal with her debut feature, the black screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971), which she followed up the next year with the bitter satire The Heartbreak Kid (1972). May then faced challenges with the studio executives on her next two films: the edgy and masterful Mikey and Nicky (1976) and Ishtar (1987), infamous for its production cost overruns, studio sabotage, and failed initial release. In recent years, May's contributions as a screenwriter and director have been reevaluated and celebrated.
"Elaine May might be the least sentimental woman storyteller since Flannery O'Connor in her stark refusal to sweeten the pill. If her relentless realism evokes the epic sweep of Erich von Stroheim's Greed, her narrative still manages to cram a lifetime of troubled friendship, rivalry, money, and pain into the vicissitudes of a single night." --Jonathan Rosenbaum on Mikey and Nicky
Elaine May (born 1932)--highly regarded as a comedian, screenwriter, playwright, and actress--had a more tempestuous ride as a film director. She was the first female director since Ida Lupino to secure a Hollywood deal with her debut feature, the black screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971), which she followed up the next year with the bitter satire The Heartbreak Kid (1972). May then faced challenges with the studio executives on her next two films: the edgy and masterful Mikey and Nicky (1976) and Ishtar (1987), infamous for its production cost overruns, studio sabotage, and failed initial release. In recent years, May's contributions as a screenwriter and director have been reevaluated and celebrated.
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Elaine May (born 1932)--highly regarded as a comedian, screenwriter, playwright, and actress--had a more tempestuous ride as a film director. She was the first female director since Ida Lupino to secure a Hollywood deal with her debut feature, the black screwball comedy A New Leaf (1971), which she followed up the next year with the bitter satire The Heartbreak Kid (1972). May then faced challenges with the studio executives on her next two films: the edgy and masterful Mikey and Nicky (1976) and Ishtar (1987), infamous for its production cost overruns, studio sabotage, and failed initial release. In recent years, May's contributions as a screenwriter and director have been reevaluated and celebrated.
show less
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2155 Center Street, Berkeley, CA 94720
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