The Reputation of Tennessee Williams: Tears, Laughter, and Gasps

As the centennial year of Tennessee Williams’ birth comes to a close, I cannot help but reflect on the centennial celebrations, the festivals, and the many performances that took place across the country in 2011 to honor the playwright. For us at Hansen Publishing Group, 2011 began with a flurry of work in January on TENN AT ONE HUNDRED: THE REPUTATION OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS, edited by David Kaplan. We finished it just in time for its New York City release on February 7th at the Tennessee Williams celebration hosted by the 92nd Street Y and co-curated by David Kaplan and Thomas Keith.

In mid-February, we were editing Kenneth Holditch’s updates and revisions to Richard Freeman Leavitt’s book, THE WORLD OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS. With the devotion of a true friend, Kenneth Holditch had undertaken the task of completing the text for the deceased Leavitt who was a personal friend of Tennessee Williams. THE WORLD OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS was released on Tennessee Williams’ 100th birthday, March 26, at The Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival. To our joy, the book sold out at the festival!

Our authors were equally busy spreading the good news about Tennessee Williams. Gregg Barrios’ RANCHO PANCHO, a play about Tennessee Williams and his lover Pancho Rodriguez, was produced by Camino Real Productions in Albuquerque, New Mexico for two weeks in late July and early August as part of a Tennessee Williams celebration.  John DiLeo, our film historian, presented talks based on his book TENNESSEE WILLIAMS AND COMPANY: HIS ESSENTIAL SCREEN ACTORS at The Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival and at the Black Bear Film Festival. David Kaplan, author of TENNESSEE WILLIAMS IN PROVINCETOWN and editor of TENN AT ONE HUNDRED: THE REPUTATION OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS, was the co-curator at the 92nd Street Y’s Tennessee Williams celebration and curator for the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theatre Festival for the sixth straight year. David Kaplan also did an extensive interview on National Public Radio about Tennessee Williams and his reputation. Kenneth Holditch, co-author of THE WORLD OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS, presented at The Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival and at the Annual Mississippi Delta Tennessee Williams Festival. Joseph M. Paprzycki, the author of the play LAST RITES, and his South Camden Theatre Company devoted their entire 2011-2012 season, “Tenn Times Ten,” to plays by and about Tennessee Williams.

With the centennial year closing, with the festivals and celebrations behind us, with the high school, community, college and professional productions winding down, I have been wondering if our Tennessee Williams titles have brought attention to Tennessee Williams’ work or raised people’s awareness about Tennessee Williams’ life.  My musing ceased when I recently received an email from David Kaplan with just a link, a link to a review about a production of “Period of Adjustment” at the San Francisco Playhouse.

The review, entitled “SF Playhouse’s ‘Period of Adjustment’ A Rare Treat for Tennessee Williams Fans”  by Charles Kruger, opens with this paragraph:

Tennessee Williams best work is, of course, universally celebrated as among the greatest accomplishments of 20th century dramatic literature. Still, for a writer of such Olympian reputation, he is often disrespected. In the publishers blurb for a recent collection of essays (“Tenn At One Hundred: The Reputation of Tennessee Williams”, edited by David Kaplan), an anonymous publicist notes that “at the time of his death in 1983, he was the most produced playwright in the country and one of the most ridiculed American writers.”

After reading that paragraph, I knew that we had reached someone, someone who was reaching others. As a publisher, this was my greatest reward to know that one of our books was touching others and provoking thought. As to the reputation of Tennessee Williams, I’ll leave that to the words of David Kaplan from his “Introduction” to TENN AT ONE HUNDRED: THE REPUTATION OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS:

As with all writers one hundred years after their birth, and for hundreds of years to come, Williams’ reputation will spring from his words. That he will have any reputation hundreds of years from now is certainly no fact, but it is my belief. That belief refreshes itself when I witness over and over again what Williams’ words do when spoken and heard: they move people to tears and to laughter and to gasps of recognition.