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Posted May. 3, 2007, 8:00 a.m. ET
Happy Birthday William Inge!
By Dennis Dermody
Today is the birthday of the late, great, American playwright William Inge, born in Independence, Kansas in 1913, who rose to fame with searing 1950s dramas such as Come Back Little Sheba, Bus Stop, The Dark At The Top Of The Stairs, the wonderful original screenplay to Splendor In The Grass and my personal favorite Picnic.
Picnic also has the sexiest, most romantic dance in movie history between Kim Novak and William Holden, which I included here. Inge was a truly unhappy man who took his own life in 1973, and his portraits of lonely frustrated spinsters and sexually panicked youth seem rather dated now. But there are moments of poetry and genius in his writing that glow as brightly as the colored lanterns in this sublime scene from the 1965 film version of Picnic.
Comments
Has there ever been a more depressing playwright? he was a genius but oh those 1950s dramas were bleek!!! And Kim Novak is such a knockout!
Posted at 10:44 a.m. ET on May 03, 2007 by mr mickey
I love PICNIC....despite how ridiculous it seems as well....
Posted at 8:16 p.m. ET on May 03, 2007 by randy focazio
How strange that I should look up William Inge today of all days! I loved his work and with such talent one wonders why the unhappiness in his life?
You made a lot of people happy and hopefully, somewhere, you will have a happy birthday.
Cheers
Michel
Posted at 11:16 a.m. ET on Jun 21, 2007 by Michel (UK)
William Inge did more than write, he was able to capture the era. Today, many say the Inge movies are dated, but that's the very reason why they are watched.
(I agree totally! Dennis Dermody)
Posted at 1:06 p.m. ET on Nov 21, 2007 by Steve
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