Literary Branch
CURRENT EVENTS
A Conversation with Peter Fox and Sami Zahringer
Saturday, May 6th
4:30 p.m.
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Rounding out the Peter Fox theme (his art is displayed in the Showcases and his play, Disappearing Act, is featured in the theatre this month) will be “A Conversation With Peter Fox and Sami Zahringer “on May 6, at 4:30 p.m.
Do you know how to make a Ramos Gin Fizz? No? Neither did Peter Fox. It’s a complicated cocktail to put together, with a long list of ingredients. And you’ll need a shaker. But back in the mid ‘70s, young Fox had wangled himself a job tending bar at Mr. Chow’s in Beverly Hills, and a customer had ordered a Ramos Gin Fizz. So, Fox pulled out his trusty copy of the “Mr. Boston Official Bartenders Guide” and went to work. And the rest is history. That Ramos Ginn Fizz order led directly to Peter’s long career in show business – as an actor, a theater artistic director, a stage and short-film director, a published playwright, and a visual artist. Among the plays he’s written is “Disappearing Act,” a revival of which he is directing at the Art Center this spring. On May 6, he will sit down in the Art Center Main Gallery for a conversation with the inimitable Sami Zahringer, satirical columnist for The Ojai Quarterly. They will chat about his life and career, and more specifically about “Disappearing Act,” which opens May 5. Want to hear how Peter turned a well-made Ramos Gin Fizz into a career that involved canoodling on screen with Michelle Pfeiffer; recurring roles on “The Waltons” and “Knots Landing;” guest appearances on such classic shows as “Hill Street Blues” and “Murder She Wrote;” writing a hit play; and mounting an art exhibit with Carlos Grasso at the Ventura Museum? Then join us at the Art Center on May 6 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. for this Literary Branch event. Then go out and have dinner, and later return to the Art Center to catch that evening’s performance of “Disappearing Act.” Admission to the Literary Branch event: A $5 suggested donation. For more info., contact Mark Lewis. |
PAST EVENTS
ATTICA 50 Years Later
Video credit: Stephen Adams
Fifty years ago the deadliest prison riot in U.S. history erupted at the Attica Correctional Facility near Buffalo, N.Y. Longtime Ojai attorney Len Klaif began his career by representing one of the inmates charged in connection with the inmate uprising, which claimed the lives of 43 people. (Most of the victims were shot by state police and Attica guards when they retook the prison.) Klaif will join Literary Branch chair Mark Lewis to discuss the uprising, the court proceedings that followed, and prison conditions and racial justice.
When the Attica uprising took place in September 1971, Klaif was just starting his senior year of law school at the University of Iowa. After getting his degree, he returned to Buffalo, where he had lived while an undergraduate, and was sworn in as a member of the New York Bar. The next day he was appointed to represent one of the inmates charged in the uprising. Over the next three years, Klaif spent countless hours working with the Attica Defense team, until Governor Hugh Carey granted pardons to those charged, ending the prosecutions. Klaif and Lewis also will discuss some of the books that have been written about Attica, including “A Time to Die” by Tom Wicker. See video above for full interview.
When the Attica uprising took place in September 1971, Klaif was just starting his senior year of law school at the University of Iowa. After getting his degree, he returned to Buffalo, where he had lived while an undergraduate, and was sworn in as a member of the New York Bar. The next day he was appointed to represent one of the inmates charged in the uprising. Over the next three years, Klaif spent countless hours working with the Attica Defense team, until Governor Hugh Carey granted pardons to those charged, ending the prosecutions. Klaif and Lewis also will discuss some of the books that have been written about Attica, including “A Time to Die” by Tom Wicker. See video above for full interview.
