Robert L. Freedman
Encyclopedia
Robert L. Freedman is an American screenwriter
, playwright
, and lyricist
. He is probably best known for his teleplay
s for Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (1997) and the acclaimed 2001 miniseries Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
, for which he was nominated for Emmy Award
s as both writer and producer.
in Harbor City, California, to parents Eric and Shirley Freedman. Together with Robert's older sister Karla Freedman (later Bagley), they lived in Gardena, California
. Shirley was a legal secretary, while Eric owned and operated his own business, EEF Electric, which remained in Gardena in 1969 when the family moved to Cypress, California
(in Orange County). Robert's Bar Mitzvah took place the following year at Temple Beth Emet in Anaheim.
Robert attended Purche Avenue Elementary School, Pine Junior High School, and Los Alamitos High School
, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper. However, during his high school years Robert's real passion was for USY (United Synagogue Youth)
. He studied at Hebrew High School and was active in USY at his home chapter of Temple Beth Emet. Through USY, Robert spent 8 weeks in Israel
during the summer of 1973, when he was 16 years old. In 1974, Robert was elected President of the Far West region of USY, which includes congregations in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Hawaii, and Utah.
as an English major, but quickly switched to Theatre. During his time at UCLA, Robert continued to be involved with USY as the Youth Director at Temple Ner Tamid, where he directed his students in his own original musicals Laban's Lingerie and Follow Me Anywhere. Robert also had several one-act plays produced at UCLA during this period, including Backstage Brouhaha, Banana Split, Hello Gorgeous, and Peel Me An Onion.
Robert moved to New York City
in 1980 and began to pursue a Master of Fine Arts
in Dramatic Writing at New York University
's Tisch School of the Arts
. In 1981, Robert decided to pursue a second MFA at NYU. He became part of the inaugural class of NYU's prestigious graduate Musical Theatre Writing program, taught by such legendary talents as Jule Styne
, Leonard Bernstein
, Arthur Laurents
, Betty Comden
and Adolph Green
. His classmates included future collaborators John Bayless and Steven Lutvak.
. They were married before family and friends on July 3, 1983, in Pasadena, California
. Five years later, Jean gave birth to their son Max. The three of them lived on Manhattan's Upper West Side
until 1991, when the family made the difficult decision to relocate to Los Angeles
in order to further Robert's burgeoning career in television. They settled in the San Fernando Valley
, where they remain to this day.
, scripting The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana with Selma Thompson, who would become Robert's writing partner for the next several years. Together, Robert and Selma went on to write produced teleplays for Taken Away (1989), starring Valerie Bertinelli
, Locked Up: A Mother's Rage (1991), and Woman with a Past (1992).
Robert was hand-picked by Jule Styne, his former teacher at NYU, to write the script for Broadway Sings the Music of Jule Styne, a 1987 musical-variety special for Great Performances on PBS
which was directed by Joe Layton
and featured performances by Carol Channing
, Chita Rivera
, Patti Austin
, Melissa Manchester
, Donna McKechnie
and Ann Reinking
, Linda Lavin
, Maurice Hines
, Phyllis Newman
, Hal Linden
, Vic Damone
and Diahann Carroll, as well as appearances by several of Styne's past collaborators: Sammy Cahn
, Arthur Laurents
, Betty Comden
and Adolph Green
.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1991, one of Robert's first scripts to hit the small screen was an episode of the HBO series "Lifestories: Families in Crisis." The episode entitled A Deadly Secret: The Robert Bierer Story starred Wil Wheaton
and earned Robert the 1993 Writers Guild of America Award
for Outstanding Television Children's Show.
Robert has adapted two books by true-crime novelist Jerry Bledsoe
for television: Honor Thy Mother (1992) and Bitter Blood, also known as In the Best of Families: Marriage, Pride & Madness (1994), which starred Kelly McGillis
, Harry Hamlin
, and Keith Carradine
. Robert's script for the critically acclaimed What Love Sees (1996) was based on the book by Susan Vreeland and interviews with the real-life Holly family. Gordon and Jean Holly were portrayed in the film by Richard Thomas
and Annabeth Gish
.
television event Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, produced for the Wonderful World of Disney, which reached an estimated audience of 60 million before going on to success on video and DVD. Originally developed in 1993 for Whitney Houston
to star as the title character, Houston ultimately chose to step into the role of the Fairy Godmother, with Brandy
as Cinderella. Robert's script was adapted from the 1957 original with songs by Richard Rodgers
and Oscar Hammerstein II
, which starred Julie Andrews
as Cinderella and was the highest-rated television special of its time. The 1997 version, directed by Robert Iscove
and choreographed by Rob Marshall
, was notable for its multi-racial cast, which included Bernadette Peters
, Victor Garber
, Whoopi Goldberg
, and Paolo Montalban
as the Prince.
Robert was responsible for interpolating three new songs into the story: "Falling In Love With Love
," a song by Rodgers and Lorenz Hart
, Rodgers' own "The Sweetest Sounds," and an obscure Rodgers & Hammerstein song called "There's Music In You." Robert also created the character of Lionel (played by Jason Alexander
) and wrote selected additional lyrics for the song "The Prince is Giving a Ball."
. Both films were critically acclaimed and featured on the cover of leading LGBT
magazine The Advocate
.
Produced by Barbra Streisand
, Cis Corman, Whoopi Goldberg
, and Storyline Entertainment, and directed by Maggie Greenwald
, What Makes a Family tells the true story of a devoted lesbian couple, played by Brooke Shields
and Cherry Jones
, who decide to have a baby. When the little girl is five, her natural mother (Jones) dies of lupus
and the girl's grandparents try to win custody, against the wishes of the surviving partner (Shields) who desperately wants to keep her daughter. The state of Florida
did not allow gay adoption at the time, and still doesn't to this day, in spite of this landmark case. What Makes a Family won a GLAAD Award for best television movie of the year, and Robert's script was a finalist for the Humanitas Prize
.
The ABC mini-series Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
was the top-rated movie of the 2000-2001 television season, and was the winner of five Emmy Awards, the Television Critics Association Award, and the Broadcast Critics Award; it was nominated for the Golden Globe and appeared on several Top 10 Lists, including The New York Times
. Robert was nominated for an Emmy and a Writers Guild Award for his script, which he adapted from the memoir Me and My Shadows
by Lorna Luft
, as well as a mountain of research about the life and career of legendary entertainer Judy Garland
. Director Robert Allan Ackerman and actor Victor Garber
were also Emmy-nominated, and Emmys were won by stars Judy Davis
and Tammy Blanchard
, among others.
Most recently, Robert wrote the teleplay for the Lifetime Television
Original Movie Murder in the Hamptons
, which was the highest rated basic cable movie of 2005. The true tale of the murder of multi-millionaire investment banker Ted Ammon
(played by David Sutcliffe
) in October 2001, the story follows the bitter divorce between Ammon and his wife Generosa
(Poppy Montgomery
) and her relationship with contractor Danny Pelosi (Shawn Christian
), who was convicted of Ammon's murder in December 2004.
In a 2009 interview, singer Connie Francis
revealed that she had contacted Freedman to write her life story after being impressed with his work writing "Life with Judy Garland". Freedman was said to have been delighted at the prospect but ultimately wasn't hired as writer as Francis' co-producer, singer Gloria Estefan
, was interested in other writers for the project.
's "The Prince and the Pauper
", Grand Duchy is a 30's-style screwball comedy
that tells the story of a Princess and a Rebel who switch places and turn everything upside down in the tiniest country in Europe. In March 1984, a staged reading of Grand Duchy was performed at Playwrights Horizons
, directed by Michael Leeds. Two years later, New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse
produced a staged reading directed by Phillip Wm. McKinley. In August 2000, another staged reading was produced at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank, California, directed by Jules Aaron, and was equally well-received. In November 2003, Grand Duchy received its world premiere production, directed by Clark Sayre (who appeared in the 1984 reading at Playwrights Horizons) at Dos Pueblos High School
near Santa Barbara, California. In its various incarnations, Grand Duchy has featured such actors as Lonny Price
, Diane Fratantoni, Stephen Bogardus
, Robert Mandan
, and Marian Mercer
.
(Hello, Dolly!, Mame, La Cage Aux Folles) asked Robert to write the book for his new musical, Miss Spectacular
. The show was to be produced by developer Steve Wynn
at one of his Las Vegas
hotels, but the project never came to fruition.
. The show is set during the Great Depression
and centers on the comic chicanery, media manipulation
, and outrageous shenanigans surrounding Upton Sinclair
's race for Governor of California
in 1934. The musical has been presented in several staged readings, under the auspices of the Beverly Hills Musical Theatre Guild (2006), the New York Musical Theatre Festival
(2005), the Chicago Humanities Festival
(2004), and the American Musical Theatre of San Jose (2003–04), which originally commissioned the work. Casts of these readings have included John Rubinstein
, Michael Rupert
, Kaitlin Hopkins
, Jean Louisa Kelly
, Sally Mayes
, and Josh Radnor
.
From 2002-2005, Robert returned to academia at the University of Southern California
, teaching Screenwriting in the School of Cinema-Television's
Graduate Writing Program and the Peter Stark Producing Program.
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, and lyricist
Lyricist
A lyricist is a songwriter who specializes in lyrics. A singer who writes the lyrics to songs is a singer-lyricist. This differentiates from a singer-composer, who composes the song's melody.-Collaboration:...
. He is probably best known for his teleplay
Teleplay
A teleplay is a television play, a comedy or drama written or adapted for television. The term surfaced during the 1950s with wide usage to distinguish a television plays from stage plays for the theater and screenplays written for films...
s for Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (1997) and the acclaimed 2001 miniseries Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,...
, for which he was nominated for Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s as both writer and producer.
Early years
Robert Levi Freedman was born July 27, 1957 at Kaiser PermanenteKaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium, based in Oakland, California, United States, founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield...
in Harbor City, California, to parents Eric and Shirley Freedman. Together with Robert's older sister Karla Freedman (later Bagley), they lived in Gardena, California
Gardena, California
Gardena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 58,829 at the 2010 census, up from 57,746 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Gardena is located at ....
. Shirley was a legal secretary, while Eric owned and operated his own business, EEF Electric, which remained in Gardena in 1969 when the family moved to Cypress, California
Cypress, California
Cypress is a suburban city located in the northern region of Orange County within Southern California. Its population was 47,802 at the 2010 census.-History:...
(in Orange County). Robert's Bar Mitzvah took place the following year at Temple Beth Emet in Anaheim.
Robert attended Purche Avenue Elementary School, Pine Junior High School, and Los Alamitos High School
Los Alamitos High School
Los Alamitos High School is a public school for grades 9 to 12 located in Los Alamitos, California, and also serving the city of Seal Beach and the community of Rossmoor. It is the only traditional high school in the Los Alamitos Unified School District; the far smaller Laurel High School serves...
, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper. However, during his high school years Robert's real passion was for USY (United Synagogue Youth)
United Synagogue Youth
United Synagogue Youth is the youth movement of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. USY operates in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The goal of the movement is to bring Jewish teenagers closer to Judaism and Israel through learning and social interaction...
. He studied at Hebrew High School and was active in USY at his home chapter of Temple Beth Emet. Through USY, Robert spent 8 weeks in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
during the summer of 1973, when he was 16 years old. In 1974, Robert was elected President of the Far West region of USY, which includes congregations in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Hawaii, and Utah.
Higher education
In the spring of 1975, Robert enrolled at the University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
as an English major, but quickly switched to Theatre. During his time at UCLA, Robert continued to be involved with USY as the Youth Director at Temple Ner Tamid, where he directed his students in his own original musicals Laban's Lingerie and Follow Me Anywhere. Robert also had several one-act plays produced at UCLA during this period, including Backstage Brouhaha, Banana Split, Hello Gorgeous, and Peel Me An Onion.
Robert moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1980 and began to pursue a Master of Fine Arts
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in Dramatic Writing at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
. In 1981, Robert decided to pursue a second MFA at NYU. He became part of the inaugural class of NYU's prestigious graduate Musical Theatre Writing program, taught by such legendary talents as Jule Styne
Jule Styne
Jule Styne was a British-born American songwriter especially famous for a series of Broadway musicals, which included several very well known and frequently revived shows.-Early life:...
, Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, Arthur Laurents
Arthur Laurents
Arthur Laurents was an American playwright, stage director and screenwriter.After writing scripts for radio shows after college and then training films for the U.S...
, Betty Comden
Betty Comden
Betty Comden was one-half of the musical-comedy duo Comden and Green, who provided lyrics, libretti, and screenplays to some of the most beloved and successful Hollywood musicals and Broadway shows of the mid-20th century...
and Adolph Green
Adolph Green
Adolph Green was an American lyricist and playwright who, with long-time collaborator Betty Comden, penned the screenplays and songs for some of the most beloved movie musicals, particularly as part of Arthur Freed's production unit at MGM, during the genre's heyday...
. His classmates included future collaborators John Bayless and Steven Lutvak.
Marriage & family life
On September 4, 1982, Robert proposed to singer-actress Jean Kauffman at the top of the Empire State BuildingEmpire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
. They were married before family and friends on July 3, 1983, in Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
. Five years later, Jean gave birth to their son Max. The three of them lived on Manhattan's Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
until 1991, when the family made the difficult decision to relocate to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in order to further Robert's burgeoning career in television. They settled in the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
, where they remain to this day.
Early career
In 1982, while still a student at NYU, Robert received his first writing job for television from producer Linda YellenLinda Yellen
Linda Yellen is an American director, producer and writer of film and television.As a producer some of her credits include Playing for Time , The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana and Second Serve .Some of her credits as a director include Northern Lights , The Simian Line , William & Catherine:...
, scripting The Royal Romance of Charles and Diana with Selma Thompson, who would become Robert's writing partner for the next several years. Together, Robert and Selma went on to write produced teleplays for Taken Away (1989), starring Valerie Bertinelli
Valerie Bertinelli
Valerie Anne Bertinelli is an American actress, best known for her roles as Barbara Cooper Royer on the television series One Day at a Time , Gloria on the television series Touched by an Angel and Melanie Moretti on the sitcom Hot in Cleveland .- Early years :Bertinelli was born in Wilmington,...
, Locked Up: A Mother's Rage (1991), and Woman with a Past (1992).
Robert was hand-picked by Jule Styne, his former teacher at NYU, to write the script for Broadway Sings the Music of Jule Styne, a 1987 musical-variety special for Great Performances on PBS
Great Performances
Great Performances, a television series devoted to the performing arts, has been telecast on Public Broadcasting Service public television since 1972...
which was directed by Joe Layton
Joe Layton
Joe Layton was an American director and choreographer known primarily for his work on Broadway.-Biography:Born Joseph Lichtman in Brooklyn, New York, Layton began his career as a dancer in Wonderful Town , and he appeared uncredited in the ensemble of the original live TV production of Rodgers and...
and featured performances by Carol Channing
Carol Channing
Carol Elaine Channing is an American singer, actress, and comedienne. She is the recipient of three Tony Awards , a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination...
, Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award...
, Patti Austin
Patti Austin
-Life and career:Austin was born in Harlem, New York. She made her debut at the Apollo Theater at age four and had a contract with RCA Records when she was only five. Quincy Jones and Dinah Washington have proclaimed themselves as her godparents....
, Melissa Manchester
Melissa Manchester
Melissa Manchester is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Beginning in the 1970s, she has recorded generally in the adult contemporary genre. She has also appeared as an actress on television, in films, and on stage....
, Donna McKechnie
Donna McKechnie
Donna McKechnie is an American musical theater dancer, singer, actress, and choreographer. She is known for her professional and personal relationship with choreographer Michael Bennett, with whom she collaborated on her most noted role, "Cassie" from the musical A Chorus Line, for which she...
and Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking is an American actress, dancer, and choreographer. She has worked extensively in musical theatre, both as a dancer and choreographer, as well as appearing in film.-Biography:...
, Linda Lavin
Linda Lavin
Linda Lavin is an American singer and actress. She is best known for playing the title character in the sitcom Alice and for her Broadway performances.After acting as a child, Lavin joined the Compass Players in the late 1950s...
, Maurice Hines
Maurice Hines
Maurice Hines is an American actor, director, jazz singer and choreographer.Born in New York City, Hines began his career at the age of five, studying tap dance at the Henry LeTang Dance Studio in Manhattan. LeTang recognized his talent and began choreographing numbers specifically for him and his...
, Phyllis Newman
Phyllis Newman
Phyllis Newman is an American actress and singer. She was nominated twice for the Drama Desk Award and won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.-Early life:...
, Hal Linden
Hal Linden
Hal Linden is an American stage and television actor and television director, best known for his role in the television comedy series Barney Miller and as presenter on the ABC educational series Animals, Animals, Animals....
, Vic Damone
Vic Damone
Vic Damone is an American singer and entertainer.- Early life :Damone was born Vito Rocco Farinola in Brooklyn, New York to French-Italian immigrants based in Bari, Italy—Rocco and Mamie Farinola. His father was an electrician; and his mother taught piano. His cousin was the actress and singer...
and Diahann Carroll, as well as appearances by several of Styne's past collaborators: Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn was an American lyricist, songwriter and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area...
, Arthur Laurents
Arthur Laurents
Arthur Laurents was an American playwright, stage director and screenwriter.After writing scripts for radio shows after college and then training films for the U.S...
, Betty Comden
Betty Comden
Betty Comden was one-half of the musical-comedy duo Comden and Green, who provided lyrics, libretti, and screenplays to some of the most beloved and successful Hollywood musicals and Broadway shows of the mid-20th century...
and Adolph Green
Adolph Green
Adolph Green was an American lyricist and playwright who, with long-time collaborator Betty Comden, penned the screenplays and songs for some of the most beloved movie musicals, particularly as part of Arthur Freed's production unit at MGM, during the genre's heyday...
.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1991, one of Robert's first scripts to hit the small screen was an episode of the HBO series "Lifestories: Families in Crisis." The episode entitled A Deadly Secret: The Robert Bierer Story starred Wil Wheaton
Wil Wheaton
Richard William "Wil" Wheaton III is an American actor and writer. As an actor, he is best known for his portrayals of Wesley Crusher on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, Gordie Lachance in the film Stand by Me and Joey Trotta in Toy Soldiers...
and earned Robert the 1993 Writers Guild of America Award
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
for Outstanding Television Children's Show.
Robert has adapted two books by true-crime novelist Jerry Bledsoe
Jerry Bledsoe
Jerry Bledsoe is an American author and journalist known for several true crime titles based on murders in his native state of North Carolina....
for television: Honor Thy Mother (1992) and Bitter Blood, also known as In the Best of Families: Marriage, Pride & Madness (1994), which starred Kelly McGillis
Kelly McGillis
Kelly Ann McGillis is an American actress. Her films include Top Gun, The Accused, and Witness, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination.-Career:...
, Harry Hamlin
Harry Hamlin
Harry Robinson Hamlin is an American film and television actor, known for his role as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film Clash of the Titans, and as Michael Kuzak in the legal drama series L.A...
, and Keith Carradine
Keith Carradine
Keith Ian Carradine is an American actor who has had success on stage, film and television. In addition, he is a Golden Globe and Oscar winning songwriter. As a member of the Carradine family, he is part of an acting "dynasty" that began with his father, John Carradine.-Early life:Keith...
. Robert's script for the critically acclaimed What Love Sees (1996) was based on the book by Susan Vreeland and interviews with the real-life Holly family. Gordon and Jean Holly were portrayed in the film by Richard Thomas
Richard Thomas (actor)
Richard Earl Thomas is an American actor, best known for his role as budding author John-Boy Walton in the CBS drama The Waltons.- Early life :Thomas was born Richard Earl Thomas in New York,...
and Annabeth Gish
Annabeth Gish
Annabeth Gish is an American actress known for starring roles in Shag, Mystic Pizza and Double Jeopardy. She is best known for her roles as Special Agent Monica Reyes on The X-Files, Elizabeth Bartlet Westin on The West Wing and as Eileen Caffee on the Showtime drama Brotherhood.-Personal...
.
Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella
Robert hit a career milestone in 1997 with the ABCAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television event Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, produced for the Wonderful World of Disney, which reached an estimated audience of 60 million before going on to success on video and DVD. Originally developed in 1993 for Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
to star as the title character, Houston ultimately chose to step into the role of the Fairy Godmother, with Brandy
Brandy Norwood
Brandy Rayana Norwood , known professionally as Brandy, is an American singer-songwriter, producer, actress, and dancer. In 2009, she introduced her rap alter-ego Bran'Nu....
as Cinderella. Robert's script was adapted from the 1957 original with songs by Richard Rodgers
Richard Rodgers
Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II...
and Oscar Hammerstein II
Oscar Hammerstein II
Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American librettist, theatrical producer, and theatre director of musicals for almost forty years. Hammerstein won eight Tony Awards and was twice awarded an Academy Award for "Best Original Song". Many of his songs are standard repertoire for...
, which starred Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Dame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...
as Cinderella and was the highest-rated television special of its time. The 1997 version, directed by Robert Iscove
Robert Iscove
Robert Iscove is a Canadian film and television director, television producer and a choreographer...
and choreographed by Rob Marshall
Rob Marshall
Rob Marshall is an American theater director, film director and choreographer. He is a six-time Tony Award nominee, Academy Award nominee, Golden Globe nominee and four-time Emmy winner whose most noted work is the 2002 Academy Award for Best Picture winner Chicago.-Life and career:Marshall was...
, was notable for its multi-racial cast, which included Bernadette Peters
Bernadette Peters
Bernadette Peters is an American actress, singer and children's book author from Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, she has starred in musical theatre, films and television, as well as performing in solo concerts and recordings...
, Victor Garber
Victor Garber
Victor Joseph Garber is a Canadian film, stage and television actor and singer. Garber is known for playing Jesus in Godspell, Jack Bristow in the television series Alias, Max in Lend Me a Tenor, and Thomas Andrews in James Cameron's Titanic.-Early life:Born in London, Ontario, Canada, Garber is...
, Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
, and Paolo Montalban
Paolo Montalbán
Paolo Montalban is a Filipino-American actor and singer best known for his performance in ABC/Disney's telepic of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella as Prince Christopher, opposite Brandy as Cinderella....
as the Prince.
Robert was responsible for interpolating three new songs into the story: "Falling In Love With Love
Falling in Love with Love
Falling in Love with Love is a show tune from the Rodgers and Hart musical The Boys from Syracuse, where it was introduced by Muriel Angelus. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1938...
," a song by Rodgers and Lorenz Hart
Lorenz Hart
Lorenz "Larry" Milton Hart was the lyricist half of the famed Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart...
, Rodgers' own "The Sweetest Sounds," and an obscure Rodgers & Hammerstein song called "There's Music In You." Robert also created the character of Lionel (played by Jason Alexander
Jason Alexander
Jay Scott Greenspan , better known by his professional name of Jason Alexander, is an American actor, writer, comedian, television director, producer, and singer. He is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series Seinfeld, appearing in the sitcom from 1989 to 1998...
) and wrote selected additional lyrics for the song "The Prince is Giving a Ball."
Into the 21st century
In early 2001, Robert had two high-profile projects hit the airwaves within weeks of each other: What Makes a Family and Life with Judy Garland: Me and My ShadowsLife with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,...
. Both films were critically acclaimed and featured on the cover of leading LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
magazine The Advocate
The Advocate
The Advocate is an American LGBT-interest magazine, printed monthly and available by subscription. The Advocate brand also includes a web site. Both magazine and web site have an editorial focus on news, politics, opinion, and arts and entertainment of interest to LGBT people...
.
Produced by Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, Cis Corman, Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
, and Storyline Entertainment, and directed by Maggie Greenwald
Maggie Greenwald
Maggie Greenwald is an American film, television director and screenwriter.She is most recognized for writing and directing Songcatcher and The Ballad of Little Jo...
, What Makes a Family tells the true story of a devoted lesbian couple, played by Brooke Shields
Brooke Shields
Brooke Christa Shields is an American actress and model. Some of her better-known movies include Pretty Baby and The Blue Lagoon, as well as TV shows such as Suddenly Susan, That '70s Show and Lipstick Jungle....
and Cherry Jones
Cherry Jones
Cherry Jones is an American actress and recipient of the 2009 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series and the 2005 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.-Career:...
, who decide to have a baby. When the little girl is five, her natural mother (Jones) dies of lupus
Lupus erythematosus
Lupus erythematosus is a category for a collection of diseases with similar underlying problems with immunity . Symptoms of these diseases can affect many different body systems, including joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, heart, and lungs...
and the girl's grandparents try to win custody, against the wishes of the surviving partner (Shields) who desperately wants to keep her daughter. The state of Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
did not allow gay adoption at the time, and still doesn't to this day, in spite of this landmark case. What Makes a Family won a GLAAD Award for best television movie of the year, and Robert's script was a finalist for the Humanitas Prize
Humanitas Prize
The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious...
.
The ABC mini-series Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,...
was the top-rated movie of the 2000-2001 television season, and was the winner of five Emmy Awards, the Television Critics Association Award, and the Broadcast Critics Award; it was nominated for the Golden Globe and appeared on several Top 10 Lists, including The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. Robert was nominated for an Emmy and a Writers Guild Award for his script, which he adapted from the memoir Me and My Shadows
Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir
Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir is a memoir written by Lorna Luft recounting her mother Judy Garland's life, Luft's life with mother and dealing with life after her mother's passing...
by Lorna Luft
Lorna Luft
Lorna Luft is an American television, stage, and film actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and Sid Luft, and the half-sister of singer and actress Liza Minnelli.-Biography:...
, as well as a mountain of research about the life and career of legendary entertainer Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
. Director Robert Allan Ackerman and actor Victor Garber
Victor Garber
Victor Joseph Garber is a Canadian film, stage and television actor and singer. Garber is known for playing Jesus in Godspell, Jack Bristow in the television series Alias, Max in Lend Me a Tenor, and Thomas Andrews in James Cameron's Titanic.-Early life:Born in London, Ontario, Canada, Garber is...
were also Emmy-nominated, and Emmys were won by stars Judy Davis
Judy Davis
Judy Davis is an Australian actress best known for her roles in Husbands and Wives, Barton Fink, A Passage to India and in the TV miniseries Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows....
and Tammy Blanchard
Tammy Blanchard
Tammy Blanchard is an American actress. She has worked primarily in films and television, making her professional start in the soap opera Guiding Light...
, among others.
Most recently, Robert wrote the teleplay for the Lifetime Television
Lifetime Television
Lifetime Television, often referred to as Lifetime TV, or most commonly, Lifetime, is an American cable television specialty channel devoted to movies, sitcoms and dramas, all of which are either geared toward women or feature women in lead roles. The cable network is owned by A&E Television Networks...
Original Movie Murder in the Hamptons
Murder in the Hamptons
Murder in the Hamptons is a true story made for TV movie, based on the events leading to the murder of multi-millionaire Ted Ammon and the conviction of Ammon's estranged wife's lover Daniel Pelosi.-Plot:...
, which was the highest rated basic cable movie of 2005. The true tale of the murder of multi-millionaire investment banker Ted Ammon
Ted Ammon
Robert Theodore Ammon was an American financier and investment banker. He was murdered by Daniel Pelosi, the boyfriend of his estranged wife Generosa....
(played by David Sutcliffe
David Sutcliffe
David Sutcliffe is a Canadian actor. He is best known for playing Christopher Hayden, Rory Gilmore's father and Lorelai Gilmore's on-and-off boyfriend, on the CW show Gilmore Girls....
) in October 2001, the story follows the bitter divorce between Ammon and his wife Generosa
Generosa Ammon
Generosa Rand LeGaye was the widow of multimillionaire New York businessman Ted Ammon, who was murdered during their bitter divorce battle...
(Poppy Montgomery
Poppy Montgomery
Poppy Montgomery , is an Australian actress. She is best known for her role as Samantha Spade on Without a Trace...
) and her relationship with contractor Danny Pelosi (Shawn Christian
Shawn Christian
Shawn Patrick Christian is an American television and film actor.After graduating Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan in 1989, he moved to Chicago to pursue an acting career. He starred in numerous stage productions, and began appearing in commercials...
), who was convicted of Ammon's murder in December 2004.
In a 2009 interview, singer Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
revealed that she had contacted Freedman to write her life story after being impressed with his work writing "Life with Judy Garland". Freedman was said to have been delighted at the prospect but ultimately wasn't hired as writer as Francis' co-producer, singer Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan
Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
, was interested in other writers for the project.
Grand Duchy (1984-present)
Grand Duchy, with book and lyrics by Robert and music by John Bayless, began as a graduate thesis project at NYU. Loosely inspired by Mark TwainMark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
's "The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper is an English-language novel by American author Mark Twain. It was first published in 1881 in Canada before its 1882 publication in the United States. The book represents Twain's first attempt at historical fiction...
", Grand Duchy is a 30's-style screwball comedy
Screwball Comedy
Screwball Comedy is an album by the Japanese band Soul Flower Union. The album found the band going into a simpler, harder-rocking direction, after several heavily world-music influenced albums.-Track listing:...
that tells the story of a Princess and a Rebel who switch places and turn everything upside down in the tiniest country in Europe. In March 1984, a staged reading of Grand Duchy was performed at Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work....
, directed by Michael Leeds. Two years later, New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse
Paper Mill Playhouse
Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theatre with approximately 1200 seats, located in Millburn, New Jersey, less than 25 miles from Manhattan. Due to its location, it can draw from the pool of actors who live in New York City. Its location, as well as its focus on producing large-scale shows, makes...
produced a staged reading directed by Phillip Wm. McKinley. In August 2000, another staged reading was produced at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank, California, directed by Jules Aaron, and was equally well-received. In November 2003, Grand Duchy received its world premiere production, directed by Clark Sayre (who appeared in the 1984 reading at Playwrights Horizons) at Dos Pueblos High School
Dos Pueblos High School
Dos Pueblos High School is a high school located in Goleta, California, west of Santa Barbara. Located adjacent to the foothills on the edge of the Goleta Valley in an area known as El Encanto Heights, it serves a student body of approximately 2,300 in grades 9-12.Dos Pueblos, or "DP" or "DPHS", is...
near Santa Barbara, California. In its various incarnations, Grand Duchy has featured such actors as Lonny Price
Lonny Price
Lonny Price is an American actor, writer, and director, primarily in theatre. He is known for making statements on current events in versions of his musicals. His acclaimed May 2008 New York Philharmonic production of Camelot was making a statement about the current war including having different...
, Diane Fratantoni, Stephen Bogardus
Stephen Bogardus
-Biography:Born in Norfolk, Virginia, Bogardus graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall in 1972 and Princeton University in 1976, where he was a member of the Princeton Nassoons and the Princeton Triangle Club.-Career:...
, Robert Mandan
Robert Mandan
Robert Mandan is an American actor, most famous for his portrayals of playwright David Allen on the NBC serial From These Roots from 1958–1961, businessman Sam Reynolds on the serial Search for Tomorrow from 1965 to 1970, and his subsequent satire of the genre playing Chester Tate on the sitcom...
, and Marian Mercer
Marian Mercer
Marian Ethel Mercer was an American actress and singer.Born in Akron, Ohio, she graduated from the University of Michigan, then spent several seasons working in summer stock. She made her Broadway debut in the chorus of the short-lived musical, Greenwillow in 1960...
.
Miss Spectacular (1999-2000)
In 1999, Broadway composer Jerry HermanJerry Herman
Jerry Herman is an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway musical theater. He composed the scores for the hit Broadway musicals Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles. He has been nominated for the Tony Award five times, and won twice, for Hello, Dolly! and La Cage...
(Hello, Dolly!, Mame, La Cage Aux Folles) asked Robert to write the book for his new musical, Miss Spectacular
Miss Spectacular
Miss Spectacular is an unproduced musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and additional lyrics by Steve Lawrence and Michael Feinstein....
. The show was to be produced by developer Steve Wynn
Steve Wynn (developer)
Stephen Alan "Steve" Wynn is an American business magnate who played a pivotal role in the 1990s resurgence and expansion of the Las Vegas Strip...
at one of his Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
hotels, but the project never came to fruition.
Campaign of the Century (2003-present)
Campaign of the Century is a collaboration between Robert and singer-songwriter Steven Lutvak based on the book of the same name by Greg MitchellGreg Mitchell
Greg Mitchell is the author of twelve books and currently blogs on the media and politics, and of late especially on WikiLeaks, for The Nation...
. The show is set during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and centers on the comic chicanery, media manipulation
Media manipulation
Media manipulation is an aspect of public relations in which partisans create an image or argument that favours their particular interests. Such tactics may include the use of logical fallacies and propaganda techniques, and often involve the suppression of information or points of view by crowding...
, and outrageous shenanigans surrounding Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. , was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle . It exposed conditions in the U.S...
's race for Governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
in 1934. The musical has been presented in several staged readings, under the auspices of the Beverly Hills Musical Theatre Guild (2006), the New York Musical Theatre Festival
New York Musical Theatre Festival
The New York Musical Theatre Festival is an annual three-week fall Festival which presents more than thirty new musicals at venues in New York City's midtown theater district...
(2005), the Chicago Humanities Festival
Chicago Humanities Festival
The Chicago Humanities Festival is a foundation which organizes an annual series of lectures, concerts, and films in Chicago. The main festival takes place in the first and second weeks of November. The festival was started in 1990 by the Illinois Humanities Council and became an independent...
(2004), and the American Musical Theatre of San Jose (2003–04), which originally commissioned the work. Casts of these readings have included John Rubinstein
John Rubinstein
John Arthur Rubinstein is an American film, Broadway, and television actor, a composer of film and theatre music, and a director in theatre and television.-Early life:...
, Michael Rupert
Michael Rupert
Michael John Rupert is an American actor, singer, director and composer.Rupert made his Broadway debut in 1968 in Kander and Ebb's The Happy Time where he received his first Tony nomination...
, Kaitlin Hopkins
Kaitlin Hopkins
Kaitlin Hopkins is an American stage, screen, and television actress, the daughter of actress Shirley Knight and stage producer/director Gene Persson....
, Jean Louisa Kelly
Jean Louisa Kelly
Jean Louisa Kelly is an American actress and singer. She is perhaps best known for her long-running role as Kim Warner on the television sitcom Yes, Dear.-Career:...
, Sally Mayes
Sally Mayes
-Biography:Born in Livingston, Texas, Mayes began her career as a rock and jazz singer in Houston. She made her Broadway debut in April 1989 as Winona Shook in Cy Coleman's Welcome to the Club. For her performance she won a Theatre World Award. This was followed by her appearance in the original...
, and Josh Radnor
Josh Radnor
Joshua Michael "Josh" Radnor is an American actor, director, and writer, best known for portraying the main character Ted Mosby on the popular, Emmy Award-winning CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, for which he has received worldwide fame and recognitions.He made his writing and directorial debut...
.
Honors and awards
| Year | Honor | Project |
|---|---|---|
| 1983, 1984 | Winner, ASCAP Popular Award for Musical Theatre | Grand Duchy |
| 1992 | Nominee, Edgar Award (Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday.... ) |
Honor Thy Mother |
| 1994 | Winner, Writers Guild Award Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949... (Outstanding Television Children's Show) |
A Deadly Secret: The Robert Bierer Story |
| 1996 | Silver Plaque, Chicago International Television Festival | What Love Sees |
| 1999 | Nominee, Writers Guild Award Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949... (Outstanding Children's Script) |
Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella |
| 2001 | Finalist, Humanitas Prize Humanitas Prize The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious... |
What Makes a Family |
| 2001 | Winner, GLAAD Award (Best TV Film) | What Makes a Family |
| 2001 | Nominee, Emmy Award Emmy Award An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various... (Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries or Movie) |
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2001 | Nominee, Emmy Award Emmy Award An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various... (Outstanding Miniseries) |
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2001 | Winner, Television Critics Association Award | Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2001 | Winner, Broadcast Critics Association Award | Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2001 | Winner, Golden Satellite Award (Best TV Movie or Miniseries) | Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2001 | Nominee, Golden Globe Award Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign... (Best TV Movie or Miniseries) |
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2002 | Nominee, Writers Guild Award Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949... |
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows is a 2001 television film based on the memoirs of Lorna Luft, the daughter of Garland. The production is notable for its meticulous recreations of her films and concerts, and verisimilitudinous impressions of her by Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis.The film,... |
| 2006 | Winner, California Musical Theatre Award | Campaign of the Century |
| 2006 | Winner, Edward Kleban Edward Kleban Edward “Ed” Kleban was an American musical theatre composer and lyricist.Kleban was born in the Bronx, New York in 1939 and graduated from New York's High School of Music & Art and Columbia University, where he attended with future playwright Terrance McNally. Kleban is best known as lyricist of... Award (with Steven Lutvak) |
|
| 2006 | Winner, Fred Ebb Fred Ebb Fred Ebb was an American musical theatre lyricist who had many successful collaborations with composer John Kander. The Kander and Ebb team frequently wrote for such performers as Liza Minnelli and Chita Rivera.... Award (with Steven Lutvak) |
Teaching
In 1986, three years after receiving his two graduate degrees from NYU, Robert was invited to teach Screenwriting to undergraduate Film & Television students in the NYU Tisch School of the Arts, a position he held until 1991.From 2002-2005, Robert returned to academia at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, teaching Screenwriting in the School of Cinema-Television's
USC School of Cinematic Arts
The USC School of Cinematic Arts, until 2006 named the School of Cinema-Television , is a film school within the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. It is the oldest and largest such school in the United States, established in 1929 as a joint venture with the Academy of...
Graduate Writing Program and the Peter Stark Producing Program.