Ronald Ribman
Encyclopedia
Ronald Burt Ribman is an American
author
, poet
and playwright
.
in New York City
to Samuel M. Ribman, a lawyer
, and Rosa (Lerner) Ribman. He attended public school in Brooklyn
, and graduated P.S. 188 in 1944. Ribman attended Mark Twain Jr. High School
, graduating in 1947, and Abraham Lincoln H.S.
, graduating in 1950. Ribman is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh
, receiving his bachelor's degree
in 1954, his master's degree
in 1958, and his Ph.D.
in 1962. In August 1967, he married Alice Rosen, a registered nurse
. The Ribmans have two children, James and Elana.
Ribman served in the United States Army
from 1954 to 1956. Following his military service, Ribman worked as a coal
broker
for the J.E. Ribman Coal Co of Johnstown, PA
from 1956 to 1957. Ribman was an Assistant Professor of English Literature
at Otterbein College from 1962 to 1963, and left academia to focus on his plays in 1964 to the present.
Poetry Journal and The Colorado Quarterly. Ribman's first commercial publication was an article, co-authored with his father, in the April 1964 issue of Harper's Magazine
, titled "The Poor Man in the Scales," a study of the problems faced by indigent defendants in the federal courts. Ribman's most famous early play, "The Journey of the Fifth Horse" based on Ivan Turgenev
's short story "The Diary of a Superfluous Man
," won an Obie Award
and starred a young Dustin Hoffman
in the role of Zoditch.
In 1975, Ribman was honored by the Rockefeller Foundation
with a Playwright-In-Residence fellowship for sustained contribution to American Theater.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and 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...
.
Biography
Ribman was born in Sydenham HospitalSydenham Hospital
-History:Sydenham began in a Harlem brownstone house in 1892 as an African American hospital. Around 1924 the hospital moved to a new 200-bed building. In 1944 the staff doctors were all white despite serving a mostly African American community. The facility was shut down in 1980 under the...
in 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...
to Samuel M. Ribman, a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, and Rosa (Lerner) Ribman. He attended public school in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, and graduated P.S. 188 in 1944. Ribman attended Mark Twain Jr. High School
Mark Twain Intermediate School 239
Mark Twain Intermediate School 239, also known as "Twain," is a public middle school in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn, New York. It is known for its academic rigor and talent classes.-History:...
, graduating in 1947, and Abraham Lincoln H.S.
Abraham Lincoln High School (New York)
Abraham Lincoln High School is a public high school located at 2800 Ocean Parkway, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, and is part of Region 7 in the New York City Department of Education...
, graduating in 1950. Ribman is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, receiving his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in 1954, his master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in 1958, and his Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in 1962. In August 1967, he married Alice Rosen, a registered nurse
Registered nurse
A registered nurse is a nurse who has graduated from a nursing program at a university or college and has passed a national licensing exam. A registered nurse helps individuals, families, and groups to achieve health and prevent disease...
. The Ribmans have two children, James and Elana.
Ribman served in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
from 1954 to 1956. Following his military service, Ribman worked as a coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
broker
Commodity broker
A commodity broker is a firm or individual who executes orders to buy or sell commodity contracts on behalf of clients and charges them a commission. A firm or individual who trades for his own account is called a trader. Commodity contracts include futures, options, and similar financial...
for the J.E. Ribman Coal Co of Johnstown, PA
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
from 1956 to 1957. Ribman was an Assistant Professor of English Literature
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
at Otterbein College from 1962 to 1963, and left academia to focus on his plays in 1964 to the present.
Literature
Ribman's poetry first appeared in literary magazines as The BeloitBeloit College
Beloit College is a liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and has an enrollment of roughly 1,300 undergraduate students. Beloit is the oldest continuously operated college in Wisconsin, and has the oldest building of any college...
Poetry Journal and The Colorado Quarterly. Ribman's first commercial publication was an article, co-authored with his father, in the April 1964 issue of Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts, with a generally left-wing perspective. It is the second-oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. . The current editor is Ellen Rosenbush, who replaced Roger Hodge in January 2010...
, titled "The Poor Man in the Scales," a study of the problems faced by indigent defendants in the federal courts. Ribman's most famous early play, "The Journey of the Fifth Horse" based on Ivan Turgenev
Ivan Turgenev
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was a Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright. His first major publication, a short story collection entitled A Sportsman's Sketches, is a milestone of Russian Realism, and his novel Fathers and Sons is regarded as one of the major works of 19th-century...
's short story "The Diary of a Superfluous Man
The Diary of a Superfluous Man
The Diary of a Superfluous Man is an 1850 novella by Russian author Ivan Turgenev. It is written in the first person in the form of a diary by a man who has a few days left to live as he recounts incidents of his life...
," won an Obie Award
Obie Award
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
and starred a young Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
in the role of Zoditch.
Plays
- Harry, Noon and Night, The American Place Theater, 1965. (Subsequently produced off-Broadway at The Pocket Theater.)
- The Journey of the Fifth Horse, The American Place Theater, 1966.
- The Ceremony of Innocence, The American Place Theater, 1967.
- Passing Through From Exotic Places, Sheridan Square PlayhouseSheridan Square PlayhouseThe Sheridan Square Playhouse was an Off-Broadway theatre in New York City that was active from 1958 through the early 1990s. Closed as a theatre in 1996, the theatre was located at 99 7th Avenue South in Greenwich Village.-History:...
, 1969. - Fingernails Blue As Flowers, The American Place Theater, 1971.
- A Break in the Skin, Yale Repertory Company, 1972. (Subsequently produced at The Actor’s Studio, 1972.)
- The Poison Tree, The Playhouse in the Park, Philadelphia, PA. and Westport Playhouse, CT, 1973. (Subsequently revised and produced on Broadway at the Ambassador Theater, 1976.)
- Cold Storage, The American Place Theater, 1977. (Subsequently produced on Broadway at the Lyceum Theater, 1977.)
- Buck, Playwrights Horizons/ The American Place Theater, 1983.
- Sweet Table at the Richelieu, The American Repertory TheatreAmerican Repertory TheatreThe American Repertory Theater is a professional not-for-profit theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, the A.R.T. is known for its commitment to new American plays and music–theater explorations; to neglected works of the past; and to established classical texts...
, Cambridge, MA., 1987. - The Cannibal Masque, The American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, MA., 1987.
- A Serpent’s Egg, The American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, MA., 1987.
- The Rug Merchants of Chaos, Pasadena Playhouse, Pasadena, CA., 1991.
- Dream of the Red Spider, The American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, MA., 1993.
Screenplays and television
- The Journey of the Fifth Horse, National Educational Television, 1966.
- The Final War of Olly Winter, CBS Playhouse, 1967.
- The Most Beautiful Fish, PBS, 1969; published in The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe 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...
, November 23, 1969. - The Angel Levine (with Bill GunnBill Gunn (writer)Bill Gunn was an American playwright, novelist, actor and film director. His 1973 cult classic horror film Ganja and Hess was chosen as one of ten best American films of the decade at the Cannes Film Festival, 1973...
, based on a short story by Bernard MalamudBernard MalamudBernard Malamud was an author of novels and short stories. Along with Saul Bellow and Philip Roth, he was one of the great American Jewish authors of the 20th century. His baseball novel, The Natural, was adapted into a 1984 film starring Robert Redford...
), United ArtistsUnited ArtistsUnited Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
, 1969. - The Ceremony of InnocenceThe Ceremony of Innocence (film)The Ceremony of Innocence is a 1970 television movie adaptation of the play by the same name which depicts a highly fictionalized account of the events leading up to Sweyn Forkbeard's invasion of England in AD 1013....
, NET Playhouse, 1970; subsequently adapted by Granada Television in 1974. - Cold Storage, A&E Network, 1984.
- Seize the Day (based on the novella by Saul BellowSaul BellowSaul Bellow was a Canadian-born Jewish American writer. For his literary contributions, Bellow was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Nobel Prize for Literature, and the National Medal of Arts...
), PBS Playhouse, 1987. - The Sunset Gang series (based on the stories of Warren Adler, including Yiddish, The Detective, and Home), PBS, 1991.
Publications
- Ronald Ribman Two Plays: The Journey of the Fifth Horse & Harry, Noon and Night, Little Brown, 1967.
- The Journey of the Fifth Horse, Samuel French, 1967.
- The Journey of the Fifth Horse, The Off Off Broadway Book, edited by Albert Poland and Bruce Mailman, Bobbs-Merrill Co., 1972.
- The Ceremony of Innocence, Dramatists Play Service, 1968.
- Passing Through From Exotic Places (contains three one-act plays: The Son Who Hunted Tigers in Jakarta, Sunstroke, and The Burial Of Esposito), Dramatists Play Service, 1970.
- The Burial Of Esposito in The Best Short Plays 1971, edited by Stanley Richards, Avon, 1971.
- Fingernails Blue As Flowers in The American Place Theater: Plays, edited by Richard Schotter, Dell, 1973.
- The Final War Of Olly Winter in One Act Plays For Our Times, edited by Dr. Francis Griffith, Popular Library, 1973.
- The Journey of the Fifth Horse, Davis Poynter, 1974.
- Cold Storage, Samuel French, 1976.
- Cold Storage, Nelson Doubleday, 1976.
- Five Plays By Ronald Ribman (contains Harry, Noon and Night, The Journey of the Fifth Horse, The Ceremony of Innocence, The Poison Tree, and Cold Storage), Avon, 1978.
- Buck in New Plays USA, edited by M. Elizabeth Osborn, Theater Communications Group, 1984.
- Sweet Table At The Richelieu in American Theater, Vol. 4, Number 4, July/August 1987.
- The Rug Merchants of Chaos and other plays (contains Buck, Sweet Table At The Richelieu, and The Rug Merchants of Chaos), Theater Communications Group, 1992.
- The Cannibal Masque in The Best American Short Plays 1994-1995, edited by Howard Stein and Glenn Young, Applause, 1995.
Awards and fellowships
- Obie AwardObie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
, Best Play 1966, The Journey of the Fifth Horse. - EmmyEmmy AwardAn 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...
Nomination, Outstanding Writing Achievement in Drama, 1966–1967, The Final War of Olly Winter. - Straw Hat Award, Best New Play, 1973, The Poison Tree.
- Dramatists GuildDramatists Guild of AmericaThe Dramatists Guild of America is a professional organization for playwrights, composers, and lyricists working in the U.S. theatre market.Membership as an Associate Member is open to any person having written at least one stage play. Active Members are playwrights who have had at least one play...
, Hull-Warriner AwardHull-Warriner AwardThe Hull-Warriner Award is an award bestowed by the Dramatists Guild of America. The award is unique in that it is given by dramatists to dramatists...
, 1976–1977, Cold Storage. - Playwrights USA Award, 1984, Buck.
- Kennedy Center, Fund For New American Plays, 1991, The Rug Merchants of Chaos.
- Rockefeller FoundationRockefeller FoundationThe Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
FellowFellowA fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
ship, 1966, 1968. - Guggenheim FoundationJohn Simon Guggenheim Memorial FoundationThe John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Mr. and Mrs. Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died April 26, 1922...
Fellowship, 1970. - National Endowment for the ArtsNational Endowment for the ArtsThe National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
Fellowship, 1974, 1986-87.
In 1975, Ribman was honored by the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
with a Playwright-In-Residence fellowship for sustained contribution to American Theater.