William Luce
William Aubert Luce was an American writer, primarily for the stage and television. He wrote several plays which starred Julie Harris, and specialized in one-person plays.
Early life and education
Luce was born on October 16, 1931, in Portland, Oregon, to Chauncey Darrel Luce and Eleanor Marie Luce. He majored in piano at college.Awards and nominations
A member of the Dramatists Guild of America, Writers Guild of America, and Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques, Luce received multiple awards and nominations for his work.Awards
- 1979 Peabody Award: Masterpiece Radio Theatre, Currer Bell, Esquire. Act 1.
- 1979 Edwin Howard Armstrong award: Currer Bell, Esquire. Act 1
- 1979 Ohio State award: Currer Bell, Esquire. Act 1
- 1987 International Emmy Award: ''The Belle of Amherst''
Nominations
- Writers Guild Award nominee: The Last Days of Patton
- Writers Guild Award nominee: ''The Woman He Loved''
Works
Stage
"Playwright William Luce picks his leading characters carefully, because they're usually the only ones in his shows." Luce wrote the one-person play, The Belle of Amherst, which premiered on Broadway in 1976, starring Julie Harris as Emily Dickinson, among others, and directed by Charles Nelson Reilly. After opening on April 28, 1976, at the Longacre Theatre, it ran for 116 performances. Subsequently, Harris toured around the country performing the play in multiple regional theatres. His play about Charlotte Brontë, Bronte, starring Julie Harris and directed by Charles Nelson Reilly, initially was filmed in 1982 in Ireland after several stage performances and televised on Public Television in 1985. Harris performed the play in regional U.S. theatre.His play Zelda, about Zelda Fitzgerald, premiered Off-Broadway in 1984 and starred Olga Bellin. Luce turned this play into The Last Flapper, which was performed in regional U.S. theatres initially in 1987 by Piper Laurie, once again directed by Charles Nelson Reilly.
He wrote the play Lillian about Lillian Hellman, which ran on Broadway in 1986 and starred Zoe Caldwell. His play, Lucifer's Child, based on the writings of Karen Blixen, appeared on Broadway in 1991 and starred Julie Harris. He wrote the play Barrymore, which premiered on Broadway in 1997 and starred Christopher Plummer as John Barrymore.
Opera
Luce wrote the libretto for the opera Gabriel's Daughter, with music by Henry Mollicone which premiered in 2003 at the Central City Opera House, Colorado.Television
The Belle of Amherst was adapted by Luce for an IBM Television Special, starring Julie Harris and directed by Charles S. Dubin. The TV movie received an Emmy nomination for Best Actress and two Christopher Awards. The record album of the play received a Grammy Award. Thames Television aired a production of the play starring Claire Bloom and directed by Adrian Brown, which received an International Emmy Award in 1987.Luce wrote the screenplays for three television movies, telecast on CBS. The Last Days of Patton starred George C. Scott and Eva Marie Saint; The Woman He Loved starred Jane Seymour, Anthony Andrews, and Julie Harris with direction by Charles Jarrott; and Lucy & Desi: Before the Laughter starred Frances Fisher as Lucille Ball and Maurice Benard as Desi Arnaz, also directed by Charles Jarrott.