Acknowledgments

A whole lotta folks deserve to be thanked:

First, my wife, Dvora, supported the writing of this book, though most of it happened at the expense of our time together; after all, I could have spent those hundreds of hours rubbing her back or cuddling in front of an old movie. My loss. But thanks, sweety.

The same could be said for Sophie and Max, whom I could always happily be coaching, hugging, and watching grow. Thanks, guys. You’re the best.

A handful of people have influenced my screenwriting. Hank Nelken was a great partner and remains the industry’s most under-utilized talent. Jim Uhls was the first great writer to help me. Dennis Palumbo listens. Sure, he gets paid, but … still, he listens.

You can always learn something from actors. I thank the gifted performers at The Collective in New York, as well as the Clark Street Players and the Writers and Actors Lab in Los Angeles.

Will Akers advised me about writing a book. That’s a pretty nice thing to do. Again, great thanks to Dvora, who read and re-read. Amy DePaul helped as well. Thanks also to my good friends in the Stillwater Writers Group: Dave Hanson, Craig Nobbs, Sharon Cooper, Craig McNulty, and William Fowkes. Thanks to Johnny Coppola for help with pictures.

And thanks to my students at The New School and New York University. Without you, I’d just be standing in a room, talking to myself.