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The Shrike | |
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Written by | Joseph Kramm |
Characters | Ann Downs Jim Downs Dr. Schlesinger Perkins Miss Wingate Dr. Barrow Grossberg Dr. Bellman Joe Major |
Date premiered | January 15, 1952 |
Place premiered | Cort Theater New York City, New York |
Original language | English |
Subject | |
Genre | Drama |
Setting | a hospital |
IBDB profile |
The Shrike is a play written by American dramatist Joseph Kramm. It debuted on Broadway at the Cort Theater, on January 15, 1952, with Jose Ferrer as the producer, director and star. Kramm received the 1952 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for the work.
The play is set in the mental ward of a city hospital, and revolves around a theatrical director named Jim Downs, who has been driven to the verge of insanity and suicide by his estranged wife Ann, who is the "shrike" alluded to in the play's title.
To outsiders, Ann seems to epitomize sweetness, kindness and graciousness. In reality, she is a bitter, manipulative shrew. Like the shrike, a small predatory bird that kills and impales smaller birds, Ann seems harmless but brings death and destruction to everyone she grows close to.
Ann married Jim in hopes that he would eventually gain fame, wealth and stardom, and so his lack of success galls her. Her mockery and nagging led Jim to an unsuccessful suicide attempt, by swallowing a bottle of sleeping pills. This led to his commitment to a mental hospital, where Jim finds that it will not be easy to secure a release. Getting out of the hospital will require the help and cooperation of Ann, who enjoys holding power over her husband.
Ann regularly visits Jim at the hospital, supposedly to provide comfort and love, but really to continue her hectoring and manipulation of him. She is also able to charm the doctors, who usually accede to her wishes and follow her advice as to what is best for Jim.
In order to win his freedom, Jim must give all the "right" answers expected by his doctors, and in doing so, he places himself utterly under Ann's control.
In 1955 the play was adapted for film starring Jose Ferrer and June Allyson.
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The Hyperion Cantos is a series of science fiction novels by Dan Simmons. The title was originally used for the collection of the first pair of books in the series, Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion, and later came to refer to the overall storyline, including Endymion, The Rise of Endymion, and a number of short stories. Within the fictional storyline, the Hyperion Cantos is an epic poem written by the character Martin Silenus.
Of the four novels, Hyperion received the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1990;The Fall of Hyperion won the Locus and British Science Fiction Association Awards in 1991; and The Rise of Endymion received the Locus Award in 1998. All four novels were also nominated for various science fiction awards.
An event series is being developed by Bradley Cooper, Graham King, and Todd Phillips for Syfy based on the first novel Hyperion.
First published in 1989, Hyperion has the structure of a frame story, similar to Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales and Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron. The story weaves the interlocking tales of a diverse group of travelers sent on a pilgrimage to the Time Tombs on Hyperion. The travelers have been sent by the Church of the Final Atonement, alternately known as the Shrike Church, and the Hegemony (the government of the human star systems) to make a request of the Shrike. As they progress in their journey, each of the pilgrims tells their tale.
A shrike is a passerine bird of the family Laniidae.
Shrike may also refer to:
Other passerine birds known as shrikes:
The Shrike is a 1955 film based on Joseph Kramm's play of the same name. José Ferrer directed and starred in Ketti Frings' screenplay adaptation.
Successful stage director Jim Downs (Ferrer) is driven to a mental breakdown by his domineering wife Ann (June Allyson). Institutionalized, he confides in Dr. Bellman (Kendall Clark) and Dr. Barrow (Isabel Bonner), and he finds a kindred spirit in Charlotte Moore (Joy Page).
Reviewing for The New York Times, A.H. Weiler wrote:
Much of the film was shot on location at Bellevue Hospital and around Times Square in New York City.
The music score was by Frank Skinner. Ferrer composed "Conversation (The Shrike)", recorded by Pete Rugolo on his 1955 album New Sounds (Harmony HL7003). The opening title sequence was created by Saul Bass.