The playwright, best known for his plays 'Burn This' and 'Fifth of July', passed away in a care facility in New Jersey, just one day before his play 'The Hot L Baltimore' is set to be previewed.
- March 26, 2011
AceShowbiz - Playwright Lanford Wilson has died at the age of 73. The Pulitzer Prize-winning dramatist passed away on Wednesday, March 23 in a care facility in Wayne, New Jersey, according to the Associated Press.
Wilson, best known for his plays "Burn This" and "Fifth of July", was one of the founders of the Off-Off-Broadway movement, and helped start New York's Circle Repertory Theater. He received the Pulitzer Prize in 1980 for "Talley's Folly" and three of his plays were nominated for Tony Awards.
The writer died just one day before his play "The Hot L Baltimore" was due to be previewed at The Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago, Illinois.
The Steppenwolf Theater co-founder Terry Kinney says, "Lanford was a singular voice in the American theater - an important artist, a gentle soul and a good friend. We will miss him sorely."
