HAROLD PINTER - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 11/18/1968 - HFSID 38352

PINTER RECOMMENDS A DIRECTOR FOR THE FILMING OF HIS PLAY, THE HOMECOMING
 
HAROLD PINTER. Important Typed Letter Signed: "Harold", 2p, 7x9. London, 1968 November 18. On personal letterhead to "Dear Eddie". In full: "You asked me on the telephone if my last letter precluded any further discussion between us about my directing THE HOMECOMING. I said it didn't and it doesn't but I feel very strongly that this question must be left open. The more I think about it the more convinced I become that if John is not going to do it, Peter Hall falls naturally into the seat. I think that Hall's first film experiences are not terribly relevant to this particular one (although clearly they are relevant from the point of view of selling him). As I've said, I believe Hall has the strength, the discipline, the involvement and the objectivity to do this job. He also knows the work thoroughly. Let's face it - he was in at the beginning. Apart from his qualifications, I must repeat that I'm truly concerned about my own. Anyway I'm pretty exhausted at the moment. And what with one thing and another facing me I see no evidence that I shall be less exhausted by next Summer, Autumn or Winter. I know this proposition makes life even more difficult for you but I do have to emphasize how seriously I feel about it. Yours". Pinter (1930-2008), who had written the play, The Homecoming, was also the screenwriter on the project. American Film Theatre, which produced the film version in 1973, honored Pinter's recommendation that Peter Hall serve as director. Those familiar with Pinter's works are not likely to confuse this film with the sentimental 1971 TV movie of the same name. British playwright Harold Pinter won the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature. The sparse dialogue and menacing atmosphere of plays such as The Birthday Party (1957) and The Caretaker (1959) gave the English language a new adjective, "Pinteresque." Pinter has also directed many plays and written screenplays, including The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981). A political activist, Pinter won the 2004 Wilfred Owen Prize for his poetry condemning the war in Iraq. He is married to the English historian, Lady Antonia Fraser. Binder and staple holes at top. Horizontal folds. Overall, fine condition.