THE MERCHANT PLAY CAST - SHOW BILL SIGNED CO-SIGNED BY: JOHN CLEMENTS, RUSS BANHAM, MARIAN SELDES, EVERETT McGILL, ROBERTA MAXWELL, NICOLAS SUROVY, JULIE GARFIELD, WILLIAM ROERICK, JOSEPH LEON, GLORIA GIFFORD, LEIB LENSKY, RIGGS O'HARA, BORIS TUMARIN, ARNOLD WESKER - HFSID 309151

THE MERCHANT PLAY CAST
The play cast for the 1977 production of The Merchant sign on this Playbill
Show Bill signed: "John Clements", "Leib Lensky", "Roberta Maxwell", "Arnold Wesker", "Marian Seldes", "Gloria Gifford", "Joseph Leon", "Julie Garfield", "Russ Banham", "Boris Tumarin", "Everett McGill", "William Roderick", "Nicolas Surovy", "Riggs O'Hara", 88 pages, 5½x9. Playbillfor a production of The Merchant at the Plymouth Theatre in New York. JOHN CLEMENTS (1910-1988) was an English actor and producer. He appeared in over 200 plays on London stages, and founded the Intimate Theatre in 1935. His starring film roles came in The Four Feathers (1939), and several films of World War II. He starred opposite Kay Hammond in a London revival of Coward's Private Lives (1945), and married Hammond the following year. He was also the artistic director of the Chichester Film Festival (1966-1973). LEIB LENSKY (1903-1991) is a Holocaust survivor who was born in Poland. He has acted in a couple of Broadway productions and over twenty movies. His Broadway debut came in the musical Zorba (1968). His film appearances ranged from minor roles in Kojak (1976) and Evergreen (1985), to portraying the character of Mr. Lang in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Canadian actress ROBERTA MAXWELL (b. 1942) was the youngest apprentice actor ever at Ontario's Stratford Shakespeare Festival. Her Broadway credits have included roles in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1968) and Equus (1974). She has also played supporting roles in noteworthy American films, including Philadelphia (1993) and Brokeback Mountain (2005). Beginning his career in 1961, ARNOLD WESKER (b. 1932) is a British playwright and author known for his work on "kitchen sink" dramas popularized in the 1950s and 1960s. His first Broadway play was Chips With Everything (1963), a play examining the life of a corporal. His best-known work, The Merchant (1977), was not well received on Broadway, and was plagued by many hardships, including the death of its star, Zero Mostel. In 2006, Wesker was knighted in the New Year's Honours list. MARIAN SELDES (b. 1928) made her Broadway debut in 1948, and later earned 5 Tony nominations, winning as Best Featured Actress for A Delicate Balance (1967). She appeared in about a dozen films, from The Light in the Forest (1958) to Leatherheads (2008). Seldes was heard in 179 episodes of CBS Radio Mystery Theater (1974-1982). Her TV guest starring roles have included a spot as Lucas McCain's deceased wife in a 1960 episode of The Rifleman, appearing to her son Mark in fever dream. Moreover, she played the eccentric aunt of Murphy Brown in a 1992 episode. Seldes made a series of recordings of famous works of literature for Folkways Records, and taught at the Juilliard School of Performing Arts, where her students included Robin Williams and William Hurt. She was married to her second husband, screenwriter Garson Kanin, until his death in 1999. GLORIA GIFFORD (b. 1946) is an American actress and producer. She appeared in one Broadway play, The Merchant (1976), and over fifty film and screen titles, though mostly in minor roles. Gifford has also taught acting in various schools, and is currently the executive director of her namesake Gloria Gifford Conservatory. JOSEPH LEON (1918-2001) was a Broadway actor and stage manager who worked on over twenty Broadway productions. He played the title role in The Merchant (1976), filling in after Zero Mostel's death. Leon was known for his character acting, and although his style was considered campy by some, he was widely praised among his peers for his work. Leon would continue to appear on Broadway until 1987. He also acted in films and on television, appearing in movies such as Sophie's Choice (1982) as the character Dr. Blackstock. Before his death, Leon began writing short stories, and even penned an autobiography. JULIE GARFIELD (b. 1946) is an American actress, and the daughter of Oscar-nominated actor John Garfield. Inspired by her father's career, Julie pursued acting herself, landing both stage and film roles. Her first Broadway production was The Good Doctor (1973), and she would continue on Broadway until 1977's The Merchant. Garfield went on to act in numerous films and screen titles, playing the role of Mickey Conway in Goodfellas (1990) and working in roles on television series such as Forever (1996)  and Michael Hayes (1997). She currently teaches at the T. Schreiber Studio. RUSS BANHAM (b. 1955) is an American actor who appeared in the play The Merchant (1977). He also appeared as Brad Hopkins in the television series Joe's World (1979). EVERETT McGILL compiled eleven Broadway credits in less than a decade, extending fromEnemies (1972) to Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1980). WILLIAM ROERICK (1912-1995) is an American performer and stage manager who worked on many Broadway productions, beginning with Romeo and Juliet (1935) and ending with Happy New Year (1980). Though he had an extensive Broadway career, his most popular role came on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light in 1980 as the character Henry Chamberlain. NICHOLAS SUROVY (b. 1944), the son of actress Rïse Stevens, won a Theatre World Award for Helen (1965), and appeared in several Broadway productions. RIGGS O'HARA (b. 1943), a British performer and choreographer, has appeared in at least four Broadway productions and nine film and screen titles. His Broadway performances include King Henry V (1969) and The Merchant (1977). Binding staples on left margin. Lightly toned. Otherwise, fine condition.