Harvey Fierstein

A poignant and hilarious memoir from the cultural icon, gay rights activist, and four-time Tony Award-winning actor and playwright, revealing never-before-told stories of his personal struggles and conflict, of sex and romance, and of his fabled career Harvey Fierstein's legendary career has transported him from community theater in Brooklyn, to the lights of Broadway, to the absurd excesses of Hollywood and back. He's received accolades and awards for acting in and/or writing an incredible string of hit plays, films, and TV shows: Hairspray, Fiddler on the Roof, Mrs. Doubtfire, Independence Day, Cheers, La Cage Aux Folles, Torch Song Trilogy, Newsies, and Kinky Boots. While he has never shied away from the spotlight, Mr. Fierstein says that even those closest to him have never heard most of the tales--of personal struggles and conflict, of sex and romance, of his fabled career--revealed in these wildly entertaining pages. I Was Better Last Night bares the inner life of this eccentric nonconforming child from his roots in 1952 Brooklyn, to the experimental worlds of Andy Warhol and the Theatre of the Ridiculous, to the gay rights movements of the seventies and the tumultuous AIDS crisis of the eighties, through decades of addiction, despair, and ultimate triumph. Mr. Fierstein's candid recollections provide a rich window into downtown New York City life, gay culture, and the evolution of theater (of which he has been a defining figure), as well as a moving account of his family's journey of acceptance. I Was Better Last Night is filled with wisdom gained, mistakes made, and stories that come together to describe an astonishingly colorful and meaningful life. Lucky for us all, his unique and recognizable voice is as engaging, outrageously funny, and vulnerable on the page.

InTorch Song the two-act revival of Harvey Fierstein's award-winningTorch Song Trilogy the life of Arnold Beckoff a torch song-singing Jewish drag queen living in New York City is dramatized over the span of the late 1970s and 1980s. Told with a likable human voice Torch Songfollows Arnold's odyssey to find happiness in New York. All he wants is a husband a child and a pair of bunny slippers that fit but a visit from his overbearing mother reminds him that he needs one thing more: respect.

A new edition of the classic drama portraying gay life in New York in the 1970s and 80s--winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, now coming to Broadway in a revival hailed by The New York Times as "irresistibly compelling." What begins as a chance encounter in a New York nightclub leads drag performer Arnold Beckoff on a hilarious yet touching pursuit of love, happiness, and a life he can be proud of. From a failed affair with a reluctant lover to a committed relationship with the promise of a stable family, Arnold's struggle for acceptance meets its greatest resistance when he faces off against the person whose approval is most important to him: his mother. This edition contains for the first time ever both the original scripts for the three one-act plays (The International Stud, Fugue in a Nursery, and Widows and Children First ) as they were performed in the 1970s, as well as the revised script for the 2017 revival that condensed all three into Torch Song. It also includes a never-before-published introduction by Harvey Fierstein, as well as photographs from both the original production and the revival starring Michael Urie and Mercedes Ruehl and directed by Mois s Kaufman. Praise for Torch Song Trilogy "Harvey Fierstein has created characters so vivid and real that they linger in the mind, talking the night away, long after the lights have been turned out and everyone has left."--Time "Gorgeously funny . . . a devastatingly comic play with just the right resonances."--New York Post "Sassy, sweet, and moving."--People

A collection containing the following three plays by Harvey Fierstein:Manny and JakeTwo young men meet in a bar. Manny is literally praying for sex; Jake is only too eager to oblige. What the latter does not know is that Manny has AIDS. Safe SexTwo recently reconciled male lovers confront the challenge of their on-again off-again relationship in the time of AIDS. Ghee an aging congenial gay man may be using guidelines for safe sex as an excuse for his fading sex drive. This dismays Mead a virile and no-nonsense blue-collar type. The emotional seesaw of their interactions creates the compelling dynamics of this fascinating short piece. On Tidy EndingsA man has died of AIDS leaving behind a son a male lover and an ex-wife. She still loves him and accepts the fact that he was gay and that he died in the arms of his male lover who selflessly cared for him right up until the end.

Winner! Best Revival of a Musical - 2010 Tony Awards! WINNER! Outstanding Revival of a Musical - 2010 Outer Critics Circle AwardWINNER! Outstanding Revival of a Musical - 2010 Drama Desk AwardWINNER! Best Musical - 1984 Tony Awards! Much revived most recently in a 2010 production transferred to Broadway from London's Menier Chocolate Factory La Cage Aux Folles remains one of the all time biggest hits adding new dimension to the boulevard comedy. After twenty y

From Tony Award-winning actor and playwright Harvey Fierstein, a funny and touching story of a duckling who embraces his identity. Elmer is not like the other boy ducklings. While they like to build forts, he loves to bake cakes. While they like to play baseball, he wants to put on the halftime show. Elmer is a great big sissy. But when his father is wounded by a hunter's shot, Elmer proves that the biggest sissy can also be the greatest hero. Acclaimed actor and playwright Harvey Fierstein has crafted a heartwarming story, based on his award-winning HBO animated special, about learning to embrace the special qualities we all possess. Henry Cole's gently humorous illustrations give it a new vitality. This is a book to share with all children, to help them understand that each one of them is unique and valuable.

Characters: 4 male, 2 female Tony Award Winner, Best Play 1983 Includes: The International Stud, Fugue in a Nursery, Widows and Children First! "A very funny, poignant and unabashedly entertaining work that, so help me, is something for the whole family...the zappiest evening of theatre you could ask for." - Newsweek "Under the tragedy, the play is gorgeously funny." - N. Y. Post

Elmer is not like the other boy ducklings. While they like to build forts, he loves to bake cakes. While they like to play baseball, he wants to put on the halftime show. Elmer is a great big sissy. But when his father is wounded by a hunter's shot, Elmer proves that the biggest sissy can also be the greatest hero. Acclaimed actor and playwright Harvey Fierstein has crafted a heartwarming story, based on his award-winning HBO animated special, about learning to embrace the special qualities we all possess. Henry Cole's gently humorous illustrations give it a new vitality. This is a book to share with all children, to help them understand that each one of them is unique and valuable.