Learned the other day that the MPW program at USC is in the process of being axed. It has been in inglorious decline these past few years with the coming of Brigdhe Mullin and the doing away with all the old pros that made the program so exciting and productive. I sent this off to my former colleagues-- would you believe that I had been at MPW thirty-three years-- : What was so powerful about MPW in its glory years-- and Id say they ran from the late seventies through the onset of the Brighde ascension-- was the truly professional orientation of the program: the professors were less academics than first-rate, even great, established professional writers who dealt with the students less as teacher-student than professional to professional. We had an extraordinary faculty--Bill Goyen, Richard Yates, John Rechy, Hubert Selby, Jerry Lawrence, Shelly Berman-- on and on and on. Great writers, teachers, human beings. And who can forget the inimitable Paul Gillette who had more major studio film deals than the Coen Brothers, the Weinsteins, Speilbeg and Lucas put together! And the level of the teaching pros was reflected in the accomplishments of the students: Gina and Erich Van Lowe and Chris Meeks and Lee Wochner and Teresa ONeill, Haris Orkin, Mark Andrus. Again on and on and on! We had some goofy periods over the years, some provocative times, some lapses into paranoia, but we also had a helleva collection of good productive, energetic work and commercial and artistic triumph and its something that we should all be proud of. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers! Sorry end to one of the most generous and exhilarating writing programs in the country
Posted on: Sun, 01 Dec 2013 10:11:55 +0000
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