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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 14, 2003
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—The late author,
editor, and actor George Plimpton will be posthumously honored
as Grand Master of the 24th
Writing Today conference at Birmingham-Southern College March 12-13.
Plimpton, who was editor of The Paris
Review since its founding in 1953 and also served as contributing
editor to a number of magazines
and periodicals, including Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and Harper’s,
died in September. While he accepted the role as Grand Master for
the Writing Today 2004 conference prior to his death, the conference
planning committee chose to honor him posthumously.
“We are all saddened by Mr. Plimpton’s death, and we mourn his loss
to the world of arts and letters,” said Florence Jackson, chair of the
Writing Today 2004 conference. “He was a singular talent, and we want to
use the occasion of the 2004 conference to recognize his work.” The Writing
Today conference brings literary professionals from around the country to the
BSC campus for how-to workshops and lectures on the literary arts, as well as
practical information necessary to the craft of writing. The conference explores
a wide variety of genres, including the novel, short story, screenwriting, biography,
newspaper and magazine feature writing, children’s and young adult writing,
and poetry, among others.
Plimpton wrote 10 sports books, as well
as published oral biographies on, among others, Robert F. Kennedy
and Truman Capote. He was known
for using the technique
of “participatory journalism” as he used in his well-known book “Paper
Lion,” which chronicles his legendary experiences playing quarterback
for the Detroit Lions. He also wrote several anthologies and compiled a number
of books from the pages of The Paris Review. In addition, he co-edited the
first three volumes of the “American Literary Anthology.” Plimpton
also appeared in more than 30 films.
For more information on the Writing Today 2004 conference, call
205/226-4921 or e-mail dcwilson@bsc.edu.
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