Discussion
MARIETTE HARTLEY AND MARCIA WALLACE IN CONVERSATION WITH DIGBY DIEHL:
Helping Others: Personal Stories and How They Can Make A Difference

Monday, July 30, 2007

Two largely unsung heroes, who have inspired and given hope to many, will receive well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Awards at IWOSC’s July General Meeting.

Actress/Author Mariette Hartley is known for her tireless work with the American Society for Suicide Prevention. Comedienne/Author Marcia Wallace is a national spokesperson for Breast Cancer Awareness. In addition to their artistic accomplishments, they are generous with sharing their personal stories, in written and spoken word, in order to help others make changes in their lives.

For this IWOSC program, the pair will be interviewed by author and personality Digby Diehl. They will share what drew them to the writing life, and how their books and other written works — along with their talent and Hollywood clout — have helped make a difference.

Marcia Wallace has been making people laugh on television for thirty years. While her career includes the long running role as Carol the receptionist on “The Bob Newhart Show” and an Emmy-winning role as Ms. Krabappel on “The Simpsons” — and four of TV Guide’s funniest episodes in television history have featured Wallace — her greatest success has been weathering her own stormy life. Her memoir, “Don’t Look Back, We’re Not Going That Way: How I Overcame a Rocky Childhood, a Nervous Breakdown, Breast Cancer, Widowhood, Fat, Fire & Menopausal Motherhood and Still Managed to Count My Lucky Chickens,” shares those ups and downs.

Mariette Hartley is an Emmy Award-winning (and six times nominated) Best Actress currently appearing in the new FX series “Dirt.” She has established herself as an enduring star on stage, in five television series, countless television movies, and more than a dozen feature films. Plus, of course, her famed stint with James Garner making TV commercials for Polaroid during the 1970s (View the commercials on YouTube.

Among recent projects, Hartley starred in Hallmark Channel’s “Meet the Santas,” and she has had a recurring role on “Law & Order: SVU.” In 1990 her autobiography, “Breaking the Silence,” was a bestseller in hard cover and paperback; it publicly chronicled her personal memories as a child in a home torn apart by family secrets, alcoholism, and depression. Hartley’s new solo stage show, “If You Get to Bethlehem, You’ve Gone Too Far,” in which she portrays eleven characters, is based on “Breaking the Silence.” Hartley notes on her website: “Many of us get to heaven by backing away from hell.”

Digby Diehl is a widely respected book reviewer who created the original Los Angeles Times Book Review, hosted the MSNBC Book Club, and was the first online book reviewer for Prodigy. He is also the noted author of 14 books, including the novel “Soapsuds,” written with Finola Hughes, and the co-author with Esther Williams of the New York Times bestseller, “The Million Dollar Mermaid,” and other notable celebrity biographies.

During this evening, Gary Young will present the Lifetime Achievement Foundation’s highest award to both Hartley and Wallace. Previous recipients include Ray Bradbury.

Discussion
MARIETTE HARTLEY AND MARCIA WALLACE IN CONVERSATION WITH DIGBY DIEHL:
Helping Others: Personal Stories and How They Can Make A Difference

Monday, July 30, 2007

Two largely unsung heroes, who have inspired and given hope to many, will receive well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Awards at IWOSC’s July General Meeting.

Actress/Author Mariette Hartley is known for her tireless work with the American Society for Suicide Prevention. Comedienne/Author Marcia Wallace is a national spokesperson for Breast Cancer Awareness. In addition to their artistic accomplishments, they are generous with sharing their personal stories, in written and spoken word, in order to help others make changes in their lives.

For this IWOSC program, the pair will be interviewed by author and personality Digby Diehl. They will share what drew them to the writing life, and how their books and other written works — along with their talent and Hollywood clout — have helped make a difference.

Marcia Wallace has been making people laugh on television for thirty years. While her career includes the long running role as Carol the receptionist on “The Bob Newhart Show” and an Emmy-winning role as Ms. Krabappel on “The Simpsons” — and four of TV Guide’s funniest episodes in television history have featured Wallace — her greatest success has been weathering her own stormy life. Her memoir, “Don’t Look Back, We’re Not Going That Way: How I Overcame a Rocky Childhood, a Nervous Breakdown, Breast Cancer, Widowhood, Fat, Fire & Menopausal Motherhood and Still Managed to Count My Lucky Chickens,” shares those ups and downs.

Mariette Hartley is an Emmy Award-winning (and six times nominated) Best Actress currently appearing in the new FX series “Dirt.” She has established herself as an enduring star on stage, in five television series, countless television movies, and more than a dozen feature films. Plus, of course, her famed stint with James Garner making TV commercials for Polaroid during the 1970s (View the commercials on YouTube.

Among recent projects, Hartley starred in Hallmark Channel’s “Meet the Santas,” and she has had a recurring role on “Law & Order: SVU.” In 1990 her autobiography, “Breaking the Silence,” was a bestseller in hard cover and paperback; it publicly chronicled her personal memories as a child in a home torn apart by family secrets, alcoholism, and depression. Hartley’s new solo stage show, “If You Get to Bethlehem, You’ve Gone Too Far,” in which she portrays eleven characters, is based on “Breaking the Silence.” Hartley notes on her website: “Many of us get to heaven by backing away from hell.”

Digby Diehl is a widely respected book reviewer who created the original Los Angeles Times Book Review, hosted the MSNBC Book Club, and was the first online book reviewer for Prodigy. He is also the noted author of 14 books, including the novel “Soapsuds,” written with Finola Hughes, and the co-author with Esther Williams of the New York Times bestseller, “The Million Dollar Mermaid,” and other notable celebrity biographies.

During this evening, Gary Young will present the Lifetime Achievement Foundation’s highest award to both Hartley and Wallace. Previous recipients include Ray Bradbury.

Panel
Going Green: Writing About, and For, the Environment

Monday, June 25, 2007

Green Journalism and Green Marketing are going global, especially in the wake of the Oscar win for Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” Our panel of experts will tell you how to tap into this marketplace, and how to turn hard-core science into readable, layman’s English.

Please join Eco-author Sophie Heyman-Uliano and green documentarians Ty Carlisle and Zach Jordan, along with other media panelists, as they discuss such topics as sustainability, green lifestyles and environmental issues — and how they have each developed a niche-writing marketplace in the green arena.

Green guru Sophie Heyman-Uliano is an author, yoga teacher, and actress based in Los Angeles. Heyman-Uliano teaches women about yoga, nutrition, and meditation. Previously, she was a theatre and television actress in England, performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and in London’s West End and in numerous British TV shows.

Five years ago, Heyman-Uliano developed a passionate interest in environmental issues, and radically transformed her life. She designed a lifestyle that was stylish and fun but also “green.” Living in Hollywood and teaching many celebrities, she knew that women wouldn’t compromise on their glamour and style, so she developed a lifestyle that jived with the “Hollywood” scene and yet was still environmentally friendly. The result was the soon-to-be-published book “Gorgeously Green,” an eight-week guide for women that shows them how to live an eco-friendly life with fun, sophistication, and style. Heyman-Uliano also writes a “Gorgeously Green” column for the Larchmont Chronicle.

Producer Ty Carlisle of Prairie Starfish/Talking Evolution Productions has always considered himself to be an environmental/political filmmaker.  The age-old science vs. religion issue came up in Carlisle’s first feature film; the documentary “Flock of Dodos: the Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus,” which can be seen right now on Showtime. Carlisle is also the producer of over 30 short films; most notably “Shifting Baselines in the Surf,” which played to standing ovations at a number of environmental film festivals such as LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability). He also produced the controversial environmental satire “The Tiny Fish PSA,” which after three years is still on view nationally on cable and local broadcast stations.

Zach Jordan is a producer for Videojug.com, the world’s first and largest video encyclopedia, where he produces segments on the environment and future technologies.  Most recently, some of his work may be seen as part of the “MSN Live Earth” project.  Prior to becoming involved with Videojug.com, Jordan worked as an independent filmmaker, writing and producing web-based content for multimedia companies and an array of stand up comics and performers hip to the power of Internet marketing and podcasting.  Jordan will return to Tanzania in August of 2007 to finish shooting his high-definition documentary “Carpe Kilimanjaro.”

Moderator

The panel moderator Julio Moran is an experienced journalist and teacher, and serves as executive director of CCNMA: Latino Journalists of California. Moran was a reporter for 14 years with the Los Angeles Times, where he was part of a team of reporters who won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Meritorious Public Service for a series on Latinos in Southern California. A Los Angeles native, Moran has taught journalism at USC since 1998 and at Cal State Northridge since 2005.

Panel
Going Green: Writing About, and For, the Environment

Monday, June 25, 2007

Green Journalism and Green Marketing are going global, especially in the wake of the Oscar win for Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” Our panel of experts will tell you how to tap into this marketplace, and how to turn hard-core science into readable, layman’s English.

Please join Eco-author Sophie Heyman-Uliano and green documentarians Ty Carlisle and Zach Jordan, along with other media panelists, as they discuss such topics as sustainability, green lifestyles and environmental issues — and how they have each developed a niche-writing marketplace in the green arena.

Green guru Sophie Heyman-Uliano is an author, yoga teacher, and actress based in Los Angeles. Heyman-Uliano teaches women about yoga, nutrition, and meditation. Previously, she was a theatre and television actress in England, performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and in London’s West End and in numerous British TV shows.

Five years ago, Heyman-Uliano developed a passionate interest in environmental issues, and radically transformed her life. She designed a lifestyle that was stylish and fun but also “green.” Living in Hollywood and teaching many celebrities, she knew that women wouldn’t compromise on their glamour and style, so she developed a lifestyle that jived with the “Hollywood” scene and yet was still environmentally friendly. The result was the soon-to-be-published book “Gorgeously Green,” an eight-week guide for women that shows them how to live an eco-friendly life with fun, sophistication, and style. Heyman-Uliano also writes a “Gorgeously Green” column for the Larchmont Chronicle.

Producer Ty Carlisle of Prairie Starfish/Talking Evolution Productions has always considered himself to be an environmental/political filmmaker.  The age-old science vs. religion issue came up in Carlisle’s first feature film; the documentary “Flock of Dodos: the Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus,” which can be seen right now on Showtime. Carlisle is also the producer of over 30 short films; most notably “Shifting Baselines in the Surf,” which played to standing ovations at a number of environmental film festivals such as LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability). He also produced the controversial environmental satire “The Tiny Fish PSA,” which after three years is still on view nationally on cable and local broadcast stations.

Zach Jordan is a producer for Videojug.com, the world’s first and largest video encyclopedia, where he produces segments on the environment and future technologies.  Most recently, some of his work may be seen as part of the “MSN Live Earth” project.  Prior to becoming involved with Videojug.com, Jordan worked as an independent filmmaker, writing and producing web-based content for multimedia companies and an array of stand up comics and performers hip to the power of Internet marketing and podcasting.  Jordan will return to Tanzania in August of 2007 to finish shooting his high-definition documentary “Carpe Kilimanjaro.”

Moderator

The panel moderator Julio Moran is an experienced journalist and teacher, and serves as executive director of CCNMA: Latino Journalists of California. Moran was a reporter for 14 years with the Los Angeles Times, where he was part of a team of reporters who won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Meritorious Public Service for a series on Latinos in Southern California. A Los Angeles native, Moran has taught journalism at USC since 1998 and at Cal State Northridge since 2005.

Panel
Agent Insider 2007: What’s New, What’s Tried & True, What They Want

Monday, April 30, 2007

You have a strongly saleable idea and writing you’ve polished until it shines. Now you want to explore the realm of agents. What still holds true from the dog-eared books on agents that you have on your shelf? What’s changed in today’s milieu and with the electronic environment? What’s hot today? A stellar panel of agents, including former Los Angeles Times Book Review editor Steve Wasserman (now a New York agent), will share insider views. Join us and become armed with the most up-to-date information.

Meet the panelists

Steve Wasserman is now director of Kneerim & Williams at Fish & Richardson and manager of the firm’s New York office. While at the L.A. Times as Book Review editor, Wasserman was also a principal architect of the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. He’s in town this month for the Festival and will join us the next night. Wasserman’s literary interests are eclectic, and include history, memoir and biography, narrative nonfiction, science, and popular culture.

Betsy Amster heads her own literary agency in Los Angeles. Before opening Betsy Amster Literary Enterprises in 1992, she spent 10 years as an editor at Pantheon and Vintage. In a profile in the ASJA newsletter, Amster is said to have a no-nonsense style and a whimsical sense of humor. Her clients include best-selling writers María Amparo Escandón (“Esperanza’s Box of Saints”) and Elaine Aron (“The Highly Sensitive Person”). Her agency looks for literary fiction, quirky mysteries and thrillers, memoirs, narrative nonfiction, self-help, parenting, business, etc.

Paul S. Levine wears two hats, as a literary agent and lawyer. He represents authors, the sale of motion picture and television rights to books, and film and TV writers. Previous projects include fiction by Edward Cline (the Sparrow Hawk series), “The Dog Ate My Resume” (by Zack and Larry Arnstein), and the made-for-TV movie “Santa Jr.” (Hallmark Channel). His literary/book interests include self-help, how-to, politics, sports, and commercial fiction (i.e. thrillers, mysteries, “soap opera” novels [a la Danielle Steele], and literary fiction). In film, his interests lie with romantic comedies, thrillers, historic epics; and for TV, he focuses on true-life movies, docu-dramas, and series (both dramatic and comedic).

Robin Quinn, an award-winning nonfiction ghostwriter and book editor from Los Angeles, moderated.