J. E. Franklin
| J. E. Franklin | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Jennie Elizabeth Franklin August 10, 1937 Houston, Texas, USA |
| Occupation | Playwright |
| Nationality | United States |
| Information | |
| Magnum opus | Black Girl |
| Awards | Drama Desk Award (1971–72) for Black Girl |
J. E. Franklin (born August 10, 1937) is an American playwright, best known for her play, Black Girl, which was later made into a 1972 feature film.
Biography
She was born Jennie Elizabeth Franklin in Houston, Texas, to Robert Franklin and Mathie Randle.[1] Ms. Franklin has written several plays, but is best known for Black Girl. It was originally produced by public television station WGBH, Boston, in 1969. It was staged off-Broadway in 1971 by Shauneille Perry at the New Federal Theatre. Franklin subsequently received a Drama Desk Award for most promising playwright.[2] Her feature-film adaptation of the play was released in 1972.
Her first play to receive a major stage production was Mau Mau Room, which was also directed by Shauneille Perry. It was produced at the Negro Ensemble Company, just prior to Black Girl.[3]
Other plays by Franklin include The In-Crowd, Prodigal Daughter and Cut Out the Lights and Call the Law. Prodigal Daughter was adapted into a musical entitled, Prodigal Sister, which was produced by the Negro Ensemble Company in 1974.[2]
References
- ↑ "Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 [database on-line]". Provo, Utah: The Generations Network. 2005. Retrieved 2009-12-03.
- 1 2 Peterson Jr. (Ed.), Bernard L. (1988). Contemporary Black American Playwrights and Their Plays: A Biographical Directory and Dramatic Index (First ed.). New York, Westport, Connecticut & London: Greenwood Press. pp. 175–177. ISBN 0-313-25190-8.
- ↑ Johnson, John H., ed. (April 1973). "Black women 'star' behind scenes in New York drama". Ebony. 6. Chicago, Illinois: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc. 28: 108.