Middle of the Night

The Oxford Companion to American Theatre | 2004 | 700+ words | Copyright

Middle of the Night (1956), a play by Paddy Chayevsky. [ANTA Theatre, 477 perf.] When a rich, aging, and widowed Manufacturer ( Edward G. Robinson) falls in love with his young, newly divorced receptionist, their liaison is opposed on both sides: by the Mother ( June Walker) of the Girl ( Gena Rowlands), and by the Manufacturer's Daughter ( Anne Jackson). Only his Son‐inLaw ( Martin Balsam) seems sympathetic. The Girl returns briefly to her former Husband ( Lee Philips), a coarse, oversexed musician, before the Manufacturer and the Girl reach an understanding. Originally produced as a shorter television play, the work was expanded into a Joshua Logan production that divided the New York critics, some seeing it as a sensitive character study, others as soap opera. The magnificent, understated performance of Robinson was the main reason for the play's success.

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Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Middle of the Night." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Middle of the Night." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-MiddleoftheNight.html

Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Middle of the Night." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-MiddleoftheNight.html

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