Nicholson, William 1948–

views updated

Nicholson, William 1948–

PERSONAL: Born 1948, in England; married Virginia Bell (a writer); children: three. Education: Christ's College, Cambridge University, B.A., 1973.

ADDRESSES: Home—Sussex, England. Agent—Sally Wilcox/Carin Sage, Creative Artists Agency, 9830 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90212-1825.

CAREER: Writer, playwright, and screenwriter. Former director and producer of documentary films for the British Broadcasting Company. Executive producer of Everyman, 1979–82, and Global Report, 1983–84; director, Firelight, Carnival/Wind Dancer, 1997.

AWARDS, HONORS: Best Television Play, British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), 1985, for Shadowlands; Best Television Film designation, New York Film Festival, 1987, Best Television Drama award, BAFTA, 1987, and ACE Award for best picture, 1988, all for Life Story; Banff Festival Best Drama designation, 1988, ACE Award for Best International Drama, 1990, and Royal Television Society's Writer's Award, 1987–88, all for Sweet as You Are; Best Play of 1990, London Evening Standard, for Shadowlands; Emmy Award nomination for best screenplay, Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, 1992, for A Private Matter; Golden Globe, and Emmy Award nominations for best screenplay, 1996, for Crime of the Century; Smarties Prize Gold Award, 2000, and Blue Peter Book of the Year Award, 2001, both for The Wind Singer; Academy Award nomination for best screenplay, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, 2000, for Gladiator; Antoinette Perry ("Tony") Award nomination for best play, 2004, for The Retreat from Moscow.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS

The Seventh Level: A Sexual Progress, Stein & Day (New York, NY), 1979.

The Wind Singer: An Adventure (first book in "Wind on Fire" fantasy trilogy), illustrations by Peter Sis, Hyperion Books for Children (New York, NY), 2000.

Slaves of the Mastery (second book in "Wind on Fire" fantasy trilogy), illustrations by Peter Sis, Hyperion Books for Children (New York, NY), 2001.

Firesong: An Adventure (third book in "Wind on Fire" fantasy trilogy), illustrations by Peter Sis, Hyperion Books for Children (New York, NY), 2002.

The Society of Others, Nan A. Talese/Doubleday (New York, NY), 2005.

TELEPLAYS

Martin Luther, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), 1983.

New World BBC, 1986.

Life Story BBC, 1987.

Sweet as You Are BBC, 1988.

The Vision BBC, 1988.

The March BBC, 1990.

A Private Matter, Home Box Office (HBO), 1992.

Crime of the Century HBO, 1996.

The March was translated into German and published as Der Marsch: Aufbruch der Massennach Europa: das Dramades Nor-Süd-Konflikts, essay by Hans Arnold, Horizonte (Rossenheim, Germany), 1990.

SCREENPLAYS

Double Helix (a.k.a. Life Story), Films for the Humanities and Sciences, 1987.

Sarafina, Distant Horizon/Disney, 1992.

Shadowlands (based on the author's television play), Savoy, 1993.

(With Mark Handley) Nell, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1994.

First Knight, Columbia, 1995.

(And director) Firelight, Disney, 1998.

Grey Owl, Allied Pictures, 2000.

(With David Franzoni and John Logan) Gladiator, DreamWorks, 2000.

Long Walk to Freedom, 2004.

PLAYS

Shadowlands (first produced in London, England, 1989), Plume (New York, NY), 1990.

Map of the Heart (first produced in London, England, 1991), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1991.

Katherine Howard (first produced in England at Chichester Festival, 1998), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1999.

The Retreat from Moscow: A Play about a Family (first produced in Chichester, England, 1999), Anchor Books (New York, NY), 2004.

ADAPTATIONS: The film Shadowlands was adapted as a television film broadcast in England, 1985, as a novel of the same name by Leonore Fleishcer, Signet (New York, NY), 1993, and also as a sound recording by LA Theatre Works (Los Angeles, CA), 2001. The screenplay for Gladiator was adapted into a book by Dewey Gra, Onyx (New York, NY), 2000.

WORK IN PROGRESS: Several screenplays, including American Caesar for Universal, and Fertig and Bewitched for Columbia; a novel titled Seeker, the first in a new fantasy series.

SIDELIGHTS: William Nicholson has written screenplays for television and film, plays performed in both England and the United States, and novels, including the "Wind on Fire" trilogy for young-adult readers. Beginning his career in British television, Nicholson gained wide notice in 1985 for his television play Shadowlands, which is about the real-life love affair between British writer and Christian apologist C. S. Lewis and American Joy Davidman. Nicholson went on to adapt Shadowlands into a stage play and a feature film. Writing a review of the play in Time, William A. Henry III noted that the author "finds a wealth of delicate metaphor in the imagery of the title, a reference to Lewis' assertion that true life is inner life or afterlife and what happens on earth a mere shadow existence." Writing in Commonweal, Richard Alleva felt that "the stage version is made of sterner stuff than the … film," and went on to call it "a poignant, funny-sad movie," adding: "it is also about as untranscendent as any film about C. S. Lewis could possibly be." In contrast, a Time reviewer called "the entire movie … strong, unsentimental, exemplary."

One of Nicholson's first screenplays, Double Helix (a.k.a. Life Story), is a dramatization of the discovery of Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Writing in American Libraries, Gary Handman noted: "In the hands of screenwriter William Nicholson, this is a tale filled with suspense, jealousy, and intrigue." In the screenplay for Nell, Nicholson tells the story of a woman who has grown up and continues to live in virtual isolation in the woods of North Carolina. After her mother dies, Nell, who has developed much of her own dialect, is completely alone, but she soon encounters a local psychologist and a doctor who have heard about Nell and want to study her. The doctor and psychologist clash over Nell's privacy, and a court battle ensues. Brian D. Johnson, writing in Maclean's, felt that the film "sets up a series of very tangible problem about what will happen to Nell in the real world, then, with a 'five years later' segue, sweeps them away in a happy ending celebrating family values and good waterfront access."

Nicholson's screenplay Firelight, which also marked his directorial debut, received wide critical interest is the story about a penniless young girl in 1838 England who agrees to become impregnated by a wealthy Englishman whose wife cannot bear children. The young girl has no idea of the man's real name, but years later she reappears as a hired governess and her real identity goes undetected. Writing in the New Republic, Stanley Kauffmann felt the plot "is somewhat strained," but Boston Globe contributor Jay Carr commented that "the thing that ultimately makes 'Firelight' persuasive is Nicholson's ability to transport us to its Victorian world and the conventions of the 19th-century novel." In a review for the San Francisco Chronicle, Mick LaSalle concluded that the film is reminiscent of "women's pictures" of 1940s Hollywood, and LaSalle credited Nicholson with showing "that there's still life in this old-fashioned entertainment."

As a playwright, Nicholson has received several awards for his efforts, including a prestigious Tony award for the best play on Broadway in 2004 for The Retreat from Moscow: A Play about a Family. This play focuses on a three-decade marriage that is apart and ends with the husband announcing he is leaving for another woman. Caught in the middle is the son, who serves as his parents' pawn as he transports messages between the two. Writing in the Hollywood Reporter, Frank Scheck noted that the play treads familiar territory but added that it "is nonetheless a highly powerful experience thanks to the beautifully detailed writing." The reviewer also called it a "beautifully written, staged and performed drama," while New Yorker contributor John Lahr dubbed The Retreat from Moscow a "subtle and powerful evocation of the half-life of a dying marriage" that is enhanced by "marvelous emotional complexity."

Nicholson is also an accomplished novelist whose young-adult "Wind on Fire" fantasy trilogy features the male-female twins Bowman and Kestrel, who must save the Manth people from slavery in a dystopian world. In the first book, The Wind Singer: An Adventure, the twins set out to recover a pipe organ known as the Wind Singer after they are targeted by the Chief Examiner, who thinks they are misfits. Writing in the School Library Journal, John Peters felt that many of the plot devices read as conveniences, but he nonetheless added that "fans of such barbed journey tales … will enjoy the social commentary." Booklist contributor GraceAnne A. DeCandido asserted that the plot lacks "imagination" and "depth … in the heavy-handed portrayal of caste systems, warrior tribes, and smarmy villains," but she admitted that "the background is well delineated" and that the novel has "comic relief" and a "thrilling denouement."

In the second book in the trilogy, Slaves of the Mastery, Bowman and Kestrel are once again fighting evil after five years of peace. This time they and their family are made slaves and taken to the city of the Mastery, where the twins use both their cunning and magical abilities to fight back. Writing in Booklist, DeCandido called the book "an astonishing mishmash of lore, myth, and magicking" and noted that it has "splendid battle scenes." Eva Mitnick, writing in the School Library Journal, called the effort a "masterful sequel" and wrote, "Every character … is compelling and full of life." The final installment in the trilogy, Firesong: An Adventure, has the twins leading their people back home after the fall of the Mastery, facing both a grueling journey and dissent from within. Of this conclusion to the trilogy, Bookseller contributor Jennifer Taylor wrote, "The striking visual images linger in the mind and the vivid characters seem almost like old friends." In a review for School Library Journal, Beth L. Meister wrote that "This concluding volume of the trilogy features fast-paced action, poetic language, and carefully constructed characters."

In The Society of Others, Nicholson targets an adult audience with his tale of a recent college graduate in England who is disillusioned and flees his family, ending up in a totalitarian Eastern bloc country. When the young man is accused of terrorism, he is paraded on television to answer questions while a film of brutal torture is played on monitors all around him. His ultimate goal is to escape, using both his wits and the kindness of strangers.

Reviewing The Society of Others, Sarah Weinman wrote in the Chicago Tribune that Nicholson "doesn't skimp on novelistic essentials in his pursuit of intellectual ones. Rather, the claustrophobic, thriller-like structure" of the novel "acts as a necessary and palatable framework for the ideas the author explores, such as the self, altruism, and whether humans truly desire absolute freedom." In the New York Times Book Review, Tobin Harshaw observed that Nicholson repeats familiar lessons, such as the fact "that salvation comes from within." Nevertheless, the reviewer felt that The Society of Others "does succeed in establishing its own version of a post-modern dystopia," while Piers Paul Read, writing in the Spectator, concluded that the author "has to my mind established himself with this first work of adult fiction as one of the best novelists around."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Libraries, March, 2004, Gary Handman, review of Double Helix (a.k.a. Life Story), p. 86.

America's Intelligence Wire, February 4, 2005, Thomas Wagner, "Broadway Playwright and Hollywood Screenwriter Tries Again to Succeed as a Novelist."

Atlanta Inquirer, January 15, 2000, review of Shadowlands (play), p. 7.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 25, 1998, Eleanor Ringel, review of Firelight, p. 17.

Back Stage, November 23, 1990, David Sheward, review of Shadowlands (play), p. 36; December 31, 1993, Hettie Lynne Hurtes, review of Shadowlands (film), p. W4; February 10, 1995, Rob Stevens, review of Shadowlands (play), p. 34; December 5, 2003, Jeffrey Sweet, review of The Retreat from Moscow: A Play about a Family, p. 44.

Booklist, October 15, 2000, GraceAnne A. DeCandido, review of The Wind Singer: An Adventure, p. 438; October 15, 2001, GraceAnne A. DeCandido, review of Slaves of the Mastery, p. 389; January 1, 2005, Allison Block, review of The Society of Others, p. 821.

Bookseller, December 7, 2001, "'Blue Peter' Children Choose Nicholson," p. 36; March 15, 2002, Jennifer Taylor, review of Firesong: An Adventure, p. S31.

Boston Globe, August 30, 1998, Laura Yuen, "A Love Affair with Love," p. N9; September 4, 1998, Jay Carr, review of Firelight, p. D3.

Chicago Tribune, September 4, 1998, Michael Wilmington, review of Firelight, p. A; February 3, 2005, Sarah Weinman, review of The Society of Others, p. 2.

Commonweal, January 28, 1994, Richard Alleva, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 22.

Guardian (Manchester, England), May 31, 2000, Lyn Gardner, review of The Wind Singer, p. 9; July 25, 2001, "Parents: Building a Library for Your Children," p. 9.

Hollywood Reporter, October 24, 2003, Frank Scheck, review of The Retreat from Moscow, p. 28.

Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 2004, review of The Society of Others, p. 981.

Kliatt, July, 2004, Hugh Flick, Jr., review of Firesong, p. 51; July, 2004, review of "Wind on Fire" trilogy, p. 32.

Library Journal, November 1, 2004, Lawrence Rungren, review of The Society of Others, p. 76.

Los Angeles Times, September 4, 1998, Kevin Thomas, review of Firelight, p. 10; September 29, 2004, Mike Boehm, review of The Retreat from Moscow, p. E4.

Maclean's, January 17, 1994, Brian D. Johnson, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 61; January 2, 1995, Brian D. Johnson, review of Nell, p. 50.

Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, October-November, 1994, Kathi Maioi, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 77.

Nation, January 7, 1991, Thomas M. Disch, review of Shadowlands (play) p. 27.

National Review, February 7, 1994, James Como, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 72; February 6, 1995, John Simon, review of Nell, p. 72; August 14, 1995, John Simon, review of First Knight, (film), p. 55.

New Republic, February 7, 1994, Stanley Kauffmann, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 26; October 12, 1998, Stanley Kauffmann, review of Firelight, p. 30.

Newsweek, July 10, 1995, Jeff Giles, review of First Knight, (film), p. 56.

New Yorker, November 3, 2003, John Lahr, review of The Retreat from Moscow, p. 94.

New York Times Book Review, February 13, 2005, Tobin Harshaw, review of The Society of Others, p. 13.

Publishers Weekly, August 28, 2000, review of The Wind Singer, p. 84; November 19, 2001, review of The Wind Singer, p. 70; August 26, 2002, review of Firesong, p. 70; September 29, 2003, review of the "Wind in the Fire" trilogy, p. 67; November 3, 2003, "Playwrights's First Novel Bought," p. 14; January 17, 2005, review of The Society of Others, p. 36.

San Francisco Chronicle, September 4, 1998, Mick LaSalle, review of Firelight, p. C3.

School Library Journal, December, 2000, John Peters, review of The Wind Singer, p. 146; December, 2001, Eva Mitnick, review of Slaves of the Mastery, p. 141; January, 2003, Beth L. Meister, review of Firesong, p. 141.

Science Fiction Chronicle, February, 2001, Don D'Ammassa, review of The Wind Singer, p. 38.

Spectator, March 20, 2004, Piers Paul Read, review of The Society of Others, p. 50.

Time, November 19, 1990, William A. Henry III, review of Shadowlands (play), p. 106; December 27, 1993, review of Shadowlands (film), p. 72; December 12, 1994, Richard Corliss, review of Nell, p. 92.

Variety, September 29, 1997, Lisa Nesselson, review of Firelight, p. 61; May 17, 2004, "Scribes at Work: Tony-nominated Playwrights Look to the Future," p. B2.

Washington Post, November 24, 2002, Abby McGanney Nolan, review of Firesong, p. T09.