Loading Events

« All Events

  • This event has passed.

Book Discussion: The Man Who Lit Lady Liberty

July 15, 2018 @ 10:30 am - 12:00 pm

Join us for our July book discussion! We’ll discuss The Man Who Lit Lady Liberty: The Extraordinary Rise and Fall of Actor M.B. Curtis by Richard Schwartz.

The Man Who Lit Lady Liberty: The Extraordinary Rise and Fall of Actor M.B. Curtis tells the amazing life story of immigrant actor M.B. Curtis. Curtis catapulted to stardom overnight in 1880 and was the first male American Jewish actor to portray a Jewish theatrical character on stage, using his comedic talent to overcome stereotypes and prejudices of the time. He did so with humanity, so for the first time, the audience laughed WITH the Jewish character, not AT the Jewish character.

This was a seismic shift in American theater. In gratitude for his life in America, he personally paid for the lighting of the Statue of Liberty for a time when Congress would not fund it. Curtis then became a producer, a real estate developer, a promoter, a hotelier, a pioneer in the silent film industry, and a murder suspect. What most defined him, however, was that he always followed his dreams even in the face of extreme adversity. A story of both stardom and great personal struggles, this book rescues it all from the silent archives of forgotten history and shines a torch on an actor whose creativity and cultural influence still radiates invisible today! The Man Who Lit Lady Liberty just won the Bronze Medal for Biography by the 2018 Independent Publishers Book Awards and was accepted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Margaret Herrick Library collections. The book just was awarded the Bronze Medal for Biography from the 2018 Independent Publishers Book Awards in New York City.

 

“An outstanding new biography of one of the most talented characters of his time.”
—Barry Moreno, Historian & Author, The Bob Hope Memorial Library at Ellis Island, Statue of Liberty National Monument

The book can be purchased here. Please select ‘Add to Cart’ on the website and then type in the coupon code ‘Houston30’ to receive the discounted $20.96 book price.

Author Richard Schwartz will join us via Zoom video conferencing to lead our discussion.

A light breakfast will be provided. Sign up with Justin at 713-782-4162 or admin@hcrj.org.

 

Details

Date:
July 15, 2018
Time:
10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Event Categories:
,

Venue

HCRJ
801 Bering Drive
Houston, TX 77057
+ Google Map