Award-winning author and historian David Nasaw will kick off the Free Library of Philadelphia’s ambitious seven-part Orson Welles & The Golden Age of Hollywood lecture series on Wednesday, April 12.
His lecture, Mr. Lucky: The Life of Orson Welles Before Hollywood, will take place at the Parkway Central Library. Free tickets are available online at tinyurl.com/wellesFLP
Nasaw – who specializes in the cultural, social and business history of early 20th Century America – penned the acclaimed The Chief: The Life of William Randolph Hearst and two Pulitzer Prize finalists Andrew Carnegie and The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy.
Speaking at the Free Library, he said he will delve into Welles’ early years.
“You can’t make it up — and if you did — no one would believe you,” Nasaw said. “He was an orphan, a child prodigy, a boy wonder. He abandoned music, his first love, at age nine when his mother, a pianist, died. He lived with his drunkard father for a time, then when he died, was adopted by a family friend. After prep school, he turned down a scholarship to Harvard to paint in Ireland and when he ran out of money lied his way into the Gate Theatre in Dublin by claiming he was a Broadway star. No one believed him, but they put him on stage anyway. He was sixteen years old.
He added, “By the time he was old enough to vote, his list of theater and radio credits as performer, director, producer, impresario was already astounding — and he was just beginning. By his 23rd birthday, he had made the cover of Time magazine. Six months later came The War of the Worlds, and his fame — or infamy — (they were, to him, one and the same) as a genius of disruption reached new heights. Hollywood came calling now — it couldn’t resist — and when he was offered a contract that gave him full creative control, he set out for the West Coast with what he would later call the ‘confidence of ignorance’.”
All events will take place at the Parkway Central Library on 1901 Vine Street in Philadelphia, according to Dick Levinson, librarian and lecture series producer. Admission is free, but tickets must be obtained online at tinyurl.com/wellesFLP
Orson Welles & The Golden Age of Hollywood programming includes:
Mr. Lucky: The Life of Orson Welles Before Hollywood with author David Nasaw; Wednesday, April 12, 7:30 p.m.
The City of Nets and Traps: The Hollywood That Orson Welles Discovered with Peter Decherney of the University of Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 17, 7:30 p.m.
The Struggle to Make Citizen Kane with Chicago Tribune film critic Michael Phillips, Wednesday, June 21, 7:30 p.m.
The Genius Who Couldn’t Do Anything Right with Ray Kelly of Wellesnet.com, Wednesday, July 19, 7:30 p.m.
The Genius Who Made Legendary Films on a Shoestring with Slate senior editor Sam Adams and Meta Mazaj of the University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Cinema and Media Studies, Wednesday, September 6, 7:30 p.m.
The Crusader for Social Justice with actress-director Zuhairah McGill, Wednesday, October 11, 7:30 p.m.
The Legacy of Orson Welles with Bob Mondello of NPR’s “All Things Considered,” Wednesday, October 18, 7:30 p.m.
The Free Library of Philadelphia hosts numerous events each year. Chartered in 1891, its mission is “to advance literacy, guide learning, and inspire curiosity.” Those wishing further information on registering for the in-person Orson Welles & The Golden Age of Hollywood lecture series may email Dick Levinson at levinsonr@freelibrary.org or register on EventBrite.
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