The Tolles lecture was established in 1991 by members of the class of 1951 in memory of Winton Tolles, class of 1928 and dean of the college from 1947 to 1972. It brings to the campus distinguished writers in the fields of literature, journalism and theater to lecture and meet with students.
Bogosian is also the author of subUrbia (Lincoln Center Theater) and Griller (Goodman Theatre - Chicago), as well as three Obie Award-winning solos: Drinking in America; Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll, and Pounding Nails in the Floor with My Forehead. He wrote the screen adaptations of both plays, receiving the Berlin Film Festival's Silver Bear for Outstanding Achievement for his work on Talk Radio. He was a contributor to "Love's Fire," an evening of short plays adapted by leading American playwrights from Shakespearean Sonnets, which played to critical acclaim in New York last year after touring the United States and London.
As an actor, Bogosian has appeared in more than a dozen feature films. He is best known for starring as the misanthropic "shock-jock" Barry Champlain in Oliver Stone's film version of Talk Radio. In recent years he has appeared in the films The Substance of Fire, Steven Seagal's Under Siege 2, Woody Allen's Deconstructing Harry, and Terry George's A Bright Shining Lie on HBO.
His collaborations include a 1986 album recorded with the late Frank Zappa, and the recent ABC television series, "High Incident," created with director Steven Spielberg.
Bogosian's plays and solos have been staged around the United States and the world. Last year the prestigious American Audio Prose Library released selections read by the author along with an in-depth interview. Blackbird Records recently released a live-performance recording of Bogosian in Pounding Nails in the Floor with My Forehead. Bogosian lives in New York City.
