MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
May 18-25, 2006 Edition
J.K. Rowling, Stephen King,
John Irving to Read Works
Live on Stage in New York
New York, NY/5/10/06J. K. Rowling, creator of the HARRY POTTER series; Stephen King, author of CELL, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION and CARRIE, and John Irving, author of THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP and the Academy Award-winning THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, will present AN EVENING WITH HARRY, CARRIE AND GARP at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on August 1 and 2, 2006.
Both evenings will feature King, Irving and Rowling reading selections from their own works, surprise guests and an audience question and answer session. The evenings will benefit two non-profit organizations: The Haven Foundation which helps performing artists whose accidents or illnesses have left them uninsured and unable to work; and Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), an international independent medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural or man-made disasters, or exclusion from health care in more than 70 countries. The events are sponsored by Scholastic and Simon and Schuster/CBS Corporation.
King, who conceived of the benefit readings, said, This is like a dream come true for me. Its a chance for me to read with two great writers while supporting two very deserving organizations at the same time. I think this is going to be quite an event and worthy causes aside, it is a chance for fans to see some amazing imaginations at work, live and in person on one of Americas greatest stages.
J.K. Rowling, who is making her first visit to the U. S. since 2000, said: For me, this was a unique opportunity to raise money for two great, important causes, read to American fans for the first time in six years and get to meet and read alongside Stephen King and John Irving. Stephen pretended to be in suspense about my answer, but frankly, this was easily one of the most enticing propositions ever put to me in an envelope.
John Irving commented: I first met Stephen King at a reading — another charitable event. The writer Andre Dubus had been hit by a car while assisting a fallen motorcyclist. Dubus lost use of both legs; he had no medical insurance. I organized a series of readings at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to raise money to pay for Andre's hospitalization and rehabilitation. One winter night, in 1981, I read with Stephen. We've been friends ever since. He recently gave a charitable reading for an elementary school my wife and I co-founded in Manchester, Vermont. I said I would read for his charity of choice in return, and together we wrote to J.K. Rowling and asked her to join us. I not only look forward to the reading; I am looking forward to meeting Ms. Rowling, who I credit with introducing an entire generation of readers to long, complicated, plotted novels.
Tickets ranging from $12.50 to $100 will be available through Ticketmaster beginning May 12, 2006 at 10 a.m. Prime orchestra seats will also be available via a Ticketmaster auction online. A limited number of Family Packages which will include 4 premium orchestra seats and a set of 3 signed books one from each author will also be on sale via Ticketmaster at that time for $1,000 per package. Anyone who purchases a ticket will have the opportunity to submit a question for the authors via email. The authors will answer some of the questions at each event. Additional information regarding AN EVENING WITH HARRY, CARRIE AND GARP is available at www.stephenking.com, www.simonsays.com.
The Haven Foundation was created to help freelance performing artists whose catastrophic accidents or illnesses have left them uninsured and unable to work. Haven supercedes The Wavedancer Foundation, which aided audio reader Frank Muller. Muller, a personal friend of Stephen Kings suffered grave head injuries in a motorcycle accident four years ago. Mr. King comments, The time has come to expand The Wavedancer Foundations work because, given spiraling medical costs, the need has never been greater.
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) was founded in 1971 as a nongovernmental organization to both provide emergency medical assistance and bear witness publicly to the plight of the people it assists. A private nonprofit association, MSF is an international network with sections in 19 countries. Each year, MSF doctors, nurses, logisticians, water-and-sanitation experts, administrators, and other medical and non-medical professionals depart on more than 3,800 field assignments. They work alongside more than 22,500 locally hired staff to provide medical and health-related care.
Scribner is a division of Simon & Schuster, part of the entertainment operation of CBS Corporation, a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic and multi-media formats. Its divisions include the Simon &Schuster Adult Publishing Group, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Online, and international companies in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at www.simonsays.com.
Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books and a leader in educational technology. Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products for use in school and at home, including children's books, magazines, technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, film, videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs, school-based book fairs, and school-based and direct-to-home continuity programs; retail stores, schools, libraries and television networks; and the Company's Internet site, www.scholastic.com.
Tickets available beginning Friday, May 12, 2006 at 10:00 a.m. EDT at www.ticketmaster.com or 212-307-7171.
