Edward Asner (Leo)
Versatile, committed, eloquent and talented all describe actor/activist Edward Asner. Perhaps best known as the gruff but soft-hearted journalist Lou Grant, the role he originated on the landmark TV news room comedy The Mary Tyler Moore Show and continued in the newspaper-set drama Lou Grant, and that earned him five Emmys and three Golden Globe Awards. Asner received two more Emmy and Golden Globe Awards for the mini-series Rich Man, Poor Man and Roots. His prolific and much honored acting career demonstrates a consummate ability to transcend the line between comedy and drama.
One of the most honored actors in the history of television, Asner served as National President of the Screen Actors Guild for two terms. He was inducted into the TV Academy Hall of Fame in 1996 and received the Ralph Morgan Award from the Screen Actors Guild in 2000 for distinguished service to the Guild's Hollywood membership. In March 2002, he was again honored by The Guild as the 38th recipient of the prestigious Life Achievement Award for career achievement and humanitarian accomplishment, presented annually to an actor who fosters the highest ideals of the profession.
In addition to his professional versatility, Edward Asner has consistently served and committed himself to the rights of the working performer in addition to advocating for human rights, world peace, environmental preservation and political freedom. A passionate and informed spokesperson for the causes he supports, Asner is a frequent speaker on labor issues and a particular ally for the acting industry's older artists. Some of the many honors he has received throughout his career include the Anne Frank Human Rights Award, The Eugene Debs Award, Organized Labor Publications Humanitarian Award, ACLU's Worker's Right's Committee Award and the National Emergency Civil Liberties Award.
Edward Asner has more than 100 TV credits, including guest appearances on Curb Your Enthusiasm, ER, and The Simpsons. Asner's motion pictures include They Call Me Mister Tibbs!, Fort Apache the Bronx, JFK, and the European production of Giovanni XXIII - the highest rated television mini-series in the history of Italian TV as well as the box office hit, Elf with Will Farrell and James Caan. Asner has done several Hallmark movies and was nominated for another Emmy for The Christmas Card.
Most recently he co-starred in the feature film Gigantic
with John Goodman, Zooey Deschanel and Jane Alexander; as well as his Emmy
nominated guest appearance on CSI/NY and currently is the lead voice of Carl
Fredricksen in Pixar's 2009 box-office-hit UP! Filming for CBC’s Christmas Dreams will air later this year.
Anna Lodej (Marta)
Anna was born and raised in Warsaw, Poland. She has appeared in a number of off-Broadway plays, including "Room 314", and in a number of Hollywood Films, including "The Stepford Wives" and "Something's Gotta Give".
Born in Brooklyn, the youngest of 6 children, Michael started acting in a high school production of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. Balancing acting lessons with a successful career as a home repair person—featured in New York Magazine—Michael soon landed a stint in the long-running Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding. Many voiceover and commercial jobs later, he came to Los Angeles and has been featured in the film A Line In The Sand. He’s also developing a TV series based on the double life of his father. “I have learned,” says Michael, “to keep learning and to be ok with contradictions because that grows the spirit. Being true to who you are gives you your chutzpah.”
John Fingal O'Donnell (Director)
Alain Silver (Producer)
Beginning in the industry as an assistant director on the feature Every Which Way But Loose, Alain has been a producer on numerous films and television projects including the recently completed 10th & Wolf directed by Bobby Moresco and starring James Marsden, Giovanni Ribisi, and Val Kilmer as well as Crashing—based on a story he created with writer/director Gary Walkow—starring Campbell Scott. Previous features include Beat directed by Gary Walkow and starring Courtney Love and Kiefer Sutherland, Bel Air directed Christopher Coppola and Cyborg2: Glass Shadow directed by Michael Schroeder and starring Angelina Jolie. He is currently in post-production on White Nights a movie he wrote and directed from a novella by Fyodor Dostoevsky. A well-regarded film historian and lecturer, Alain recently served as keynote speaker for the DGA Directors Weekend on Digital Moviemaking. He has written and edited over twenty books including L.A. Noir (Taschen), Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles, David Lean and his Films, and Roger Corman: Metaphysics on a Shoestring. An expert on film noir, gangster, and vampire movies, Alain has provided audio commentary on dozens of DVDs, including such classics as The Dirty Dozen, Double Indemnity, and Laura.
Paolo A. Durazzo (Cinematography, Editing, Producer)
Stuart Matranga (Writer)
A long time journalist for many national magazines and newspapers, and winner of the Rolling Stone Journalism Award for Essay Writing, Stuart now teaches history and literature at Bridges Academy. His first film experience was directing documentaries for the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He has since written a novel, Mr. Moonlight, to be published later this year (represented by Stephany Evans, FinePrint Literary Management). A Man Of The World came out of many hours gardening with his grandmother and listening to her stories.
For more information about Thingie, a new novel by Masu Gaam, go to www.masugaam.com
Breslau Productions Presents
A MAN OF THE WORLD
Starring
Edward Asner
Anna Lodej
Michael Perri
Produced By
Alain J. Silver
Stuart Matranga
John Fingal O'Donnell
Paolo A. Durazzo
Written By
Stuart Matranga
Directed By
John Fingal O'Donnell
