Harold Pinter 1930 - 2008

His Life… English playwright, screenwriter, director and actor born and raised in Hackney, east London Married twice; had a son and 6 stepchildren

Pinter was born into a middle class family During WWII, he lived through the Blitz, which haunted him for the rest of his life (a feeling lf loss) He began writing poetry at age 12 He loved sports and literature He soon began acting which led to writing plays and adapting the work of other writers for stage and film

Pinter was strongly against war, especially in the late 20th century and 21st century He enjoyed the life he built with his second wife, happily surrounded by step-children and step-grandchildren He won the Pulitzer Prize in literature in 2005 Diagnosed with cancer in 2001, Pinter continued writing and acting until his death from liver cancer in 2008

His Work One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years His best-known plays include The Birthday Party (1957), The Homecoming (1964), and Betrayal (1978), each of which he adapted for the screen

His screenplay adaptations of others' works include The Servant (1963), The Go-Between (1970), The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), The Trial (1993), and Sleuth (2007) He also directed or acted in radio, stage, television, and film productions of his own and others' works

Influenced by Beckett, Kafka, and Hemingway

His strong opinions about war caused him to receive a great deal of criticism, with some claiming that he was not worthy of a Pulitzer Prize Because of the anti- Semitism he saw in WWII, Pinter was an avid supporter of Israel and the cause of the Jewish people