National Theatre

Synopsis:

This is the long-awaited biography of one of the twentieth century's (and America's) greatest playwrights, whose accomplishment bears comparison with Eugene O'Neill and Tennessee Williams. A post-war decade of work earned him international critical and popular acclaim - 'All My Sons' (1947), 'Death of a Salesman' (1949), 'The Crucible' (1953) and 'A View from the Bridge' (1955) are modern classics of the theatre. Miller was born in 1915 and wrote during a fascinating time in American history. He matured during the Great Depression and like many found hope for the beleaguered common man in Communism in a country that was essentially deeply conservative. The Great Depression was a period of deprivation for many that left a mark upon the national psyche comparable to the mark the family feud of the American Civil War left upon the nation. The chill left by the shadow of sudden collapse of banks and businesses and farms was felt for many years after the US had become prosperous. The Second World War elevated the common man to war hero and it was not until Japan was defeated and the Cold War began that the ugly elements of American conservatism would freely persecute writers and artists who had embraced Communism, no matter if it had only been flirtatiously. Miller was among them. His refusal to name names and to co-operate with the notorious House of Un-American Activities gave him a heroic role to play. In that same year, 1956, Arthur Miller momentously got married a second time - to Marilyn Monroe. The biography ends shortly after her tragic death in 1962, and eloquently shows how their relationship informed Miller's great plays.