Spalding Gray

Biography: It takes guts to stand on stage for four hours and talk about making a movie--and Spalding Gray is possessed of such intestinal fortitude. A co-founder of the experimental Wooster Theatre Group (whose most famous alumnus is actor Willem Dafoe), Gray made ends meet with traditional stage and movie roles, then began monologizing with an engaging piece titled "Sex and Death at the Age of 14," a rambling discourse on Gray's angst-ridden youth in Rhode Island. He toured the U.S., Australia and Europe with his one-man shows, aggravating some, delighting many others. After appearing in a small role in 1985's The Killing Fields, Gray parlayed this experience into his best-known monologue, Swimming to Cambodia, which was filmed by Jonathan Demme (wisely telescoped from its original 240 minutes to 87) in 1987. One year later, Gray made his "mainstream" Broadway debut as the Stage Manager in a revival of Our Town -- and this not altogether pleasant experience inspired a second monologueIt takes guts to stand on stage for four hours and talk about making a movie--and Spalding Gray is possessed of such intestinal fortitude. A co-founder of the experimental Wooster Theatre Group (whose most famous alumnus is actor Willem Dafoe), Gray made ends meet with traditional stage and movie roles, then began monologizing with an engaging piece titled "Sex and Death at the Age of 14," a rambling discourse on Gray's angst-ridden youth in Rhode Island. He toured the U.S., Australia and Europe with his one-man shows, aggravating some, delighting many others. After appearing in a small role in 1985's The Killing Fields, Gray parlayed this experience into his best-known monologue, Swimming to Cambodia, which was filmed by Jonathan Demme (wisely telescoped from its original 240 minutes to 87) in 1987. One year later, Gray made his "mainstream" Broadway debut as the Stage Manager in a revival of Our Town -- and this not altogether pleasant experience inspired a second monologue film, 1992's Monster in a Box.… Expand