Ron Milner
Ron Milner was an influential African American playwright known for capturing the complexities of urban life through his plays. Growing up in Detroit's Hastings Street, he was inspired by the diverse stories of the people around him, including African Americans and various immigrant communities. He started his career in 1960 with his first play, *Life Agony*, produced at the Concept East Theatre, and later became known as "the people's playwright" for his relatable themes of integrity, temptation, and familial struggles.
Milner's works often reflect the societal pressures on families and the generational tensions that arise from urban temptations. His notable plays, such as *Who's Got His Own* and *What the Wine Sellers Buy*, delve into themes of personal and financial struggle, exploring the costs of choices made in the pursuit of easy money. Music, particularly jazz, played a significant role in his storytelling, enhancing the emotional depth of his narratives.
Throughout his career, Milner was also involved in education, teaching at various universities and contributing as an essayist and editor. His legacy is marked by a commitment to portraying the struggles and resilience of individuals within society. Milner passed away from liver cancer on July 9, 2004, leaving behind a rich body of work that continues to resonate with audiences today.
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Ron Milner
Writer
- Born: May 29, 1938
- Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan
- Died: July 9, 2004
- Place of death: Detroit, Michigan
Biography
By Ron Milner’s own account, growing up on Hastings Street in Detroit gave him endless stories and characters. There were all sorts of people there: African Americans, Italian and Polish immigrants, Catholics, Jews, Protestants, and Muslims, and everyone had a story to tell. Many of those stories fascinated Milner, especially those involving temptations that lead to degradation and loss of integrity. His plays generally depict such journeys and earned him the title “the people’s playwright.”
Milner began his career in 1960 in association Woodie King at the Concept East Theatre (CET) in Detroit. King produced Milner’s first play, Life Agony, on a bill with two other one-act plays, one by William Saroyan and the other by Tennessee Williams. Milner later founded the the Spirit of Shango Theatre in Detroit, which merged with CET in 1972.
By 1964, King had moved to New York, where he established the New Federal Theatre (NFT). Eventually, Milner joined King after he had revised Life Agony into a full-length play, Who’s Got His Own, which King convinced the American Place Theatre to produce in 1966 under the direction of Lloyd Richards. In 1973, King worked directly with Milner on a new play, What the Wine Sellers Buy, which King produced and directed at the NFT. All told, the NFT produced six of Milner’s plays, three of them under King’s direction. For a time Milner returned to Detroit, where in 1975 he established the Langston Hughes Theatre.
In the years between the productions of Who’s Got His Own and What the Wine Sellers Buy, three of Milner’s other plays were produced. King staged The Warning: A Theme for Linda at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 1969 as part of a quarter of plays written by African-American playwrights, with the other dramas created by Ben Caldwell, Ed Bullins, and Amiri Baraka. The Monster was staged in 1969, while M(ego) and the Green Ball of Freedom was produced in 1971. The Monster is a satire on college life during the Black Power movement of the late 1960’s.
Milner also spent a few years teaching at Lincoln University and other universities. He had met writer Langston Hughes earlier but got to know and respect him highly while at Lincoln University. Milner immersed himself in university life by guest lecturing, conducting workshops, and serving as an artist in residence. He also became known as an essayist and as the editor of Black Drama Anthology in 1971.
Strongly influenced by Hughes and playwright Lorraine Hansberry, Milner was interested in the pressures society exerted on families. His plays depict tensions between the generations and between family loyalty and the temptations of urban life. Such themes are well exemplified in four of his plays. First among them is Who’s Got His Own, which explores the aftermath of a tyrannical father’s death. Despite the father’s monstrous behavior, his son and daughter finally come to an understanding of him as a man whose dignity and self- worth had been trampled under the feet of the establishment that hired and controlled him. In What the Wine Sellers Buy, Milner portrays the temptation of easy money on Steve Carlton, who opts for the life of a pimp and tries to put his girlfriend in his stable. Carlton finally realizes that the life of a hustler costs much more than the money it generates. Checkmates contrasts the economic status of an older couple with that of a younger one, exploring the temptations that arise from an easy life that undermines marital relationships. The theme of easy money reappears in Urban Transition: Loose Blossoms, in which a middle-class young man sees his family moving toward bankruptcy and tries to hustle drugs to save them, resulting in his death in an exchange of gunfire.
Milner’s works often make use of music, especially jazz. M(ego) and the Green Ball of Freedom essentially is a ritual performed with music and dance; Jazz-Set, with music by jazz musician Max Roach, explores the lives of the members of a jazz sextet. Milner’s plays also feature rich characterization and strong tensions between individuals and society in order to make a moral statement. They have been called didactic, but they also are highly textured and intensely compassionate. Milner died from liver cancer on July 9, 2004.