In late 1967, I left my home in San Francisco and came to New York with the intention of becoming a professional actor. Having received a BA from San Francisco State in dramatic arts, I entered the three year Masters program at NYU's Tish School of the Arts. It was in my 3rd year when I realized I wanted to be a writer. All of 1969, while attending classes, I spent every free moment writing plays, screenplays and a musical. My interest in performing was satisfied by securing a modest following for my folk songs. My natural ability at song writing, playing guitar & singing became my artistic release. When I graduated, I got married and we moved to Los Angeles, where I had a master record producer sign me, followed by a manager who was one of the best in the music business. Unfortunately, the desire to be behind the scenes and write kept gnawing away at me. Right after the major 6.6 earthquake at 6:01 a.m. on February 9, 1971, we moved back to New York.
Over the last 50 years, while I've worked professionally as an actor (in film and television), a bookman and college professor, I've had 2 plays produced in New York (Playwrights Horizons) and written several screenplays and musical compositions. In 2015, my screenplay, Line to the Wall, won best short film script at the Manhattan Film Festival. In that same year, I released an EP of jazz recordings entitled Four Jazz. Epitaph in Terror, is the first of my Jake Salazar trilogy to be followed by Epitaph in Silence and Epitaph in Stone and Song.
I'd like to utilize my Shakehouse Productions website in three distinctive ways. First, as a platform for my directorial work in short film; second, highlighting my evolving Jake Salazar trilogy and finally, engaging you in my future musical, Dosshouse, that I will be composing and co-writing with my wife, Charlene.
Last, but never least, I'd like to say that I feel so fortunate to be happily married to my wife, Charlene, a former dancer and now writer & producer and to be the proud father of our son, Michael, who is a former actor and now filmmaker who is making his mark in this crazy but exciting creative business.
I can be contacted at Walter@shakehouseproductions.com