Seff, Richard, 1927-

American actor, playwright and agent, Richard Seff was born September 27, 1927 in Brooklyn, New York. He received his Bachelor of Arts from New York University and studied acting with Stella Adler in the early 1950's. Seff's acting career began in radio and moved on to stage and screen. In his twenty years as a theatrical agent, Mr. Seff worked for the Liebling-Wood Agency and as a vice president at MCA (Music Corporation of America). In 1962 with Stark Hesseltine and Leo Bookman, Seff formed HBS which merged with CMA (Creative Management Associates) in 1969. Returning to the creative end of the business, Seff resumed acting and began writing for theatre in 1975. In 2003, he endowed the Richard Seff award through the Actors' Equity Foundation to honor one character actor and one character actress per year for best performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production.

From the description of Richard Seff papers. 1945-2003. (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 122407708

Actor, agent and playwright Richard Seff was born September 27, 1927 in Brooklyn, New York. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University and studied acting with Stella Adler in the early 1950's.

Seff's performing career began on radio. As a character actor, Seff appeared on stage and screen. Credits from his early acting career include the 1951 Broadway production of Darkness at Noon by Sidney Kingsley, and the television show Charade Quiz . Mr. Seff continued acting until 1952 when he left the profession to pursue a career as an agent.

Seff started at the Liebling-Wood Agency in the television department and later became a vice president at MCA (Music Corporation of America). In 1962, with Stark Hesseltine and Leo Bookman, Seff formed HBS, which merged with CMA (Creative Management Associates, Inc.) in 1969. Over the course of his twenty years as an agent, Mr. Seff represented such legends as composers John Kander and Fred Ebb, choreographer Ron Field, and performers Linda Lavin and Chita Rivera.

In 1975, Seff decided to return to the creative end of the business; he resumed acting and started writing for theatre. Film and television credits from the latter part of his acting career include: Quiz Show, Kane & Abel, Being There, The Onion Field, Where the Buffalo Roam, Rage of Angels and Betrayal . Broadway credits include End of the World, Herzl, The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940, and, as assistant director to Eric Thompson, Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy The Norman Conquests . As a playwright, Seff wrote Spotlight, The Whole Ninth Floor, Paris Is Out and Shine! In 1970, Paris Is Out played at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre with Molly Picon and Sam Levine, followed by a national tour with Pat O'Brien and his wife Eloise. Shine! is a Horatio Alger inspired musical for which Mr. Seff wrote the libretto, collaborating with Roger Anderson (music) and Lee Goldsmith (lyrics).

In 2003, Mr. Seff endowed the Richard Seff Award through the Actors' Equity Foundation to honor one character actor and one character actress per year for best performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production.

From the guide to the Richard Seff papers, 1945-2003, (The New York Public Library. Billy Rose Theatre Division.)