Bøger af Bernard Mendillo

A captivating comedy about a man-rooted in the Sixties-who must choose between his career and the people he loves.

A romantic comedy on a galactic scale, as an aimless Earth Boy and vivacious Space Girl collide in this charming love story about finding out who you are.

CHRISTMAS ON MAVIS STREET is a comic and nostalgic movie about Catholic school, childhood and family - taking place in Providence, Rhode Island, in the 1950s. It follows poor little Ray Bellini as he pines after the most beautiful girl in the sixth grade, It is a funny, nostalgic episodic adventure-bringing to life a bygone era and celebrating family, friends, love and childhood.Ray's heartthrob is Theresa Mangiaverde, a blonde blue-eyed beauty who is unattainable. Ray perseveres. Along the way he and his pals encounter adventures, disasters and triumphs at their grammar school run by Dominican nuns-Our Lady of the Very Long Thorns.Altar boys. Spelling. Math. Uniforms. Catechism. Latin. Gregorian Chant. Clapping erasers. Diagramming sentences. Sins. Grace. Sacraments. Processions. School plays. Milk Money. Nuns. Mother Superior. Everything builds to a climax on Christmas Eve, when Ray confronts who he is and who he wants to be.

A serious film-with dark humor-about the richest man in the world trying to buy the presidency, while a terrible secret threatens to tear the family apart.

Bravado is a humorous, episodic novel, following the escapades and adventures of Tim Falls throughout the three tumultuous years following his graduation from college.Written in short, fast-moving chapters-the story flies along-immersing the reader into a world of captivating characters-as they work in a Catholic all-boys high school, set out on a cross-country adventure, and ultimately start a school of their own-all the while looking for love and happiness.

Electra 225 is a funny and heartwarming novel about a man who inherits his father's classic Buick and convinces his troubled family to take a summer trip to the Pacific Ocean-for lunch. When his father, dies, Andy Scalabenfro inherits a 1959 Buick Electra 225. A massive Buick-with holes on the side! The high point of America's love affair with the road. Andy and his wife Christi are barely doing all right in their life in Providence, Rhode Island. He's lost his job and is filling in by substitute teaching. Their teenage kids, Henry and Morgan, talk to them a little less than most teenage kids. Christi is a CPA, who has never really gotten over the one lost opportunity of her life. Andy decides that they should use the summer to take a car trip to California, see the Pacific Ocean, have lunch and then come back. "You can pick the restaurant," he tells Christi. They're off. Reluctantly. But off, nonetheless. For about twenty minutes. Then the car breaks down and they have to pull off the highway in Johns Towne, Rhode Island. And they can't leave. They can't go home because they rented their house for the month. Adventures follow. Salvation may be at hand. Oddly, everything seems to focus on Detroit. Then there is Agnes, the octogenarian who Andy has hired to type his handwritten manuscript. They never meet, but converse through notes in Andy's writing. Slowly, Agnes and Andy find a way to do what has to be done.

The Wide Plains of Troy is a modern retelling of the Iliad, where men and women wage war against each other, the truth and life itself.The novel is set in the inconspicuous town of Foxton, Massachusetts, in the ninth week of a war against a dread scourge called The Affliction.Fierce political adversaries fight over truth and life itself-with some saying The Affliction must be fought and others saying it is nothing but a hoax. The question for them-and for our time- is: Will truth trump hatred?Two families are central to the struggle-the Prames and the Mycenas-divided irreparably when Franco Prame somehow steals Helena, the most beautiful woman in the world, away from her husband, Manny Mycena.Ineffectual Manny does nothing, so his forceful brother Auggie Mycena takes up the fight, while Franco's equally forceful brother, Huck, defends the Prames.Then a 98-year-old man dies after drinking water out of a garden hose. His age would seem the likely cause, except for the fact that his tongue turned bright green. His wife dies the next day. Then others start to die. The town is in chaos. Politics obscure the battle.A key ally to the Mycenas is Actor Myrmidon, a man who has never been sick a day in his life. Actor assumes command of the Mycena cause, until Auggie, a despicable man who keeps women prisoners in his house, sees one of his victims escape and sets out to replace her by stealing Bree, the long-lost and tragic love of Actor's life.Actor goes into a rage and withdraws from the battle. All seems lost-when Actor's best friend, Pat Amici, takes Actor's place and charges into the fray.Everything builds to a climax on the Saturday of the Ninth Week of The Affliction.All of it quite literally goes up in smoke-revealing the cause of The Affliction and bringing down terrible and tragic revenge and retribution.Rage. Love. Lust. Treachery. Death.And throw in a Muse for good measure!

THE WIND AT YOUR BACK-along with WYOMING-which were both written about the same time in the late 1980s-is a romantic comedy about love and relationships and friendships.It is about the day-to-day struggles with life-and how we survive and perhaps flourish.

The Providence-is a literary novel with an action twist. It is about a man confronting his past-choosing between death and action-desperately doing the one thing he has to do. After his perfect life had been torn apart in a single day, Peter Pilyard had planned to sit at the smallest bar, in the smallest hotel, in the smallest state of the Union and slowly drink himself to death. His plan is upended as Pilyard finds people to care about again-people to die for-people to live for. He realizes he must take action. It is the only option that can possibly lead to redemption.

MATES AT LAST is the final play of my MATES TRILOGY. Each play stands alone - but, collectively, they follow the two main characters' lives for six consecutive hours - from "seven past seven" until "seven past one" of a very fateful day. The three plays explore the meaning of friendship, courage and success. The other plays are MATES (winner of the Wykeham Rise nationwide playwrighting contest and produced off-off-Broadway at Lolly's Folly in 1973; and again at the Melfi Repertory in Binghamton, NY, in 1993); and MATES IN PARADISE (produced at the Melfi Repertory in Binghamton, NY, in 1993; and then produced, twice, at the 450-seat Orpheum Repertory Company in Foxborough, MA, in 1995). MATES AT LAST was produced at the Melfi in September of 1995. Synopsis: MATES AT LAST is a comedy about how two men discover the true meaning of success. The play begins with Whittler and Evans packing their bags. They are about to go out into the real world. But - two new female patients arrive to occupy the room. The men linger to "show them the ropes" - and because they find themselves attracted to the women. The action of the play revolves around success. Whittler relates how he's been miserable at love. Evans adds two stories of incredible failure - at operating a lemonade stand and at volunteering at an orphanage. The future looks bleak. But the men begin to rally. And the women begin to see something of value in them. Whittler tells of how he learned to make coffee - at his father's deathbed. And suddenly - they learn that success isn't measured "in stacks of money" but, rather, "in heartbeats." The men decided to return in two weeks - to "update" the women about their adventures on the outside. And, perhaps, to pursue the beginning of a relationship. And - at long, long last - Whittler and Evans set out on the greatest adventure of all: life.

A drama - with dark comedy - about love and honor, loyalty and truth - set in modern times, with Arthurian overtones. Harry and Agnes and William and Elaine are two happy couples. Until they meet each other. And then it becomes a struggle between captivation and honor. A struggle that rips them apart, smashes their love, and forces them to the brink of violent dissolution. In the background, hovering maliciously, is Marvin. Their magical tax accountant - with the mysterious past. He's a "wizard" when it comes to finance - if only it all ended with money. It is ultimately up to William - the Arthurian enthusiast - to make the final decision. And, like Lancelot leaving Guinivere at the convent gate after the last great battle has been fought, William must decide if the price one sometimes has to pay for love is too high.

Sammy Doll is a comedy about a an so desperate to save his doll factory that he decides to market one of his dolls to white children only. Kyle Greene quickly gets the publicity he wanted - and just as quickly finds himself embroiled in a mess he never imagined. Black and white customers begin to fight in stores for the dolls. A store owner tries to resist selling the dolls - but opts to make money instead. Right-wing activists embrace Kyle as their hero. And an up-and-coming TV reporter dreams of riding the controversy to the network. Then a group of Dominican nuns enter the fray. They are militants - led by Sister Rhonda, who is black. Rhonda is not afraid of her mother superior or her bishop - who oppose her stance; nor is she afraid to make a point with a baseball bat. Rhoda breaks into Kyle's office and confronts him. They each have a disquieting effect on the other. They attack each other's beliefs and values - but, in some strange way, they also start to help each other. Meanwhile, Kyle must contend with Arthur, the manager of the factory - who is black - and who goes along with Kyle at first, but eventually opposes him. And then there's Grace, who, Kyle learns to his chagrin, had a 32-year love affair with his father. Everyone gets seduced. Seduction is easy. That's what Grace says. And that, as it turns out, is the common link among all the characters. At the end - in a mad attempt to rid himself of the guilt and to try to set things right - Kyle has an inspiration. He finds forgiveness. And - as he and Rhonda leave to have a cup of coffee - there is a hint that perhaps he has found something else as well.

Mavis Street is a comic and nostalgic novel about Catholic school, childhood and family in the 1950s, following poor little Ray Bellini as he pines after the most beautiful girl in the sixth grade, determined to kiss her by Christmas.Ray and his friends realize that the sixth grade is different. For one thing, they now like girls. Ray's heartthrob is Theresa Mangiaverde, a blonde blue-eyed beauty who is unattainable.Ray perseveres. Along the way he and his pals encounter adventures, disasters and triumphs at their grammar school run by Dominican nuns-Our Lady of the Very Long Thorns in Providence, Rhode Island.Altar boys. Spelling. Math. Uniforms. Catechism. Latin. Gregorian Chant. Clapping erasers. Diagramming sentences. Sins. Grace. Sacraments. Processions. School plays. Milk Money. Nuns. Mother Superior. Ray is guided by his parents, his three brothers and his huge Italian family. While everyone, it seems, drives Buicks.Everything builds to a climax on Christmas Eve, when Ray confronts who he is and who he wants to be.

WYOMING-along with THE WIND AT YOUR BACK-which were both written about the same time in the late 1980s-is a romantic comedy about love and relationships and friendships.It is about the day-to-day struggles with life-and how we survive and perhaps flourish.

HERCULES BLUE is a play about love and devotion. About knowing who you are.It's a play about bonds between people-especially between unlikely people. It is a play about the human spirit.

Playing With Pain is a serious romantic comedy about a man so at-odds with the world that he drives away the women that love him. Kevin Milton is a man of no compromise. A prosecutor for the city of New York, he rails against all the evils about him; but, more importantly, he rails against all the evils, stupidities, frailties, wrongdoings and shortcomings of mankind. His problem is that he is a man of integrity - which is admirable, of course, but which can also drive people nuts. Indeed, Jessica - his wife - has divorced him. And Cleo - his girlfriend - is threatening to walk out on him. In the background is Harold - a co-worker - who has designs on Cleo. Cleo, however, things Harold is a legume. Cleo tries to get Kevin to take it easy. He rescued her, after all, both literally and spiritually - and she wants him to be happy. But she is running out of energy. And then Jessica pops in for a visit - to discuss a minor operation that their daughter must have - and things heat up. Jessica's life is now one of ease, she says. And it's also boring. Kevin feels the old love - but can't be ungentlemanly to Cleo. And Harold keeps intruding. Things are ultimately resolved - but not without a measure of pain for everyone. "What will you do with your pain," Jessica asks. "I'm a professional," Kevin answers. "I'll play with it."

CLAUS! is a play about an American naval pilot who stumbles onto Santa Claus' workshop - and the eight women who assist Claus - only to be caught up in a power struggle for control and survival.It is a story about honor and love and betrayal and opportunity. Most of all - it is a story about second chances.

Chocolate Cokes is a comedy about knowing who you are. Al Magistra is a widower, a father of four children, and the owner of a clothing store. He rules his life and those about him with an iron hand. He's a first-generation Italian American - and there's a strong element of ethnicity to what transpires. He revels in the sameness of his life - and in the comfort it brings. Then one day at lunch, something happens. Al is, as always, holding court with his friend Joe Gillini and his head clerk Nina Buonfigolla. Joe's life is messed up: he's in debt, his wife is unfaithful, his son is in jail. Nina, in contrast, presents a cool exterior. Then Al's son, Jim, who is "away at college" - just a ten-minute walk from the store - arrives with a girlfriend: Sally Burns from Montana. Jim went away to college to meet different kinds of people. Sally, who is actually half Italian, came east to meet some Italian boys. Learning this causes Jim "to explode." And as everyone joins in the debate - and in all manner of side debates - each person is forced to learn who they really are. Al and Nina - are right there for each other, but Al, as Nina says, seems intent on throwing away happiness with both hands. Joe has scheme after scheme to make money and straighten out his life - from becoming a priest to baking bread for sale; and it takes an insight from Sally to provide the solution. Jim almost throws it all away, but Nina sets him straight. And Al and his son can't seem to connect - until Al reveals the reason he drinks Coca-Cola mixed with chocolate syrup.

Circle A, Circle B is a romantic comedy about the Sixties and the Nineties- and love is the battlefield! Meet the Cantata brothers: Theodore and Frederick. They're children of the Sixties. Theodore is a public defender; Frederick works for historic preservation. Theodore is happily, if sometimes stormily, married to Sue; they have four daughters. Frederick is divorced, the father of 2 sons. The brothers play touch football on Sundays, they do "their work" around Theodore's house, and dream of ways to get rich. And then Frederick meets Angela Monterro-a woman of the Nineties; professional, beautiful and independent. They are attracted to each other-but Angela isn't about to allow herself to be trapped into a relationship with "an older man, who has two children, is economically strapped, and, by his own admission, hasn't much of a financial future." Or will she? The play is episodic-set against scenes of touch football; scenes of the brothers trying to fix toilets, chop down trees, paint garages and construct gardens; scenes of Angela trying to figure out if she wants Frederick or another suitor (the detestable Scott Jones-a man of the Nineties). It's actually simple: all these people have to do is make a few decisions and figure out why they fall in love.

LITTLE NED AND THE GREAT LIBERATOR is a comic play about what freedom means. Is it money? Power? Having nothing to lose?At the center of the story is Lorenzo Mazuma-a bitter older man who's suffered losses and who decides to use his limitless wealth to get the one thing from life that he cannot buy. Along the way he interacts with a wide range of characters-the laggard, the loafer, the schemer, the idealist.And, of course, Little Ned.

SAINT DEBBIE is a literate farce about the faculty of a small Catholic high school, desperately trying to save it from being shut down my militant nuns. The four off-center teachers, each with issues and pasts that boil up over the surface, and the fearsome janitor with the Harvard degree, seem an unlikely gang to team up to do anything. They're much too consumed with lust, oddball interests, irreverence and self-centeredness. All the while, they try to find romance, redemption and something to do. Mite Boxes. Bake sales. Nuns from Slackastan. A saint who slept with any man who could climb her pile of mulch. Popes. Mother Superiors. Red rosaries to pray against communism. A quest to rid the world of birth-control pills. If it's odd, if it's Catholic, if it borders on absurd-it's grist for the faculty mill at the Academy of Saint Deborra of the Sinful Mulch-a.k.a., Saint Debbie's. As the situation worsens, the band of near misfits find themselves to be the last line of defense. Can them come up with a way to raise ninety-seven thousand dollars in two weeks? Can they find a miracle called Google? Or will the Academy of Saint Deborra of the Sinful Mulch be doomed to extinction?

A comic play about a man of simplicity who confronts the complex world on his own terms.

When his second wife leaves him for another man, Marvin Piersoll comes to the realization that he has nothing to lose. So, he sets out on a journey of discovery, driving from New York City to Wellfleet, ostensibly to learn to sail. There's the Jaguar, there's the nun, there's the hairdresser's assistant. There's the boat man, the beautiful classmate, the confused wife and the waitress at the New York deli. At every turn, at every stop, Marvin encounters all manner of humanity. The question is, will Marvin get to Wellfleet and learn how to sail? The question is, what's over the horizon?

MATES is the first play of the MATES TRILOGY. Each play stands alone - but, collectively, they follow the two main characters' lives for six consecutive hours - from "seven past seven" until "seven past one" of a very fateful day. The three plays explore the meaning of friendship, courage and success. The other plays are MATES IN PARADISE (produced at the Melfi Repertory in Binghamton, NY, in 1993; and then produced, twice, at the 450-seat Orpheum Repertory Company in Foxborough, MA, in 1995) and MATES AT LAST (produced at the Melfi in September of 1995).MATES won the Wykeham Rise Playwrighting Contest in 1973. It was produced off-off-Broadway at Lolly's Theater Club in 1973. In 1993, it was produced at the 250-seat Leonard Melfi Repertory Theater in Binghamton, New York.

A comedy about a man who's never had one complete day of happiness in his life. Robert Bike maintains that he's never had one day where he's been happy from the moment he wakes up until the moment he goes to sleep. At some point-in each and every day of his life-something happens to make him sad. And so, on a very long day when he and his two children meet to clean out his parents' home, he relives his past-sees his future-and learns to accept the present. As the story unfolds, Robert, Franny and Aaron slip into other personas-and their lives play out before them. It's the things we do-it's the things we keep. That's what Robert learns-that's what Robert passes on to Franny and Aaron. Oh-and there are the small matters of the best pizza in the world-running for political office-playing baseball-finding love-writing plays-becoming successful-and-perhaps-launching the Raider II-a rocket gizmo from Robert's youth that needs a couple of cans, a firecracker and a leap of faith to make it fly.

THE NICKEL JAR is a serious comedy about a man desperately trying to keep his marriage and his family together-set against the backdrop of the New Millennium and centered on a curious coin bank that's been in the family for forty years. Ben Murillo with his wife Meegan and adult children Nancy and Tom are in Sorrento on December 31, 1999. The Millennium is only a few minutes away-time enough for them to reflect on their lives and figure out who they were, who they are and where they are going. Each of the four actors also assume another role-bringing Tom's mother and father, his older sister and his younger self into the action of the play. The play moves in all directions-the characters laugh, love and cry-and shout to the heavens to be heard. In the end, as the new era hits them, they have realized everything they could have by coming to Italy for the New Year.

Plays from college; plays from the Little Theater in Binghamton, New York; and an odd sort of play that's sort of about Elvis.Most of these are comedies. Some reflect the mind of a very young writer. And some aren't bad at all.

Santa Claus Just Left Town is a comedy about a man trying to write a play about Christmas that will please everyone. Bill Munroe is a playwright who is not the perfect choice to write a Christmas play for a community theater. His working title is "Another Miserable Christmas "-and it reflects his cynical view on life and the holidays. His wife, Cindy, and their friends are not slow to give advice-and they insist on seeing themselves in the play's characters. There are multiple relations being explored-both in "reality" and in "the play" - which leads everyone to learn something about themselves-and about the holidays. Take the enigmatic Johnny Caruso, Bill's brother-in-law. He owns a company that provides happiness. He is invited to the house to meet Sara Moore, Bill and Cindy's neighbor. In "reality" they don't seem to hit it off, but, in "the play" they find that they can help each other. In "the play," Johnny keeps popping up in a variety of roles-from a street Santa Claus collecting money, to a toy-store clerk, to a chef at a diner. Johnny is the glue that holds both aspects of the play together. Then there's Steve Stevenson, the director, who fights with Bill about everything - but they learn to work together, as "magic makers." In the meantime, Steve's girlfriend, Karen, has a long-standing, unrequited crush on Bill. Karen learns what's important in life from Johnny Caruso. Santa Claus Just Left Town is a general-audience play: It's funny, it's uplifting - but with a bit of an edge to it that has a literate appeal.

WHAT IT ALL MEANS is a comedy about uncertainty and fear of loss. It's also a play about love and hope.

THE LAST BABY BOOMER is a play about a man-set in his ways, trying to come to grips with an ever-changing world-who must choose between his career and the people he loves. Bill Mazetta likes to talk. He talks to the audience. He rants and raves about women and men. He castigates the politically correct, overpaid ballplayers and political scoundrels. His "fevered mind" is so active, that the four women in his life often appear onstage. He talks to these apparitions, arguing, cajoling, pleading. He also reacts with them in real time and space-with similar, confused, results. He has a "once in a lifetime" job offer to teach in Missouri. That means leaving his daughter behind-as well as the woman he loves. (He may not actually say it, but he loves her.) Meanwhile, his department head is in love with him-something he is painfully unaware of. And then, if possible, things get more complicated when a female student charges him with sexual harassment. Down to the very end, Bill Mazetta never stops talking, never stops changing his mind, never stops trying his best to make things right. Of course he does-but the fun is getting there.