Press Releases

November 11, 2002
Tom Wolfe to Receive John Steinbeck Award at Meet the Writers Book Fair

Event Moves from the Former Elaine Benson Gallery to Southampton College

Author Tom Wolfe will be the 15th recipient of the John Steinbeck Award when Southampton College of Long Island University hosts the 26th annual John Steinbeck "Meet the Writers" Book Fair on Friday, May 2, 2003, on the grounds of Southampton College from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Admission to the event is $20.

The event venue for the past 25 years had been Bridgehampton's Elaine Benson Gallery, which recently closed. Relocating the Book Fair to sponsor Southampton College seemed like a natural choice for event organizers.

Scores of local writers of new books will meet the public and autograph their works at the rain-or-shine event, which is sponsored by the John Steinbeck Project at Southampton College and benefits the college's Library and Writing program. The event is known as the traditional kick-off of the Hamptons summer season. East End writers who have had a book published since last May or those who will soon have a book published and are interested in participating in this year's event should call Victoria Fabisch at (631) 287-8477.

Tom Wolfe, who resides part-time in East Hampton, is the author of several best-selling books including the novel "Bonfire of the Vanities" and non-fiction books including "The Right Stuff," "The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby" and "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test." He has won the American Book Award for nonfiction, the National Institute of Arts and Letters Harold Vursell Award for prose style, and the Columbia Journalism Award.

Past recipients of the John Steinbeck Award include E.L. Doctorow, Lanford Wilson, Peter Matthiessen, Kurt Vonnegut, Terrence McNally, Betty Friedan, David Ignatow, Wilfred Sheed, Edward Albee, James Salter, Susan Isaacs, Dava Sobel, Kenneth Koch and Gregory Rabassa.

Since its inception in 1977, the John Steinbeck Project has raised funds for Southampton College of Long Island University, which have been used to establish a Visiting Writer's Program, the annual Steinbeck Lecture, student writing awards and scholarships, and acquisitions for the College Library.

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