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Information for Clients
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_____________ is pleased to announce that it will bring Impeach Justice Douglas! a play about Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, to _____________ on _________. The full length solo performance, coauthored by Anna Marie and Graham Thatcher, features Graham Thatcher in the leading role. Through their company, Periaktos Productions, the Thatchers create theatre and tour productions for Continuing Legal Education programs that focus on ethical issues in the practice of law. Their repertoire also includes Clarence Darrow: Crime, Causes and the Courtroom, that focuses on four of the lawyer's most famous cases, Maxims, Monarchy and Sir Thomas More, a play about the English Chancellor beheaded by Henry VIII, Thurgood Marshall's Coming!, a play about the famous civil rights lawyer, and The Women Lawyers' Club, that portrays stories of some of the most noted women who have impacted the law and the American legal system. Clients include the Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism in Georgia, the National Diocesan Attorneys Association of the U.S. Catholic Conference, the 10th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals and numerous state and local bar associations and law schools.William O. Douglas served 36 years, retiring from the United States Supreme Court in 1975. He still holds the record, serving longer than any other justice in its history. During his tenure he wrote over 1200 opinions, some of which were in the most important cases in the nation's history. A westerner from Yakima, Washington, at a time when American government and economic life were dominated by the powerful eastern establishment, Douglas often found himself alone, embattled in his efforts to stand for the Bill of Rights and "keep the government off the peoples' backs." Gradually, during his years of service, Douglas became an "absolutist" where the Bill of Rights was concerned. Declaring time and time again that these were not suggestions or a vague philosophical dream, but God-given rights of the people, and that the government must heed them, Douglas challenged his fellow Americans to rise to environmental action for the sake of future generations and global existence. An inveterate traveler, prolific writer, and a popular speaker, Douglas used his position as a pulpit to espouse his ideas in two major areas, the Bill of Rights and environmentalism. He also lectured on international relations and American foreign policy. His public visibility and open criticism won him friends in some quarters and more than a few enemies in the Congress and the White House, some of whom actively, though unsuccessfully, sought his impeachment.
Impeach Justice Douglas! explores some of the most controversial and explosive issues of William O. Douglas' long tenure on the Supreme Court. He wrestles with maintaining his "wilderness mind" while engaged in often hostile adversarial conflicts created by his controversial opinions and his active public life. He extols the virtues and berates the weaknesses of "the brethren" on the Court as he passionately addresses the issues of race, freedom of speech and the rights of the individual. He attacks social conformity and offers his perspective on the damage from the "McCarthy Era" and the toll the Viet Nam war took on the country. This engaging production is packed with anecdote, humor, cantankery, tall tales, rebelliousness and painful remembrances. William O. Douglas' legacy is a call for vigilance to protect human rights and action to protect the earth's environment. Impeach Justice Douglas! explores that legacy and provokes thought about our own responsibilities as citizens, not only of the United States, but of the world.
Impeach Justice Douglas! will be presented on ________________________ at _________.
in ____________________. Registration is ______ . For further information call _________
at _______________. **
** Include registration fees and information about CLE, a post-performance discussion, who is sponsoring the show and any other pertinent information about the program or sponsor organization.