By Tricia McEldowney
Title: Jonathan Reynolds Papers, 1976-1990
ID: UA/RG-PP/ARCH-019
Primary Creator: Reynolds, Jonathan (1942-)
Extent: 0.59 Cubic Feet. More info below.
Arrangement: The Jonathan Reynolds Papers are arranged chronologically by project.
Subjects: American drama (comedy)--20th century, Authors, American--20th century, Dramatists, American--20th century, Reynolds, Jonathan, 1942-, Theater--United States--20th century
Forms of Material: Comedy plays, Plays (literary genre), Scripts (documents)
Languages: English
Jonathan Reynolds was born on February 13, 1942, in Fort Smith, Arkansas. He attended Denison University and graduated in 1965. Reynolds then spent a year at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before returning to the United States. After a short time working as an actor, he turned to writing instead.
Reynolds’s initial breakthrough came in 1975 with two one-act plays: Rubbers and Yanks 3 Detroit 0 Top of the Seventh. He then turned his attention to writing an article on newscaster and talk show host Stanley Siegel. The article was published in a 1977 issue of New York magazine. In 1978 Reynolds published a script titled Geniuses which was considered his greatest professional success. That same year, he wrote a screenplay for an episode of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) show Visions. Reynolds later turned that episode—titled “Escape”—into a play titled Escape, or The Sheep is Out. This led to his 1979 play Tunnel Fever. Also in 1979, Reynolds worked on the script for Whoopee!, a revival of the 1928 musical comedy. Despite his efforts and generally favorable reviews, the musical closed after a short run. Reynolds worked as a writer on several other projects including Casey (a 1981 unproduced one-man television show), Micki & Maude (1984 film), Leonard Part 6 (1987 film), Switching Channels (1988 film), My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988 film), The Distinguished Gentleman (1992 film), Stonewall Jackson’s House (1997 play), and Girls in Trouble (2000 play).
From 2000 until 2005, Reynolds wrote a regular food column for the New York Times Magazine. He published a collection of these columns as a book—Wrestling with Gravy: A Life, with Food—in 2006.
Jonathan Reynolds died in Englewood, New Jersey, on October 27, 2021.
American drama (comedy)--20th century
Authors, American--20th century
Dramatists, American--20th century
Reynolds, Jonathan, 1942-
Theater--United States--20th century
Repository: Denison University Archives
Alternate Extent Statement: (1) 5" letter document box; (1) 2.5" legal document box
Access Restrictions: This collection is available for research but may be used only in the Denison University Archives & Special Collections research room.
Use Restrictions: Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright and are made available for research and educational purposes. While Denison University holds the physical rights for this collection, we may not hold the copyright or reproduction rights. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Denison University Archives & Special Collections is not held liable.
Preferred Citation: Jonathan Reynolds Papers, University Archives & Special Collections, Denison University (Granville, Ohio)
Processing Information: Processed by: Tricia McEldowney (2025 April); Finding aid written by: Tricia McEldowney (2025 April)
