Paul Baker and the Integration of Abilities

"Irritating, arrogant, nuts -- and a genius." That's what Charles Laughton said of Paul Baker. He also said, "Paul Baker is one of the most important minds in the world theater today. He seems to have invented new ways of doing things, and I think something big will come out of it." Something big did come out of it. Baker's production of Eugene McKinney's A Different Drummer received an invitation from C.B.S. TV's cultural program, "Omnibus," to present the play live from their New York studio. Baker's production of As I Lay Dying, Robert Flynn's adaptation of William Faulkner's novel, brought an invitation to stage the play at the Theater of Nations in Paris, the first non-Broadway production to compete there. It won a Special Jury Award. His presentation of Preston Jones' Texas Trilogy, took Jones and the trilogy to Broadway.