Richard Toscan is a retired theater professor. He taught for two decades at the University of Southern California, where, through the university's NPR affiliate KUSC, he became the driving force behind the creation of the first Star Wars radio drama, for which he served as Executive Producer.[1][2]
Toscan arrived at USC in 1970 and rose to become Associate Dean of its School of Cinema-Television. In this role he taught, put on theatrical productions, and wrote original plays.[1] He also produced numerous audio dramas together with John Houseman, an actor and producer with deep and varied experience in both theatre and radio. They broadcast their radio plays on KUSC, and National Public Radio rebroadcast some of them. NPR was looking for ways to expand its audience and asked Toscan for ideas on creating a radio play with mass appeal. Houseman's advice was to "create a scandal" - to try something outrageous that would capture people's attention.[3] One of Toscan's students suggested that a radio adaptation of the film Star Wars could serve as the "scandal:" it was a film of almost unprecedented popularity that was known for its lavish visual effects. The idea of an audio adaptation would seem impossible at first.[1] Yet the film also had rich, innovative sound design and music that would lend themselves to a radio adaptation.[4]
KUSC's connection to the university helped gain the support of George Lucas, who was a graduate. He sold the movie's rights, along with access to its music and sound library, for one dollar.[2] As executive producer, Toscan worked with experienced Star Wars novelist Brian Daley to do the writing and helped make sure that his script followed an approach necessary for radio, using dialogue and sound to replace the film's visual input.Through Toscan's work on the radio drama, he also met his wife Sharon, who worked for NPR.[1]
Toscan later took a position at Portland State University in Oregon, and later at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. He and Sharon retired in Portland in 2010.[1]
Works
| Year | Title | Contribution(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Star Wars (radio) | Executive Producer |
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4
Richard Toscan, champion of contemporary audio theater by Brett Campbell on Oregon ArtsWatch (January 13, 2022) (backup link archived on July 5, 2022)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Brian J. Robb. A Brief Guide to Star Wars, Hachette, 2012. ISBN 9781780335834.
- ↑ That Time NPR Turned 'Star Wars' Into A Radio Drama — And It Actually Worked by John, Derek on NPR (December 18, 2015) (backup link archived on May 4, 2022)
- ↑ The Making of Star Wars for Radio: A Fable for the Mind's Eye on the Internet Archive
Sources
- The Making of Star Wars For Radio: A Fable For the Mind's Eye
- Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization
External links
Richard Toscan at the Internet Movie Database- The Making of Star Wars for Radio: A Fable for the Mind's Eye on the Internet Archive
- That Time NPR Turned 'Star Wars' Into A Radio Drama — And It Actually Worked by John, Derek on NPR (December 18, 2015) (backup link archived on May 4, 2022)
