PITT TO HOST CONVERSATION WITH GORE VIDAL

PITTSBURGH, March 5 -- The University of Pittsburgh Program for Cultural Studies and the Department of English will host Gore Vidal, well-known author, in conversation with Christopher Hitchens, contributing editor of "Vanity Fair," on Saturday, March 21, at 7:30 p.m. in Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, Oakland.

The event is open to the public, but seating is limited. A $5 donation to benefit the Pittsburgh Aids Task Force will be requested at the door.

Vidal, called "our greatest living man of letters" by the Boston Globe, is the author of many novels including "Washington, D.C.," the first in what was to become a multi-volume fictional chronicle of American history; and "Myra Breckenridge," a comedy of sex change in a highly mythical Hollywood. "Visit to a Small Planet" and the prize-winning "The Best Man" are Vidal's two successful Broadway plays.

In addition, Vidal wrote the Hollywood screenplays for "The Death of Billy the Kid" and "Suddenly Last Summer." Vidal's 1995 memoir, "Palimpsest," was hailed by the London Sunday Times as "one of the best first-person accounts of this century." His newest work, "The Smithsonian Institution," will be published on March 9 by Random House.

Christopher Hitchens is cultural critic for "Vanity Fair" and a regular columnist for "The Nation." His many books include "For The Sake of Argument" and "Missionary Positions: Mother Theresa in Theory and Practice." Hitchen's journalistic interests include the Royal Family, Washington politics, and American culture. Hitchens served as the visiting Mellon Professor in the Department of English in the spring of 1997.

The event is sponsored by the Office of the Provost, Dean of FAS, the University Center for International Studies, and the Pitt Alumni Association. Additional support is provided by the Departments of French and Italian, History, Political Science, and Theatre Arts, as well as the Film Studies Program, the Honors College and University Relations.

For more information call Peg Chalus at 624-6506 or Elayne Tobin at 624-6529.

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