PERSONAL TRIVIA

• I have a twin brother.
• My first dog was an Irish Setter named Shawn O’Casey Goldberg.
• Less than 20 people have seen me with wet hair.
• Red is my lucky color.
• Due to an inch difference in my foot size, my mother took me shopping at Crisanti Shoe Hospital.
• My hair texture is the same as my beloved maternal grandmother, Rebecca Weinstein.
• As a girl, I dreamed of being a dancer or an archeologist.
• My politically-active mother was a mathematician and college professor.
• In sixth grade, my front tooth was crowned in silver after an accident.
• I pulled a nylon stocking over my head to straighten my hair in the early 60s.
• I typed my mother’s doctoral dissertation on a manual typewriter, increasing my speed to 90wpm.
• One of my favorite movies is “West Side Story.”
• I biked to high school.
• My sister, Jude, taught me to drive a stick shift station wagon.
• I played left forward on the Girl’s Field Hockey Team in tenth grade.
• I was 18 years old when I tasted my first slice of pizza.
• My parents paid for a porcelain crown as my college graduation present.
• My father won the O.Henry Prize in 1979 for his short story, “Shy Bearers.”
• When I moved to the East Village in 1981, my rent was $48/month.
• I studied American Sign Language for two years.
• Husband J.D. Swain (d. 1995) was part Native American.
• My right salivary gland was surgically removed.
• I have a strong aversion to most condiments, especially mustard.
• My parents, Lester and Dorothy Goldberg, were my heroes.
• My mentor was the staunch advocate and champion for the medical needs of those who are homeless and vulnerable, Philip W. Brickner, M.D.
• While my favorite names are “Mama” and “Grandma,” pet names include “The Babe” (my husband); “Bee,” “Goldilocks,” “Speedy,” and “Bobbi” (family and friends); and “Button” (Burt Reynolds).

THEATRE / WRITING TRIVIA

• In elementary school, my first starring role was in “The Witch and the Scarecrow.”

• As a member of the Forensic Team, I won first prize in Union County and second prize in the state for Oral Interpretation, performing Arthur Kopit's “Oh, Dad, Poor Dad...”

• At the musical director’s request, I lost 15 pounds in high school to play the role of Gladys in “The Pajama Game.”  (The chorus girl who monitored my diet is one of my oldest and dearest friends!)

• As an undergraduate, I received a full-tuition acting scholarship.

• My first playwriting instructor was William Hauptman.

• I understudied Curley’s Wife in “Of Mice and Men” at New Jersey Shakespeare Festival ... and went on opening night.

• I played the Young Miss in the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company’s first production of “La Ronde” in the community room at Village View Housing, produced by Howard Shalwitz.

• I received my Equity card after two seasons of summer stock at Bates Theatre in Maine.

• I was a stand-in for Stockard Channing in “Without a Trace.”

• I was the third batter and pitcher for the worst team in the Show Business Softball League.

• I was employed as the stand-by impostor on “To Tell The Truth” in 1980-81.

• I wrote my first full-length play after attending the Broadway production of “Crimes of the Heart” in 1983, inspired by my sisters.

• I received a scholarship to study playwriting with Circle Rep’s former Literary Manager, B. Rodney Marriott.

• Candyce Manheim was the ASL interpreter for my second play at the Kaufmann Theatre.

• I submitted my first short play in 1998.

• As one of the oldest students, I received an MFA in Creative Writing at the New School in 2001, majoring in Fiction and Writing for Children.

PHOTOS:   1) The Twins 
                   2) To Tell the Truth, 1980
                   3) First grade school photo with combed hair
                   4) My Dad's first short story collection
                   5) Preparing for high school musical, fifteen pounds lighter
                   6) Burt Reynolds and "Button"