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Charles Ludlam
April 12, 1943 - May 28, 1987
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Charles Ludlam was born on April 12th, 1943, in Floral Park, New York, but was raised in Greenlawn. He lived at 20 Lawrence Street and attended Greenlawn Public School, Taylor Avenue Junior High, and graduated from Harborfields High School in 1961.
Ludlam was deeply involved in the Harborfields Drama Club, and during his senior year, he directed, produced, and performed plays with a group of friends.
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Charles Ludlam Senior Photo
Harborlight 1961
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Harborfields Dramatics Club
(Third Row - Fifth in on the Left)
Harborlight 1960
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At 17-years-old, Ludlam formed the "Students Repertory Theatre," located in a loft studio beneath the Posey School of Dance on Main Street in Northport.
The venue seated just 25, but every show was sold out. Rent was $25 a month, about $270 today, and was paid by his friend Christopher Scott, co-founder of the Ridiculous Theatrical Company.
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Theatre Group Presents Children's Play at Village Green School
The Long-Islander
October 6, 1960
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Madman On A Roof
Northport Observer
April 6, 1961
| | Ludlam also performed in productions with the Township Theater Group, a community theatre in Huntington, and worked backstage at the Red Barn Theater, a summer stock venue in Northport. | | |
11-C Junior Class Photo
(Third in on the Right, with Cuffed Shirt)
Harborlight 1960
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Harborfields Dramatics Club
(Bottom - Center)
Harborlight 1961
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Senior V.I.P's
Most Individual
Harborlight 1961
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After graduating, Ludlam received a drama scholarship to Hofstra College, where he majored in acting and wrote his first full-length play, Edna Brown.
Faculty often pushed back against his flamboyant, unconventional performance style, which they called too "outrageous." These rejections drove Ludlam to explore playwriting, channeling his creative frustration into something new.
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Harborfields Whitman Students Win Scholarships
The Long-Islander
June 8, 1961
| | At Hofstra, he also met fellow student Susan Carlson, later known as Black-Eyed Susan, who became a lifelong collaborator and star of his future company. His artistic growth during this time was shaped more by peer collaboration than formal mentorship, fostering the independence that defined his career. | | |
Hofstra Presents Annual Festival
The Long-Islander
February 22, 1962
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Local Man Has Title Role in College's "Finian"
The Long-Islander
December 2, 1962
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Activities in Greenlawn
The Long-Islander
January 10, 1963
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Ludlam graduated in 1964 with a degree in Dramatic Literature. By the end of college, he was openly identifying as gay, an identity that would inform both his art and activism.
His professional career began in 1966 with a role as a cross-dresser in Screen Test, a Play-House of the Ridiculous production. His improvisational talents turned the role into a breakout performance. Inspired, he began writing plays for the company, including Big Hotel and Conquest of the Universe, based on Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine the Great. During rehearsal for one of these plays, Ludlam was fired, so he and half the cast left to form a new troupe: The Ridiculous Theatrical Company.
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Founded in a Greenwich Village basement, the company broke every theatrical convention. It was openly queer, unapologetically campy, and drew from vaudeville, silent films, and gothic melodrama.
Early on, the group struggled with funding and critical reception, but Ludlam regrouped in 1970 with a tighter core of collaborators and more accessible works.
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The Artificial Jungle
Left to Right: Philip Campanaro, Charles Ludlam, Black-Eyed Susan, Everetta Quinton, Ethyl Eichelberger
c. 1986
Photo by Anita & Steve Shevett
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His first major success, Bluebeard, brought national attention, financial stability, and touring opportunities. Other celebrated works include Stage Blood, The Mystery of Irma Vep, and Der Ring Gott Farblonjet. Ludlam typically starred in his own plays, often playing both male and drag roles. His greatest acting success was the title role in Camille.
Ludlam was recognized with numerous honors: six Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, the Rosamund Gilder Award for Distinguished Achievement in the Theater, and posthumous induction into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2009. Also, the New York City block in front of his theater was renamed Charles Ludlam Lane.
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Camille 1973 Playbill
Ridiculous Theatrical Company
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In 1975, Ludlam met Everett Quinton, a Navy veteran with no theater experience. Within a year, Quinton was designing costumes, performing, and became Ludlam's life partner. They were together for 14 years.
In March 1987, Ludlam was diagnosed with AIDS. He passed away just one month later from pneumonia related to the disease at St. Vincent's Hospital.
Quinton kept the Ridiculous Theatrical Company alive for another 10 years, honoring Ludlam's legacy until its closure in 1997. However, the plays live on through off-Broadway revivals and productions around the country. Quinton passed away at the age of 71 on January 23r, 2023, from glioblastoma.
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Charles Ludlam & Everett Quinton
March 5, 1986
Photo by Patrick McMullan/Getty Images
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Today, Charles Ludlam is honored by organizations like the American Theatre Wing and Legacy Project Chicago. Hofstra University highlights him among their most celebrated alumni, stating:
"stars and creative talents who are always in the spotlight... the spirit of Charles Ludlam and the Ridiculous Theater Company is still with us."
The New York Public Library's Billy Rose Theatre Division holds the largest collection of Ludlam's materials in the Charles Ludlam Papers, 1967-1989, including notebooks, diaries, scripts, costume sketches, photographs, and more. Access is by in-person appointment only, but an online overview and contact information can be found here.
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Must Speak Out
The East Hampton Star
July 23, 1987
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100 Years Ago
June 1925 News Articles
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Truck Overturns at Centreport
The Long-Islander
June 5, 1925
*Herbert Brothers Furniture Truck, 1925 (Similar Truck)
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Old School House For Sale
The Brooklyn Eagle
June 13, 1925
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Greenlawn's Two-Room School
c. 1911
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Greenlawn Graduates
The Long-Islander
June 19, 1925
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Greenlawn School Makes Fine Showing
The Long-Islander
June 26, 1925
*1924 Postcard
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Camp Alvernia Ad
The Tablet
June 27, 1925
*Photo from 1939
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GCHA Membership
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Consider renewing your membership or joining, as your annual dues allows us to continue maintaining our two historic properties, the John Gardiner Farmhouse, and the Suydam Homestead, alongside the preservation of paintings, photographs, documents, and ephemera at the Russell B. Brush Research Center.
An annual membership entitles you to a subscription to our quarterly newsletter and monthly e-newsletter, in addition to discounts on programs. You will also get early access to our digitized collection, and virtual exhibits/tours.
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Greenlawn-Centerport Historical Association Mug
$12.00
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(Images of America)
Greenlawn: A Long Island Hamlet
From the archives of the Greenlawn-Centerport Historical Association comes this striking visual history of the north shore Long Island hamlet of Greenlawn.
Originally known as Oldfields, the area was settled in the early 1800s by farmers. The extension of the Long Island Railroad through the farmlands in 1867-1868 provided the impetus for the development of a profitable pickle and cabbage industry, the growth of the community, and the arrival of vacationers, many of whom soon became year-round residents. Greenlawn includes stories of the Halloween eve conflagration, the Adirondack-style vacation retreat, the opera house, the farmhouse murders, the vaudevillians, and the Pickle King, among others. Today, houses cover the old farmlands; yet Greenlawn with: one main street of small shops, a railroad crossing that halts traffic throughout the day, and many historical buildings-still retains its small-town charm.
$20.00
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(Images of America)
Centerport
Discover the Deco estates, summer camp spots, and stunning landscapes that Long Island's North Shore coastal community of Centerport has to offer.
Once known as Little Cow Harbor, the coastal community of Centerport on Long Island's north shore is rich in natural resources, including a beautiful harbor with several freshwater streams surrounded by wooded hills. Centerport was originally the site of several important mills, but in the late 19th century, it became a summer retreat for both the rich and the not so rich. Youth camps, most notably the Franciscan Brothers' Camp Alvernia; guesthouses; and resorts as well as popular restaurants dotted the shoreline. In the early 20th century, large estates were established by the Vanderbilt, Van Iderstine, Burling, Morse, DeBrabant, Whitney, and Corbin families on the Little Neck peninsula. As the 20th century progressed, modest and generously sized houses replaced the small farms and many of the large estates. The unspoiled natural beauty and rich history has for centuries drawn residents whose love of Centerport continue to make our village a great place to live.
$20.00
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Harvey A. Weber's Centerport
In 1990, Harvey Weber wrote, edited, designed and published Centerport, a word and photographic history of his adopted home. The book was well received and was reprinted in 1991. At his death in September 1991, the rights to his book about Centerport became the property of his widow, Madeline Weber. In 2001, as the book was about to go out of print, Mrs. Weber generously ceded the rights to the Centerport book to the GCHA in loving memory of her husband. The Association has now re-issued Harvey Weber's book as a tribute to the great contribution he has made to preserve the history of Centerport through his own beautiful photographs and through the historic photographs that he assembled. The Association also acknowledges with heartfelt gratitude the generosity of Madeline Weber. Her gift has made it possible for our community to enjoy her husband's work for years to come.
Harvey Weber was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1917. He died in Centerport in 1991. During his lifetime he received many prestigious awards and honors, including the Joseph Costa Award from the National Press Photographers Association. He exhibited his work in six one-man shows. His photographs are included in museum, university, and private collections.
$5.00
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(Available only through the GCHA)
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