{"product_id":"9781617038785","title":"Alan Ball: Conversations","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlan Ball: Conversations\u003c\/i\u003e features interviews that span Alan Ball's entire career and include detailed observations and insights into his Academy Award-winning film \u003ci\u003eAmerican Beauty\u003c\/i\u003e and Emmy Award-winning television shows \u003ci\u003eSix Feet Under\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eTrue Blood\u003c\/i\u003e. Ball began his career as a playwright in New York, and his work soon caught the attention of Hollywood television producers. After writing for the sitcoms \u003ci\u003eGrace Under Fire\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eCybill\u003c\/i\u003e, Ball turned his attention to the screenplay that would become \u003ci\u003eAmerican Beauty\u003c\/i\u003e. The critical success of this film opened up exciting possibilities for him in the realm of television. He created the critically acclaimed show \u003ci\u003eSix Feet Under\u003c\/i\u003e, and after the series finale, he decided to explore the issue of American bigotry toward the Middle East in his 2007 play \u003ci\u003eAll That I Will Ever Be\u003c\/i\u003e and the film \u003ci\u003eTowelhead\u003c\/i\u003e, which he adapted and directed in the same year. Ball returned to television once again with the series \u003ci\u003eTrue Blood\u003c\/i\u003e—an adaptation of the humorous, entertaining, and erotic world of Charlaine Harris's vampire novels. In 2012 Ball announced that he would step down as executive producer of \u003ci\u003eTrue Blood\u003c\/i\u003e, in part, to produce both a new television series and his latest screenplay, \u003ci\u003eWhat's the Matter with Margie?\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University Press of Mississippi","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47151526281456,"sku":"9781617038785","price":50.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781617038785_p0.jpg?v=1763853199","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781617038785","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}