Born August 27, 1890
Redfield, South Dakota

Died July 23, 1969
Old Tappan, New Jersey

Theater educator, administrator

Hallie Flanagan. AP/Wide World Photo. Reproduced by permission.

"Fred [Hallie's father] began organizing home talent shows in the family living room on weekends.… Once Hallie had discovered the pleasure of thrilling an audience…there was no stopping her."

From Hallie Flanagan: A Life in the American Theatre

Hallie Flanagan, multitalented in the theater arts, exhibited her abilities in acting, playwriting, and directing while teaching at Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, and then at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. In 1935 Flanagan was appointed director of the Federal Theatre Project (FTP), a program established under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's (1882–1945; served 1933–45; see entry) administration. The FTP was one of the many New Deal programs designed to put people back to work and bring the nation out of the 1930s Great Depression. The FTP...