LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER

A few months ago, after filing a story from Los Angeles, senior
writer Bruce Newman stopped off at a theater in Denver. It was no
casual foray. The occasion was the first public reading of Shooting
Stars, a comedy written by Molly Newman, Bruce's younger sister.
Obviously there's more than one writer in the Newman family.
''Molly and I are each other's biggest fans,'' says Bruce, 33,
who wrote the profile of Ray Knight and Nancy Lopez in this issue
(page 34). ''Bruce has always cast a big shadow because of his
talent,'' says Molly, 31, who coauthored the musical Quilters, which
had 24 performances on Broadway in 1984. ''His support means a lot to
me.''
The two youngest of Alan and Betty Newman's four children have
ventured far from their Evansville, Ind., roots. Bruce, who joined
us in 1975 after graduating from Indiana University, lives in
Greenwich Village. ''I loved New York from the moment I set foot on
the pavement,'' he says. Molly, who is married to land developer
Thomas Jones, lives in Denver, where she is a writer-in-residence at
the Denver Center Theatre. It was on that stage that Quilters began
its remarkable trip to Broadway -- where it earned six Tony
nominations -- a path that Molly hopes Shooting Stars will soon
follow.
But the Newmans haven't completely shed their Hoosier skin. Last
year Bruce produced a memorable reflection on the passions aroused by
Indiana high school basketball (SI, Feb. 18, 1985). And Molly's
comedy revolves around the kind of barnstorming women's basketball
team that used to pass through Indiana years ago. Her choice of
technical consultant for Shooting Stars was hardly surprising. ''I
followed basketball growing up,'' said Molly, ''but I still needed to
lean on Bruce. I'm sure the question he remembers the best is when I
| asked him if a point guard is called that because he gets a lot of
points.''
The comedy, sponsored in part by the Denver Nuggets, will be
produced by the Denver Center Theatre next season. ''I think Molly
was worried that Quilters was a fluke,'' says her brother, ''but this
show proves that she's a real talent.''
Bruce can take a lot of brotherly pride in his sibling. ''He was
always the one telling me I was a better writer than he was,'' says
Molly. ''I never believed it -- still don't -- but those words meant
a lot to me.''

Photo(s):

V.J. LOVERO THE WRITING NEWMANS: SI'S BRUCE AND . . .

GEORGE JARDINE/PHOTOSTAFF INC. . . . DENVER'S MOLLY ARE SIBLING SUCCESSES