David Rambo Has 'All The Answers'

Last Saturday, the Californian Old Globe in San Diego hosted the world premiere of The Lady With All The Answers, a new play by CSI: Crime Scene Investigation writer David Rambo.

The play tells the story of famed Chicago newspaper columnist Ann Landers, who seemed to have an answer for everyone's problems, but didn't know who she could turn to with problems of her own. "She started the column the year I was born and by the time I was a teenager, she was in full swing," Rambo told the North County Times. "I looked forward to reading her every day. That was during a socially turbulent time in the 1960s and '70s and she was always at the forefront of issues. The more I read about her, the more interested I was in her connection with the readers."

The Lady With All The Answers stars Tony-winning actress Randy Graff, who portrays Landers at the peak of her popularity in the mid-seventies. At the time, her column was known by nearly everyone in the country, but few people knew anything about the woman behind the column, whose real name was Esther "Eppie" Lederer -- and who was the twin sister of "Dear Abby" writer Pauline Phillips. Rambo used many of Landers' own writings in his script, and managed to win the approval of her daughter. "When [she] read the script, she said I'd captured her mother's voice and I feel very good about that."

Now that The Lady With All The Answers is finished, Rambo is able to concentrate again on his staff writing job at CSI, for which he's penned episodes such as "Butterflied," "Swap Meet" and "4 x 4." And although Rambo joked that he's "not sleeping much," at least the commute is taking him less time, as the original CSI recently moved its sets from Santa Clarita to Universal City -- only ten minutes from Rambo's house. "[The Universal Studios lot] is a great place to throw ideas around," Rambo said. "We call it the 'murder factory.'"

The Lady With All The Answers will be playing at the Old Globe in San Diego through the 11th of September, 2005. Tickets start at $19 and may be booked via the Old Globe web site. And if you miss out on this play, Rambo revealed that in February, San Francisco's Magic Theatre will host the premiere of The Ice-Breaker, dealing with a young PhD student on the verge of a momentous discovery. "It's a two-character play I wrote three years ago before The Lady With All the Answers," Rambo said. "It's great having a swell job in TV and seeing my plays produced in the theater."

For the original interview with David Rambo, head over to the North County Times.

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