New Book Explores the History of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Cocktails With George and Martha: Movies, Marriage, and the Making of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, a new book by Philip Gefter exploring the behind the scenes of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, will be released on February 13. The book details the play, the groundbreaking film it became, and how the characters of George and Martha changed the image of marriage.

Gefter traces Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? from its beginnings in 1962 in Greenwich Village’s bohemian enclave, through its tormented production process, to the 1966 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton that has a permanent place in the canon of cinematic marriages.

Gefter’s biographies include What Becomes a Legend Most: The Biography of Richard Avedon and Wagstaff: Before and After Mapplethorpe, which received the 2014 Marfield Prize for arts writing. He is also the author of an essay collection, Photography After Frank and a regular contributor to The New Yorker: Photobooth, Aperture, and The New York Times.