Sam Shepard (November 5, 1943 - July 27, 2017) was an award-winning playwright, Oscar-nominated actor to rockstar drummer and songwriter, he’s widely considered to be one of American’s most iconic and prolific theater artists.

Growing up under the roof of an alcoholic ex-military father, Shepard was a trouble-maker with creative pursuits. At the age of 20, he left for NYC to pursue an independent life in the arts. Heavily inspired by jazz music, Shepard’s writing quickly cemented his place in the theatre community, with over twenty plays produced in just eight years in theatres such as La Mama and Theatre Genesis. He would go on to collaborate with lover and rockstar Patti Smith, write music with Bob Dylan, and work in London, before returning home to America. In the coming years, he would go on to write his most important works.

In 2017, Sam Shepard died due to complications with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis).