Ed Asner and Mark Rydell Set for GOOD MEN, OXYMORONS Event at Malibu Playhouse, 6/20

Malibu Playhouse presents a unique one-night jam-packed benefit with Hollywood icons, Ed Asner and Mark Rydell. This rare event opportunity to spend an intimate evening with these amazing talents includes pre-show picnic, special post-show private dinner with the duo, screening of their career reels as well as their touching, dramatic film, "Good Men," encore performance of "OXYMORONS" and Q&A. Brian Connors, who wrote and directed the play and film, will also participate in the evening's itinerary.

The event will take place on Saturday, June 20 at 7 p.m. at the Malibu Playhouse, located at 29243 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90265. Purchase tickets at www.malibuplayhouse.org or email info@malibuplayhouse.org. Note: This play contains strong language. For information on how to obtain tickets to the performance/screening and to the private pre-show picnic and/or private post-show dinner, go to malibuplayhouse.org.

"GOOD MEN" - 12 minute film about two elderly, long-time friends and show business colleagues. On an afternoon before an Oscar party they get into an argument over the Holocaust, the proposed mosque at Ground Zero and the conspiracy allegations surrounding the 911 attacks on The World Trade Center. Watch the trailer!

"OXYMORONS" - On a NYC Central Park bench by the polar bear exhibit, two curmudgeonly brothers, played by Ed Asner and Mark Rydell, (real-life longtime friends and icons of TV and film) hash out their sibling rivalries "over money, women and Lincoln logs." Originally "Oxymorons" was performed as one of three one-act plays in "Plays in the Park." Asner, Rydell, and Connors will be available for a post-show Q&A.

Ed Asner, winner of 7 Emmy Awards, 5 Golden Globes and multitude of other wins and nominations, is recognized for his 100 plus diverse TV and film credits. Asner is the only actor to win Emmy Awards for playing the same character (Lou Grant) in both a comedy, the iconic "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and a drama, his own show, "Lou Grant." Asner is also known as the voice of Carl Fredricksen in Pixar's award-winning animated film "Up," the voice of J. Jonah Jameson (editor of The Daily Bugle), in "Spider Man" and as Ben Parker (Peter Parker's uncle) in "The Spectacular Spider-Man."

Mark Rydell, Best-Director Academy Award nominee for "On Golden Pond," starring Henry Fonda, Jane Fonda, Katherine Hepburn and Dabney Coleman, has three EMMY nominations, Directors Guild of America, Cesar Awards, France for other works as well as winning two Heritage Awards for his directing various film and TV Westerns. Among Rydell's other known films: "The Reivers," "Cinderella Liberty," "The Rose," "The River" and "For the Boys." Before launching his directing career, Rydell first trained in music and acting. On-screen credits include roles on "The Edge of Night," "As the World Turns," "The Phil Silvers Show," Jewish mob kingpin Marty Augustine in "The Long Goodbye" and a role in Woody Allen's "Hollywood Ending" in 2002.

Connors is a member of the Actors Studio Playwright/Directors Unit led by Mark Rydell and Martin Landau. As a writer-director, his "Good Men" film received outstanding praise including Official Selection Miami Short Film Festival, Grand Prize New Media Film Festival Los Angeles 2012, Official Selection Charleston International Film Festival 2013, Official Selection Provincetown International Film Festival 2012, and Good Men Best Ensemble Cast Artisan Festival International World Cinema Festival Hamptons 2013. Connors worked off-off-Broadway, in major regional theaters, television, commercials and has been featured on "Law & Order," "Law & Order SVU," "The Riches," "The Handler" and "Close To Home." He also appeared opposite Kevin Costner Disney's film "McFarland." Connors's first plays were staged in NYC's Ensemble Studio Theater and along West 42 Street. His play "Cross Your Heart" was produced at the Hamlet Of Bank Street Theater in the West Village.

Pictured: Ed Asner, Mark Rydell in "Oxymorons"

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