SOURCE: Gussow, Mel. “The Prime of Harold Pinter.” American Theatre 11, no. 3 (March 1994): 14-21.

In the following essay, Gussow provides an overview of Pinter's life and career.

Harold Pinter has always been able to surprise himself as well as his audience. Several years ago, he said with an air of resignation, “My attitude towards my own playwriting has changed. The whole idea of a narrative, of a broad canvas stretching over two hours, I think I've gone away from that forever.” Fifteen years after Betrayal, he wrote Moonlight. Although it runs only 75 minutes without intermission, it is a complete, richly textured play. As his body of work testifies and as Moonlight certifies, at 63 he is England's foremost living dramatist. Only Tom Stoppard and Alan Ayckbourn are close contenders.

Writing the play, he said, was “like opening a door and suddenly realizing you're on a plane of gold. I don't...