Biography of Dick Rogers
Having experimented with various genres during the past twenty odd years with little satisfaction, and fleeing the demands of the image making machine as a speech writer, I found myself drawn to the world of the playwright. I have finished six plays and nearly finished with a seventh. Although I have no creative successes to impress you with, I have written numerous op-ed, commentary, and criminal justice pieces for papers across the country. I was the speechwriter for L.A. Sheriff Peter Pitchess for eight years. As for my plasys, I’ve had two readings at the Cheraant Ranch Theatre in Atascadero, CA (Force Under Color and Sable’s Solution)
My work history is eclectic and I offer it in the sense that, having allowed myself to roll with the ebb and flow of life, I have experienced much that could find a home in the stage play format. From the beginning as a former Air Traffic Controller, State Trooper (Alaska) bush pilot (Alaska) and a 20 plus year veteran of the L.A. Sheriff’s Department, retiring as a lead Homicide Detective/Sergeant. After retiring from LASD, I took up organic farming and did this for 15 years (also operating a bed and breakfast with my wife, Kim.) Recently, I retired completely from grunt work and have committed myself to writing.
Plays completed:
Hairdresser to the Dead
Force Under Color
George
The Robin Hoods
Sable’s Solution
The Jimmy Crisp Case
Gentlemen’s Wine Club
Plays
An early twenties Punk Rock hairdresser, abandoned as a baby in the 1970s, armed with only two nebulous clues, attempts to find her birth parents. With the possible name of her mother (Abigail) and a name on the back of the slip pinned to her bonnet, she takes temp jobs at various San Francisco businesses aligned with the name "Macy," hoping to get a better clue as to her father and mother's identity. Once she has found her father, her mind is in flux as she weighs bringing him into her life...the result pending on his answer to one question.
THE JOHNNY CRISP CASE
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Sergeant Willie Gleason, an aging, cynical, veteran homicide detective, is being interviewed by an L.A. Times reporter on his celebrated, but controversial, career in homicide. Requiring that the reporter meet with him at the Code Four Bar, a cop watering hole, Gleason unravels a perplexing case involving a fifteen-year old who was murdered and buried under the parents bedroom. To arrive at the truth, which trumps justice in this case, he resorts to a method never attempted, much less approved, to flesh out the facts.
The cast consists of four speaking roles
SYNOPSIS
The Robin Hoods
Richard Ferguson, at age 79, lives on fumes of days past. A man of mystery, he returns to Boston after decades of self-imposed exile in the wilds of Alaska. While in Boston, he agrees to appear in a special telecast on exceptional teachers honoring Ferguson’s brother. While waiting in the WBZ Green Room, he meets another man who now lives in Ferguson’s former haunts, Whiskey Point in Brookline. This man, Fred Nelson, also appears to be shrouded in mystery, yet there is a strained, convoluted camaraderie between the two. Eventually, Nelson, suspects that Ferguson may be involved in a mysterious homicide involving an aunt of one of Ferguson’s boyhood friends.. He also learns that Ferguson was one of three pre-teen youths who found a horde of gold coins in an estate area, during the late 1940s. Just as Nelson is called into the television studio for the taping, he feels he is on the verge of getting Ferguson to tell him why he mysteriously left for Alaska, decades before. When Nelson enters the studio, Ferguson drifts off in a slumber that takes him back to the time of the coin discovery. We learn that the three boys, The Robin Hoods, existed in a world of nearly feral experiences in the woods and ponds of a private estate area they embraced as their own Sherwood Forest.
Ferguson, in his dream, relives the details of discovering the hidden gold horde and during a wait in a thicket to avoid being spotted on the private reserve, the young Ferguson learns about the murder of his pal’s aunt. He awakens on Nelson’s return to the Green Room. They continue their discussion during which Nelson learns enough to know that whatever caused Ferguson to leave Massachusetts must have been an act cloaked in necessity and courage.. Although Nelson assumes Ferguson is probably a wanted man, he assigns a higher value to the sense of trust that has emerged in their discussion. As the final scene closes, and Nelson is about to leave, Ferguson places a five-dollar gold coin in his hand, the last remnant of the Robin Hoods’ discovery. Nelson, in turn, gives him his card, which identifies him as a retired detective/lieutenant with the Massachusetts State Police. He wishes Ferguson well on his return to the bush.
FORCE UNDER COLOR
Synopsis:
A highly commended veteran of the Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Emil Westphal, a survivor of five shooting incidents, all within policy, regarded as the epitome of what the Sheriff’s Department seeks in its officers, is suspected of beating a handcuffed suspect he has arrested. Detective Gleason has the case wrapped up in a few months, but he is conflicted over why the beating took place. Westphal, along with his partner, a new, lateral transfer he was training, have invoked their Miranda rights.
Gleason presents the results of his investigation first to his captain, who elicits troubling aspects in Gleason’s presentation that go back to their early days working patrol cars in the 1950s. It turns out that Westphal, and his background, mimics that of Gleason’s, including an illustrious military tour before becoming cops. Although Gleason and his captain had “force” issues with suspects in their day, the rules have changed. Now, officers are more restricted on the use of force and are held to a much higher standard. Although this should be an easy, open-and-shut Force Under Color of Authority issue for Gleason, he cannot reconcile a gnawing thought that a miscarriage is being foisted on Westphal.
Following the logical channels of the case does little to relieve the frustration Gleason feels at every level. His interview with the suspect Deputy is shut down before anything can be determined and the Deputy’s partner adopts a “code of silence” which further frustrates Gleason’s search for the truth. The basic facts are clear, a serious beating took place, and putting the initial elements of the case together is not a challenge. Gleason takes his efforts to the District Attorney who is quick to file five felonies on the two deputies (including Westphal”s silent partner) As Gleason tries to fathom his nagging fear he’s missed an essential item in the case, he finds little solace from fellow detectives. As he realizes that his zealous pursuit of the truth has affected his health and his marriage, he seeks help from the one person who lived the life he’s lived as a cop, his Captain. The final scene takes place in a bar with his captain, where, as Gleason spews out his frustrations, the captain realizes he has gone over the brink. A single gunshot closes the curtain.
Successes
Reading - Cherant Ranch Theatre 2015
Play _ SABLE'S SOLUTION
Reading - Cherant Ranch Theatre 2016
Play - FORCE UNDER COLOR