Beaufort ready to celebrate Pat Conroy’s Lowcountry heart
Remembering Pat Conroy — 1945-2016
Beaufort's love affair with Pat Conroy ☙ Beaufort's prince, Pat Conroy, goes home ☙ Conroy's wife organizes memorial event at Waterfront Park ☙ Pat Conroy’s last days ☙ State of Surprise: Pat Conroy’s love letter to South Carolina ☙ Pat Conroy literary festival dates set ☙ Pat Conroy in his high school years in Beaufort: A tribute from principal Bill Dufford ☙ In his honor,Conroy’s ‘losing season’ teammates revisit the moment at The Citadel ☙ Cartoonist Robert Ariail's tribute to Conroy ☙ Pat Conroy mourned by dignitaries, cadets and friends with ‘personal grief’ ☙ Ervena Faulkner: A meal to mourn Pat Conroy ☙ SC lawmakers honor Conroy following funeral ☙ Kathleen Parker: Conroy’s writing made him the sexiest man alive ☙ Lauderdale: I could hear an ‘amen’ at Pat Conroy’s funeral ☙ Why graduates of The Citadel, class of 2001, united to attend Conroy funeral ☙ Hundreds pay respects to Pat Conroy, family in Beaufort ☙ How 10 minutes with Pat Conroy changed my life ☙ Lauderdale: Pat Conroy expects all the shrimp in Beaufort to be pickled for his funeral (+recipe!) ☙ Op-ed: 'Let something legendary' come from PatConroy ☙ Keyserling: Pat Conroy bonded with other 'orphans' who landed in Beaufort ☙ Real people inspired characters inConroy's books ☙ Lowcountry remembers Pat Conroy ☙ How Pat Conroy made Beaufort a destination ☙ Pat Conroy on the silver screen ☙ Model for 'Prince of Tides' tiger lived in Columbia ☙ Photos: PatConroy and Beaufort ☙ Books written by Pat Conroy ☙ Quotes from Pat Conroy's works
Stories from Conroy's friends and admirers: Conroy's closest friends: Grateful now for last year's celebration of author's life ☙ Close encounters with Pat Conroy ☙ Lowcountry remembers Pat Conroy ☙ Sallie Ann Robinson recalls press tour with Pat Conroy ☙ Great Santini tells principal 'my son (Pat Conroy) will not be a secretary' ☙ Retired book seller: Decades after Daufuskie, Pat Conroy 'knew every (student's) name' ☙ Conroy book buffs: When you read his books, 'you are there'
The Prince of Tides’ presence will be felt this week.
Beaufort author Pat Conroy will be celebrated on the bus, in the words of the southern authors he championed, on the screen and in the release of his own new book.
The inaugural Pat Conroy Literary Festival begins Thursday. The festival launches a year after a similar celebration for Conroy’s 70th birthday and more than seven months after Conroy died of pancreatic cancer.
Writing workshops, book and poetry readings and film screenings are on the itinerary. Conroy’s friend Bernie Schein and Schein’s daughter, Maggie, will offer bus tours of Conroy’s Beaufort, with tickets available through the Historic Beaufort Foundation.
Most of the events are ticketed, though some are free. Tickets can be bought through at www.uscbcenterforthearts.com and clicking the link for shows and events.
The festival serves as the kickoff for the Pat Conroy Literary Center at 308 Charles St. There will be an open house at the center from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.
The open house will include materials from the USC Libraries Pat Conroy archive, the Conroy family’s personal collection, video clips from the Beaufort Film Society and a preview of the center’s programs, which begin in 2017.
And then there is the new book.
“A Lowcountry Heart: Reflections on a Writing Life” will be unveiled by Conroy’s widow, Cassandra King, and moderator Ellen Malphrus at USC Beaufort starting at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. The nonfiction collection of Conroy’s work includes blog posts, articles, speeches and letters.
King wrote the forward.
A closing reception and book signing will follow, with ticket sales from the event benefiting the Pat Conroy Literary Center.
Stephen Fastenau: 843-706-8182, @IPBG_Stephen
This story was originally published October 18, 2016 at 9:03 AM with the headline "Beaufort ready to celebrate Pat Conroy’s Lowcountry heart."