Novelist │ Humorist │ Columnist

Embezzlement...blackmail…fraud…high school.
Marc Acito’s first novel, How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship & Musical Theater (Broadway Books, 2004), was selected as an Editors’ Choice by The New York Times and was called “a dazzling…thumbs-up winner” by Publishers Weekly.  How I Paid For College is a farcical coming of age tale about a talented but irresponsible teenager who schemes to steal his college tuition money when his wealthy father refuses to pay for acting school. Its message resonates with anyone who’s ever had a dream…or a scheme.
 
"Acito proves himself worthy of whatever praise people may want to throw his way. Hilarious. Memorable, warmly described characters. High school as it should have been."
 
—Kirkus (starred review)

A film adaptation of the novel, which has been described as “if David Sedaris had re-imagined The Catcher in the Rye,” is currently in the works at Columbia Pictures. Now in paperback, the book has been translated into five languages the author cannot read.
 
"This book is my love letter to the surrogate family of friends without whom I might not have gotten out of adolescence alive. Moreover, I wanted to escort readers into a world I lived in but had rarely seen portrayed: the world of magic and mischief that is the domain of the Play People; the freaks and geeks who dress weird and sing show tunes in the halls."

—Marc Acito
 
In praising “the witty high school romp,” the New York Times Book Review said, “[the novel] makes you hope there’s a lot more where this came from.” Sure enough, there is.

In the hilarious sequel, Attack of the Theater People, Edward Zanni and his merry crew of musical-comedy miscreants move to the magical wonderland of Manhattan. It is 1986, and aspiring actor Edward Zanni has been kicked out of drama school for being “too jazz hands for Juilliard.” Mortified, Edward heads out into the urban jungle of eighties New York City and finally lands a job as a “party motivator” who gets thirteen-year-olds to dance at bar mitzvahs and charms businesspeople as a “stealth guest” at corporate events. When he accidentally gets caught up in insider trading with a handsome stockbroker named Chad, only the help of his crew from How I Paid for College can rescue him from a stretch in Club Fed. Laced with the inspired zaniness of classic American musical comedy, Attack of the Theater People matches the big hair of the eighties with an even bigger heart.

Originally trained as an actor, Acito was kicked out of one of the finest drama schools in the country due to artistic differences: he thought he could act and his professors thought he couldn't. Constitutionally incapable of securing gainful employment, Acito has had 36 jobs in his life, including stints as a nude model and day care provider (though not at the same time). Fortunately, he finally found his vocation as a columnist and writer.  Known as “the gay Dave Barry,” Acito wrote a syndicated humor column, “The Gospel According to Marc,” which, for four years, shocked and amused readers of twenty alternative newspapers nationwide. Today, he is a regular commentator on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered.
 
Acito blows the dust off the musty tradition of the author appearance with an evening of stories guaranteed to shock, amuse and inspire. Titled "Confessions of a Square Peg," Acito’s off-the-wall performance is a cross between a reading, a comedy act, and a motivational speech.  Ever the “theater geek,” Acito will perform a cabaret version upon request complete with Broadway show tunes and piano accompaniment.  “I bet John Irving can’t do that,” he jokes. “After all, when it comes to musical theater, I literally wrote the book.”

Marc Acito was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, but now resides in Portland, Oregon, which is a good place to write because it rains all the time. He is a frequent contributor to National Public Radio's All Things Considered and is an financial columnist for WalletPop.com.  He and his partner of 23 years, Floyd, were legally wed in Canada in July of 2003.

Writing

• Attack of the Theater People (Broadway Books, 2008)
• How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship & Musical Theater (Broadway Books, 2004)
• The Gospel According to Marc (nationally syndicated humor column, 2000-2004)

Plays

Holidazed (play produced at Artists Repertory Theater 2008 and 2009)

Awards

• 2008  InsightOut Book Club selection
• 2005  Top Ten Teen Book, The American Librarian Association 
• 2005  Winner, Ken Kesey Award for the Novel
• 2004  Finalist, Lambda Literary Award for Gay Men’s Debut Fiction
• 2004  InsightOut Book Club selection
  

Media



Listen to Selected Essays on NPR:
Is It Any Wonder Dumbledore’s Gay
Finding Binge Absolution in a Do-Si-Do

To watch a video about Attack of the Theater People by Marc Acito, click here.

For more information about Marc Acito and his work, please visit www.marcacito.com.