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Phillip Frey grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, where he performed as a child actor at The Cleveland Playhouse. The day after he graduated high school he moved to Los Angeles. While attending Los Angeles City College he performed in many of their plays while also performing in local theater.
He then moved to New York where he performed with The New York Shakespeare Festival, followed by The Repertory Theater of Lincoln Center. With a change of interest Phillip wrote, directed, and edited 3 short films, all of which had international showings, including The New York Film Festival.
With yet another change of interest he returned to Los Angeles to become a produced screenwriter. And now more recently, Phillip Frey has turned to narrative fiction with the books "Dangerous Times" and "Hym and Hur," and a collection of short stories.
Reviewed by Eduardo Aduna for Readers' Favorite
"Hym and Hur" is a light short story that is brilliant in its simplicity. Immortality eventually leads to boredom and when Hym and Hur come up with a prank to make their idyllic existence livelier, they do not count on the complications that might ensue. With death in on the scheme, no deal is ever as straightforward as it seems. Hym and Hur must try to keep up with the consequences their simple prank has unleashed.
Phillip Frey has constructed a tight short story that is simply exquisite. It is quite difficult to craft characters one can empathize with within the constraints of only a few pages but the author manages to do so with deft touches. There are no unnecessary words, no extraneous thoughts, and no unwanted distraction in this gem of a story. Most of the stories today feature long-winded and wordy novels and books, so much so that it was refreshing to find such clarity and brilliance in such a short work. Quality triumphs over quantity in Phillip's Frey's story. The characters and emotions it brought to bear stuck with me longer than other books with twice the length. Like good short stories, it sets the stage for the readers' imagination to go on and on long after they have finished it. People looking for a quick dose of hope, humor and romance for the day would do well to read this story. Fantasy, comedy, romance and feel-good vibes have never been so brilliantly melded together.
