Media Advisory

For Immediate Release:
Contact:  Doris Kennedy

Phone:  (202) 669.3130. 

Email:  foundrygallery.verizon.net

          "From Journalist to Novelist, or: How I Learned to Stop Telling the Truth and Start Making it Up"

What:  A Reading, Book Signing and Writing Workshop, given by CNN's John DeDakis, author, Fast Track.

Who:  John DeDakis, author of the mystery novel Fast Track and Emmy-Award-winning CNN Senior Copy Editor, will discuss "Spanning the Distance from Truth to Imagination, from Journalism to the Novel" as part of the Gallery's "Creativity" series.

When:  Sunday, June 28, 2009, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Where:  Foundry Gallery, 1314 18th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20036
(202) 463-0203.  www.foundrygallery.org

Admission:  Free.  R.S.V.P. requested:  Email foundrygallery.verizon.net, or contact Doris Kennedy at (202) 463-0203.

About John DeDakis:

            John DeDakis is a Senior Copy Editor at CNN, in Washington, D.C., where he is an editor/writer on The Situation Room, anchored by Wolf Blitzer.  Prior to joining CNN in 1988, Mr. DeDakis was White House Correspondent for CBN News during the last three years of the Reagan Administration. 

            In 2005, he published a novel, Fast Track, described by Wolf Blitzer  as "one of those rare novels that you simply can’t put down. I was hooked on page one and it was non-stop until the very end – an emotional roller coaster.”

            DeDakis's journalism career began in 1969, when he was tear-gassed while covering an anti-Vietnam War riot for a campus radio station.  While in the Army in Frankfurt, Germany, Mr. DeDakis was stationed at the headquarters of the American Forces Network-Europe.  He has also produced award-winning radio and television documentaries. He has a BA in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

About Foundry Gallery:

            Since 1971, Foundry Gallery has encouraged and promoted Washington, DC area artists. Begun by four students of Gene Davis, who shared studio space in the Duval Foundry in Georgetown, Foundry offers an alternative gallery experience to artists.

            As an artist-run organization Foundry is free to exhibit a wider range of work than commercial galleries and to allow artists greater control over the exhibition and sale of their work. Members are primarily local artists who pool their resources to support the gallery. Foundry is a diverse group with different ages and backgrounds, and who work in diverse media.

            As a non-profit organization Foundry members contribute to the educational mission of the gallery by planning and implementing events during their contract periods. These events have ranged from lectures by artists and performances by invited guests to workshops for children, adults and other artists. Artists also contribute to the functioning of the gallery.

Directions: