Steve Buscemi + Samuel Bercholz

A sudden heart attack led Buddhist teacher Sam Bercholz to a near-death experience. He narrates his progress through the Buddhist hell realms to actor Steve Buscemi, who has had his own encounters with untimely endings.

Sam Bercholz’s story is told in graphic-novel form in A Guided Tour of Hell with illustrations by master painter Pema Namdol Thaye. Comic-book drawings illustrate Bercholz’s life story and hospital ordeal while fantastic color paintings of his hell experience bring a startling modern spirit of imagination to the sacred art of Asia. A book signing will follow the on-stage conversation.

About the Speakers Samuel Bercholz is the founder of Shambhala Publications and a long-time student of Thinley Norbu Rinpoche. He is the author of A Guided Tour of Hell: A Graphic Memoir.

Steve Buscemi is an actor, writer, director and producer. He starred in the HBO drama Boardwalk Empire, which garnered him a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy nominations. His directing work includes the feature films Trees Lounge and Interview, and numerous television credits including HBO’s The Sopranos, for which he was nominated for an Emmy and DGA Award. He has directed episodes of the Emmy Award winning shows 30 Rock and Nurse Jackie, as well as recent episodes of Portlandia, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and Judd Apatow’s Netflix series Love. In 2008 Buscemi started Olive Productions with Stanley Tucci and Wren Arthur, a New York based company which produces his Emmy-nominated AOL series “Park Bench,” and various other projects including the documentary A Good Job: Stories of the FDNY, for HBO. He most recently co-starred in Louis C.K.”˜s critically acclaimed web series Horace and Pete.