Rahadyan Sastrowardoyo
Encyclopedia
Rahadyan Timoteo Sastrowardoyo — born 1963 in New York City
— is a writer, editor and photographer. He is an American
of Indonesia
n and Filipino
ancestry.
Sastrowardoyo was raised on the Upper West Side
of Manhattan, and attended P.S. 163 and The Collegiate School
as an elementary school student.
His tertiary education was at Syracuse University
, Borough of Manhattan Community College
, New York University
and The New School
.
. He was editor-in-chief of the Brentwood High School
yearbook in 1981, which won honorable mentions from the American Scholastic Press Association and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association
. Sastrowardoyo was also news director for WXBA-FM.
His first paying job was as an events photographer for the Brentwood
school district. He has since dabbled in wedding photography, wedding videography, dance photography and theatrical photography for Deborah Savadge's Woodstock Theatre Company (based in New Paltz, New York
) and Algonquin Productions
After working at Banque Indosuez, Dial Germany/Dial Bavaria (a travel wholesaler) and Marubeni America Corporation
, Sastrowardoyo was hired as a copyboy at The New York Times
in the fall of 1987. From 1988 to 2006, he was on the staff of the cultural news desk, and named a staff editor in 1999. In March 2006, he transferred to the foreign news desk. Sastrowardoyo worked at the Timess United Nations
bureau in November and December 2007.
Sastrowardoyo studied acting with Deborah Savadge beginning in the fall of 1989, ostensibly as a means to help him deal with his shyness. It was instrumental in helping him deal with his brother Sabartomo's death a few years previously. He has also studied poetry with Kimiko Hahn
, Richard Tayson and Li-Young Lee
; performance with Beau Sia
and the Asian American troupe Peeling; playwriting with Julia Cho
and David Henry Hwang
; photography with Charles Gatewood; and dance with Ducky DooLittle
and Pamardi Tjiptopradonggo.
In the summer of 1990, Sastrowardoyo and some fellow classmates from Deborah Savadge's acting class (directed by Guy Ventoliere) performed a series of one-act plays, originally performed by the Actors Theatre of Louisville
, as a benefit for Coalition for the Homeless
.
In the early 1990s, Sastrowardoyo was a contributing editor for two volumes of Contemporary Theater, Film and Television, a reference series published by Gale Research (now known as Thomson Gale
).
Sastrowardoyo gave a poetry reading at the Asian American Writers Workshop in January, 2000. His one-act play, Lessons Learned, was scheduled to be read at AAWW on September 11, 2001 but the events of that day
postponed its reading until September 24, 2001.
, Central Java
, Indonesia
), retired from the staff of the Consulate General of Indonesia, and Teresita M. Sastrowardoyo (born in Maasin, Iloilo
, the Philippines), an operating room registered nurse, who were married at Calvary Baptist Church
in New York City
in 1962.
Sastrowardoyo's middle brother, Sabartomo (1965–1986), died in an accident while a student at Cornell University
. His youngest brother, Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
(b. 1969), is a reporter for the Asbury Park Press
.
Sastrowardoyo is a nephew of Soenario (1902–97), Indonesia's minister of foreign affairs from 1953 to 1955; and Subagio Sastrowardoyo
(1924–95), a noted poet, writer, essayist and literary critic. He is also a cousin of Sunaryati Hartono
(b. 1931) and Astrid Susanto
(1936–2006), officials in the Indonesian government; and Marina Joesoef
(b. 1959), an Indonesian artist.
Sastrowardoyo is a first cousin once removed
of the Indonesian actress Dian Sastrowardoyo
(b. 1982).
His surname is derived from sastra (Sanskrit, writings) and wardaya (Sanskrit, heart), so literally means "writings of the heart." His given name reportedly means "of noble blood" or "noble-hearted." His first middle name was after his maternal grandfather, who died in 1952.
His paternal grandfather, Sutejo Sastrowardoyo (1876–1967), traced the family's ancestry back to 15th century Java.
Sastrowardoyo was raised Baptist
but left the church in 1978. He became a Muslim convert after the events of 9/11, when his former minister opined that God had used Muslims as an instrument of His wrath against a decadent America.
Online
(co-written with Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
) for the Communiqué, a publication of STARFLEET International.
More forthcoming
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
— is a writer, editor and photographer. He is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n and Filipino
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
ancestry.
Sastrowardoyo was raised on the Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
of Manhattan, and attended P.S. 163 and The Collegiate School
The Collegiate School
Collegiate School is an independent school for boys in New York City and is one of the oldest schools in the United States. It is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and is a member of both the New York Interschool and the Ivy Preparatory School League.-History:Collegiate was founded in the...
as an elementary school student.
His tertiary education was at Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
, Borough of Manhattan Community College
Borough of Manhattan Community College
The Borough of Manhattan Community College is one of six two-year colleges within the City University of New York system and the only one in Manhattan. Founded in 1963, BMCC originally offered business-oriented and liberal arts degrees for those intending to enter the business world or transfer...
, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
and The New School
The New School
The New School is a university in New York City, located mostly in Greenwich Village. From its founding in 1919 by progressive New York academics, and for most of its history, the university was known as the New School for Social Research. Between 1997 and 2005 it was known as New School University...
.
Career
Sastrowardoyo began his journalism career as a reporter, copy editor and photographer on his junior high school and high school newspapers in Brentwood, New YorkBrentwood, New York
Brentwood is a hamlet of the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, New York. According to the 2000 Census, the population of Brentwood is 53,917.The colony was established on March 21, 1851, on 750 acres of land on Long Island, New York, by Josiah Warren and Stephen Pearl Andrews...
. He was editor-in-chief of the Brentwood High School
Brentwood High School (Brentwood, New York)
Brentwood High School is a secondary school in Brentwood, New York. It is one of the largest high schools in New York State, on the southern shore of Suffolk County, Long Island. Richard Loeschner is the current principal.-1951-1980:...
yearbook in 1981, which won honorable mentions from the American Scholastic Press Association and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association
Columbia Scholastic Press Association
The Columbia Scholastic Press Association is an international student press association, founded in 1925, whose goal is to unite student journalists and faculty advisers at schools and colleges through educational conferences, idea exchanges, textbooks, critiques and award programs...
. Sastrowardoyo was also news director for WXBA-FM.
His first paying job was as an events photographer for the Brentwood
Brentwood, New York
Brentwood is a hamlet of the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, New York. According to the 2000 Census, the population of Brentwood is 53,917.The colony was established on March 21, 1851, on 750 acres of land on Long Island, New York, by Josiah Warren and Stephen Pearl Andrews...
school district. He has since dabbled in wedding photography, wedding videography, dance photography and theatrical photography for Deborah Savadge's Woodstock Theatre Company (based in New Paltz, New York
New Paltz, New York
New Paltz is a town in Ulster County, New York, USA. The population was 14,003 at the 2010 census. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county and is south of Kingston, New York. New Paltz contains a village also with the name New Paltz...
) and Algonquin Productions
After working at Banque Indosuez, Dial Germany/Dial Bavaria (a travel wholesaler) and Marubeni America Corporation
Marubeni
is a Japanese trading company, one of the largest general trading companies in Japan.-Offices:*Head Office - 4-2, Otemachi 1-chome, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan*Head Office -20-6, Shiba 5-chome, Minato, Tokyo, Japan...
, Sastrowardoyo was hired as a copyboy at The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
in the fall of 1987. From 1988 to 2006, he was on the staff of the cultural news desk, and named a staff editor in 1999. In March 2006, he transferred to the foreign news desk. Sastrowardoyo worked at the Timess United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
bureau in November and December 2007.
Sastrowardoyo studied acting with Deborah Savadge beginning in the fall of 1989, ostensibly as a means to help him deal with his shyness. It was instrumental in helping him deal with his brother Sabartomo's death a few years previously. He has also studied poetry with Kimiko Hahn
Kimiko Hahn
Kimiko Hahn is an American poet and instructor of poetry.-Personal:Hahn received a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa and an M.A...
, Richard Tayson and Li-Young Lee
Li-Young Lee
Li-Young Lee is an American poet. He was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, to Chinese parents. His maternal grandfather was Yuan Shikai, China's first Republican President, who attempted to make himself emperor...
; performance with Beau Sia
Beau Sia
-Biography:Sia was born in Ohio. He is of Chinese-Filipino descent. Raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Sia discovered spoken word poetry on MTV as a teenager...
and the Asian American troupe Peeling; playwriting with Julia Cho
Julia Cho
Julia Cho is an American playwright and television writer who has won national awards for her work.-Biographical information:Cho was born in Los Angeles and is the daughter of Korean immigrants. Her mother is a nurse and her father worked for an aerospace company where his job relocation led the...
and David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang is an American playwright who has risen to prominence as the preeminent Asian American dramatist in the U.S.He was born in Los Angeles, California and was educated at the Yale School of Drama and Stanford University...
; photography with Charles Gatewood; and dance with Ducky DooLittle
Ducky DooLittle
Ducky DooLittle is a sex educator, performer, writer, former peepshow girl, and sexual assault and violence intervention counselor in the New York City area...
and Pamardi Tjiptopradonggo.
In the summer of 1990, Sastrowardoyo and some fellow classmates from Deborah Savadge's acting class (directed by Guy Ventoliere) performed a series of one-act plays, originally performed by the Actors Theatre of Louisville
Actors Theatre of Louisville
Actors Theatre of Louisville is a performing arts theater located in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. It was founded in 1964 by Louisville native Ewel Cornett, local producer Richard Block and actor Ken Jenkins of Scrubs fame, and was designated the "State Theater of Kentucky" in 1974. It is run as a...
, as a benefit for Coalition for the Homeless
Coalition for the Homeless
…The National Coalition for the Homeless is a national network of people who are currently experiencing or who have experienced homelessness, activists and advocates, community-based and faith-based service providers, and others committed to a single mission...
.
In the early 1990s, Sastrowardoyo was a contributing editor for two volumes of Contemporary Theater, Film and Television, a reference series published by Gale Research (now known as Thomson Gale
Thomson Gale
Gale is an educational publishing company based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, the United States, in the western suburbs of Detroit. It was part of the Thomson Learning division of the Thomson Corporation, a Canadian company, but became part of Cengage Learning in 2007.The company, formerly known...
).
Sastrowardoyo gave a poetry reading at the Asian American Writers Workshop in January, 2000. His one-act play, Lessons Learned, was scheduled to be read at AAWW on September 11, 2001 but the events of that day
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
postponed its reading until September 24, 2001.
Personal
Sastrowardoyo is the eldest son of Sumarsongko H. Sastrowardoyo (born in BandungBandung
Bandung is the capital of West Java province in Indonesia, and the country's third largest city, and 2nd largest metropolitan area in Indonesia, with a population of 7.4 million in 2007. Located 768 metres above sea level, approximately 140 km southeast of Jakarta, Bandung has cooler...
, Central Java
Central Java
Central Java is a province of Indonesia. The administrative capital is Semarang. It is one of six provinces on the island of Java.This province is the province of high Human Development in Indonesia and its Points Development Index countries is equivalent to Lebanon. The province of Central Java...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
), retired from the staff of the Consulate General of Indonesia, and Teresita M. Sastrowardoyo (born in Maasin, Iloilo
Maasin, Iloilo
Maasin is a 4th class municipality in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 30,828 people in 5,395 households.-Barangays:Maasin is politically subdivided into 50 barangays.-External links:**...
, the Philippines), an operating room registered nurse, who were married at Calvary Baptist Church
Calvary Baptist Church (Manhattan)
Calvary Baptist Church is located at 123 West 57th Street between the Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue, near Carnegie Hall in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is an independent, non-affiliated church. The senior pastor is Rev. David Paul Epstein, the brother of television personality...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1962.
Sastrowardoyo's middle brother, Sabartomo (1965–1986), died in an accident while a student at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
. His youngest brother, Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
Hartriono Benjamin Sastrowardoyo is a voiceover actor and American journalist reporting for the Metro section of The Asbury Park Press, as one of its staff writers, specifically Berkeley Township, but also with a specialty in writing about the U.S...
(b. 1969), is a reporter for the Asbury Park Press
Asbury Park Press
The Asbury Park Press is a daily newspaper in Monmouth and Ocean counties of New Jersey and has the third largest circulation in the state...
.
Sastrowardoyo is a nephew of Soenario (1902–97), Indonesia's minister of foreign affairs from 1953 to 1955; and Subagio Sastrowardoyo
Subagio Sastrowardoyo
Subagio Sastrowardoyo was an Indonesian poet, short-story writer, essayist and literary critic. Born in Madiun, East Java, the Dutch East Indies , he was educated at Gadjah Mada University, Cornell University and Yale University...
(1924–95), a noted poet, writer, essayist and literary critic. He is also a cousin of Sunaryati Hartono
Sunaryati Hartono
Prof. Dr. Carolina Felicita Gerardine Sunaryati Hartono, S.H. is an Indonesian attorney, professor of law and government official. She has been vice chairman of the National Ombudsman Commission of Indonesia since 2000.-Delegate and representative:In 1985, as part of the ASEAN Law Association's...
(b. 1931) and Astrid Susanto
Astrid Susanto
Prof. Dr. Maria Antonia Astrid Sunarti Susanto -- deputy chairwoman of Commission I of the Indonesian legislature, the People's Representative Council -- was born 4 January 1936 in Makassar, South Celebes , Dutch East Indies and died on 13 April 2006 in Jakarta...
(1936–2006), officials in the Indonesian government; and Marina Joesoef
Marina Joesoef
Marina Joesoef — born Marina Sastrowardoyo March 24, 1959 in Jakarta, Indonesia — is an Indonesian artist. She is a painter having recent exhibitions in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...
(b. 1959), an Indonesian artist.
Sastrowardoyo is a first cousin once removed
Cousin
In kinship terminology, a cousin is a relative with whom one shares one or more common ancestors. The term is rarely used when referring to a relative in one's immediate family where there is a more specific term . The term "blood relative" can be used synonymously and establishes the existence of...
of the Indonesian actress Dian Sastrowardoyo
Dian Sastrowardoyo
Diandra Paramita Sastrowardoyo , more popularly known as Dian Sastro or Dian Sastrowardoyo, is an Indonesian model and actress....
(b. 1982).
His surname is derived from sastra (Sanskrit, writings) and wardaya (Sanskrit, heart), so literally means "writings of the heart." His given name reportedly means "of noble blood" or "noble-hearted." His first middle name was after his maternal grandfather, who died in 1952.
His paternal grandfather, Sutejo Sastrowardoyo (1876–1967), traced the family's ancestry back to 15th century Java.
Sastrowardoyo was raised Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
but left the church in 1978. He became a Muslim convert after the events of 9/11, when his former minister opined that God had used Muslims as an instrument of His wrath against a decadent America.
Trivia
- Sastrowardoyo was one of the subjects of a practical joke on April 1, 2001, where his name was put in place of an actor's name in the Times database of films.
- Sastrowardoyo wears a bracelet on his right wrist in memory of Michael H. Waye, a junior high and high school friend who was killed in the 9/11 attacks.
Journalism
Print- "Babylon 5 Enters Its Final Stages." The New York Times, 19 July 1998.
- "Writing away for tickets, or trying to get on camera." (sidebar to Matt Lee and Ted Lee's "American Cities: Who Wants to Be in the Audience?") The New York Times, 14 May 2000.
- "For Young Viewers: Pooh's New Adventures, in a 100-Gigabyte Wood." The New York Times, 21 January 2001.
- Review of Better Luck TomorrowBetter Luck TomorrowBetter Luck Tomorrow is a 2002 crime-drama film directed by Justin Lin. The movie is about Asian American overachievers who become bored with their lives and enter a world of petty crime and material excess...
. Community News (Browns Mills, NJ), 2002.
Online
- "Flashpoints That Define Or Break Apart a Community." Rediff.com, 01 June 1999 Accessed 27 March 2007.
Fandom journalism
Sastrowardoyo has written book reviews, wedding coverage, an obituary, an essay on 9/11 and an article on The Explorers ClubThe Explorers Club
The Explorers Club is a professional society dedicated to scientific exploration of Earth, its oceans, and outer space. Founded in 1904 in New York City, it currently has 30 branches world wide...
(co-written with Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo
Hartriono Benjamin Sastrowardoyo is a voiceover actor and American journalist reporting for the Metro section of The Asbury Park Press, as one of its staff writers, specifically Berkeley Township, but also with a specialty in writing about the U.S...
) for the Communiqué, a publication of STARFLEET International.
Photography
- Daily FreemanDaily FreemanThe Daily Freeman is a seven-day-a-week morning newspaper in Kingston, New York, the Ulster County seat. Serving all of Ulster County and parts of three other counties in the Mid-Hudson Valley, the broadsheet publication has a weekday circulation of approximately 22,000.In addition to its Uptown...
(Kingston, NY), 2002. - Chronogram Magazine (New Paltz, NY), 2002.
Books
As contributing editor- Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television. Detroit: Gale Research, early 1990s.
More forthcoming