Elmo Patrick Sonnier illness, at Louisiana State Prison . He is buried in the prison cemetery. Sister Helen Prejean published a book, "Dead Man Walking" (1993), about her relationship with Elmo Sonnier and Robert Lee Willie, another inmate on Death Row whom she counseled. The book was adapted as a 1995 film of the same name directed by Tim Robbins and starring Susan Sarandon as Sister Prejean and Sean Penn as Matthew Poncelett, an amalgam of Sonnier and Willie. Her book was also adapted as an opera of the same name, first produced in 2000 by the San Francisco Opera. Elmo Patrick Sonnier
In the Life hopefully broadening its reach. On March 3, 2013, UCLA Film & Television Archive officially became the new home for "In the Life"'s full collection. The series was regularly commentated by Harvey Fierstein from 2001 to 2004. Past hosts of the show include Kate Clinton and Katherine Linton. Guest hosts for the series have included Cherry Jones, Paris Barclay, Janeane Garofalo, Lesley Gore, Lea DeLaria, Madonna, Jade Esteban Estrada, Nathan Lane, Howard Dean, Gavin Newsom, Helen Thomas, Nancy Grace, RuPaul, Angela Lansbury, Jerry Herman, Carol Channing, Larry Kramer, Barbara Gittings, Lillian Faderman, Judy Shepard, Susan Sarandon, Billie Jean King, Lily Tomlin,