Mark Stein (author) Mark Stein (author) Mark Stein (born 1951) is an American writer. Raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1973. Stein wrote the screenplay for the Goldie Hawn and Steve Martin film "Housesitter." His stage plays were first produced at New Playwrights Theater of Washington, D.C. From there he went on to productions at Actors Theater of Louisville, Manhattan Theatre Club, South Coast Repertory, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Fountain Theater in Los Angeles, the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, and elsewhere. His non-fiction book, "How the States Got Their Shapes", became the basis for a
Steve Martin with Jack Black, Owen Wilson, and JoBeth Williams in the birdwatching comedy "The Big Year". After a three-year hiatus, Martin returned in 2015 when he voiced a role in the animated film "Home". In 2016, he played a supporting role in the war drama "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk". In 1993, Martin wrote his first full-length play "Picasso at the Lapin Agile". The first reading of the play took place in Beverly Hills, California, at Steve Martin's home, with Tom Hanks reading the role of Pablo Picasso and Chris Sarandon reading the role of Albert Einstein. Following this, the play