Times Critic at Large Sheila Benson Retires

Times Critic at Large Sheila Benson is taking early retirement after nearly 11 years at The Times. Benson served as the paper’s film critic from 1981 through last April, when she began writing a weekly column on the arts as critic at large.

Prior to joining The Times, Benson was film critic of the Pacific Sun in Mill Valley, Calif., for eight years and also reviewed film for a Marin County radio station.

In 1987, she was the recipient of the Woman’s Building Vesta Award.