Allen Ginsberg

Born: 1926-06-03

Irwin Allen Ginsberg (June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet. He is considered to be one of the leading figures of both the Beat Generation during the 1950s and the counterculture that soon followed. He vigorously opposed militarism, economic materialism and sexual repression and was known as embodying various aspects of this counterculture, such as his views on drugs, hostility to bureaucracy and openness to Eastern religions. He was one of many influential American writers of his time known as the Beat Generation, which included famous writers such as Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs. Description above from the Wikipedia article Allen Ginsberg, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.​


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The Velvet Underground

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2021-10-15

Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story....

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How the Beatles Changed the World

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2017-10-23

The fascinating story of the cultural, social, spiritual, and musical revolution ignited by the...

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Dont Look Back

as Self (uncredited)
Released: 1967-05-17

In this wildly entertaining vision of one of the twentieth century’s greatest artists, Bob Dylan...

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Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese

as The Oracle of Delphi
Released: 2019-06-11

Part documentary, part concert film, part fever dream, this film captures the troubled spirit of...

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Howl

as Himself
Released: 2010-08-26

It's San Francisco in 1957, and an American masterpiece is put on trial. Howl, the film,...

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As I Was Moving Ahead, Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty

as Self
Released: 2000-11-05

A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American...

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Take Your Pills

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2018-03-09

In a hypercompetitive world, drugs like Adderall offer students, athletes, coders and others a...

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No Direction Home: Bob Dylan

as Self
Released: 2005-07-21

A chronicle of Bob Dylan's strange evolution between 1961 and 1966 from folk singer to protest...

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Why Is We Americans?

as Self
Released: 2022-01-14

The story focuses on Newark's Baraka family and its involvement in social activism, poetry,...

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William S. Burroughs: A Man Within

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2010-11-05

A riveting and emotional journey into the world of writer William S. Burroughs, a man considered...

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Diaries, Notes, and Sketches

as Self
Released: 1968-03-01

An epic portrait of the New York avant-garde art scene of the 60s.

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Lost, Lost, Lost

as Self
Released: 1976-09-14

Jonas Mekas adjusts to a life in exile in New York in his autobiographical film, shot between...

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Chicago 10

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2008-02-29

Archival footage, animation and music are used to look back at the eight anti-war protesters who...

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Scenes from the Life of Andy Warhol: Friendships & Intersections

as Self
Released: 1990-06-01

This intimate portrait of Andy Warhol pulls together a unique library of material shot by New...

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Nam June Paik: Moon Is the Oldest TV

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2023-03-24

The quixotic journey of Nam June Paik, one of the most famous Asian artists of the 20th century,...

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Tonite Let's All Make Love in London

as Self
Released: 1967-09-26

Peter Whitehead’s disjointed Swinging London documentary, subtitled “A Pop Concerto,” comprises...

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Before Stonewall

as Himself
Released: 1984-09-15

New York City's Stonewall Inn is regarded by many as the site of gay and lesbian liberation...

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Herostratus

as Poet (voice)
Released: 1967-07-10

When a young poet hires a marketing company to turn his suicide into a mass-media spectacle, he...

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The Cockettes

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2002-01-16

Documentary about the gender-bending San Francisco performance group who became a pop culture...

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Poetry in Motion

as uncredited
Released: 1982-09-17

More than 20 contemporary North American poets recite, sing, and perform their work. Early in...

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Crazy Wisdom: The Life and Times of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

as uncredited
Released: 2011-11-25

CRAZY WISDOM explores the arrival of Tibetan Buddhism in America through the story of Chögyam...

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He Stands in a Desert Counting the Seconds of His Life

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1986-02-22

A film collage tracing the story of the lives, loves, and deaths within the artistic community...

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Ciao! Manhattan

as Himself
Released: 1973-04-19

Fiction and documentary mingle in a freewheeling portrait of Susan Superstar, a New York...

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Renaldo and Clara

as The Father
Released: 1978-01-25

Filmed in the autumn of 1975 prior to and during Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue tour –...

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Me and My Brother

as Himself
Released: 1969-02-02

Julius Orlovsky, after spending years in a New York mental hospital, emerges catatonic and must...

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Wholly Communion

as Himself
Released: 1965-12-31

A short film documenting what was referred to as "The International Poetry Incarnation". It was...

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Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2008-09-26

Wild Combination is a visually absorbing portrait of the seminal avant-garde composer,...

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Uncle Howard

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2017-03-10

When Howard Brookner lost his life to AIDS in 1989, the 35-year-old director had completed two...

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U2: A Year in Pop

as Self
Released: 1997-04-26

Documentary about U2's album Pop and following tour.

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Yippie

as Himself
Released: 1968-12-31

The Youth International Party, whose members were commonly called Yippies, was a radically...

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The Old, Weird America: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2007-02-01

The Old, Weird America tracks the history of the Anthology of American Folk Music from its...

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The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman's Portrait Photography

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2017-06-30

Portrait photographer Elsa Dorfman found her medium in 1980: the larger-than-life Polaroid Land...

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Don't Blink - Robert Frank

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2015-11-19

The life and work of Robert Frank—as a photographer and a filmmaker—are so intertwined that...

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Heavy Petting

as Self
Released: 1989-09-22

Celebrities and creatives -- including musician David Byrne, performance artist Spalding Gray,...

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Gang of Souls: A Generation of Beat Poets

as Self
Released: 1989-01-01

Maria Beatty's documentary exploring the insights and influences of the American Beat Poets. The...

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The Source

as Self
Released: 1999-01-23

Traces the Beats from Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac's meeting in 1944 at Columbia University...

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It Don't Pay to Be an Honest Citizen

as Lawyer
Released: 1985-02-01

An ironic New York City thriller involving a mafioso and a restless, witty lawyer.

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We Can't Go Home Again

as Allen
Released: 1973-05-10

Nicholas Ray plays himself, acting as mentor, friend, and artistic inspiration to his students...

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Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out

as Himself (Archive Footage)
Released: 2007-07-16

5 psychedelic short films, broadcast on the French/German tv channel "arte" on 2007-07-16 ...

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Jonas in the Desert

as Self
Released: 1994-01-01

Not a documentary in the strictest sense of the word. Rather, it is a journey through the world...

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Breathing Together: Revolution of the Electric Family

as Self
Released: 1971-04-11

The title of this Canadian documentary may have some relation to Canadian Marshall McLuhan's...

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Ballad of the Skeletons

as uncredited
Released: 1997-11-20

A close-up of Allen Ginsberg reciting his “skeletons” poem is bluescreened and dissolved against...

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Berkeley in the Sixties

as Self
Released: 1990-04-23

A documentary about militant student political activity at the University of California,...

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Burroughs: The Movie

as Self
Released: 1984-02-10

An exploration of Burroughs’ life story, as told by Burroughs himself along with many of his...

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Andy Warhol Screen Tests

as Self
Released: 1965-11-28

The films were made between 1964 and 1966 at Warhol's Factory studio in New York City. Subjects...

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Great Poets: In Their Own Words

as uncredited
Released: 2014-08-10

A journey into the BBC archives unearthing glorious performances and candid interviews from some...

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Chappaqua

as Messiah
Released: 1966-08-30

Semi-autobiographical story of Conrad Rooks, who travels to France to undergo a drug-withdrawal...

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Guns of the Trees

as Self (voice)
Released: 1961-02-28

A depressed woman, Barbara, is on the verge of suicide while a man she meets in a church and a...

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Norman Mailer: The American

as Self
Released: 2012-05-18

A provocateur, a rebel, a performer, and a true American, Norman Mailer never stopped giving...

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Ferlinghetti: A Rebirth of Wonder

as Himself
Released: 2009-04-01

The poet and painter, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, is among the world's living monuments to arts and...

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ChickenHawk

as Himself
Released: 1994-01-01

Members of the controversial group NAMBLA (North American Man/Boy Love Association) discuss why...

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Road Scholar

as Self
Released: 1993-07-16

Andrei Cordescu, NPR journalist, Romanian immigrant, naturalized American citizen, and...

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Une semaine dans la vie de camarades

as uncredited
Released: 1976-01-01

A road movie whose journey intersects with and extends the events of the International...

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Happy Birthday to John

as Self
Released: 1997-10-09

On October 9th, 1972 an exhibition of John Lennon/Yoko Ono's art, designed by the Master of the...

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The Fall

as uncredited
Released: 1969-01-15

"The Fall" depicts certain scenes in New York City between October 1967 and March 1968, shot by...

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Silence = Death

as Himself
Released: 1990-02-16

AIDS victims and activists cope with hardship and society’s ignorance.

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Beat Generation

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2014-02-08

Tells the story of the wonderful and long-lasting friendship between Jack Kerouac, Allen...

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Pull My Daisy

as Alan
Released: 1959-11-11

Based on an incident in the life of Beat icon Neal Cassady and his wife, the painter Carolyn,...

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Twenty to Life: The Life & Times of John Sinclair

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2004-06-19

John Sinclair first emerged out of his small-town Michigan background to forge a legendary...

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All Star Video

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1985-01-21

A compilation of avant-garde artwork and talent of the mid to late 20th century hosted by...

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Thot-Fal'N

as Self
Released: 1978-06-27

This film describes a psychological state "kin to moonstruck, its images emblems (not quite...

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Growing Up in America

as Self
Released: 1989-04-16

Filmmaker Morley Markson shows Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Allen Ginsberg, Timothy Leary, and...

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65 Revisited

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2007-11-28

A collection of rare outtakes and performances from Pennebaker's 1965 documentary Don't Look Back.

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Condo Painting

as uncredited
Released: 2000-03-17

John McNaughton's spotlight on George Condo and his art. The film, which follows the progress of...

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Tim Leary: The Art of Dying

as uncredited
Released: 2008-03-13

LSD Guru Tim Leary teaches us all to die by dying himself in what he calls his "custom death"....

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Good Morning, Mr. Orwell

as Self
Released: 1984-01-01

In his book "1984", George Orwell saw the television of the future as a control instrument in...

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Underground New York

as Himself
Released: 1968-01-01

A rare behind-the-scenes view of the exploding New York “underground” in the late sixities, a...

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Joan of Arc

as uncredited
Released: 1967-01-10

The story of Joan of Arc as applied to the present revolution in arts and more. The Gothic is...

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He! Viva Dada

as Self
Released: 1965-09-05

Report from the second free expression festival organized at the American Cultural Center,...

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Fire in the East: A Portrait of Robert Frank

as Himself
Released: 1986-01-01

Presents an intimate view of four decades of the Swiss-born artist Robert Frank who has had an...

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Couch

as Himself
Released: 1964-07-01

The couch at Andy Warhol's Factory was as famous in its own right as any of his Superstars. In...

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Johnny Minotaur

as uncredited
Released: 1971-04-07

Johnny Minotaur is a lyrical explosion of taboos: incest, intergenerational desire, pansexuality...

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Galaxie

as Himself
Released: 1966-09-03

In March and April of 1966, Markopoulos created this filmic portrait of writers and artists from...

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Be-In

as uncredited
Released: 1967-02-01

Captures the spirit and essence of the great San Francisco Human Be-In of January 14, 1967. Ten...

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Birth of a Nation

as Self
Released: 1997-08-06

Filmmaker Jonas Mekas films 160 underground film people over four decades.

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Anatomy of Violence

as Self
Released: 1967-11-12

Documentary of the Symposium on the Dialectics of Liberation and the Demystification of...

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Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles

as Self
Released: 1999-04-01

One of the most enigmatic artists of the 20th century, writer, composer and wanderer Paul Bowles...

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Scenes from Allen's Last Three Days on Earth as a Spirit

as Himself
Released: 1997-07-03

This is a video record of the Buddhist Wake ceremony at Allen Ginsberg's apartment. You see...

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Symphony Of The Invisible

as Himself (voice)
Released: 2020-11-17

"Symphony of the Invisible" is a reflection on creation and how through art, poetry and images...

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No More to Say & Nothing to Weep For: An Elegy for Allen Ginsberg

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1997-11-21

Witness the last days of the Beat poet whose works would capture the very essence of the 1960...

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A.G.

as uncredited
Released: 1968-05-11

Experimental film by Ugo Nespolo.

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La marche gaie

as Self
Released: 1980-01-01

A short documentary about the October 14 1979 March For Lesbian And Gay Rights in Washington D.C.

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The Life and Times of Allen Ginsberg

as Himself (archive footage)
Released: 1994-02-17

Visionary, radical, spiritual seeker, renowned poet, founding member of a major literary...

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Hare Krishna

as Himself
Released: 1967-02-02

A short film from Jonas Mekas depicting an afternoon in New York of people joining in singing...

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Summer of Love

as uncredited
Released: 1990-01-01

Produced in collaboration with MICA-TV, Summer of Love is a public service announcement produced...

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Phil Ochs Memorial Celebration

as Self
Released: 1977-07-09

A tribute concert honoring the life of legendary folksinger Phil Ochs recorded at the Madison...

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Bed Peace

as Self
Released: 1969-03-24

John and Yoko in the presidential suite at the Hilton Amsterdam, which they had decorated with...

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The Beat Hotel

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2012-03-30

The Beat Hotel, a new film by Alan Govenar, goes deep into the legacy of the American Beats in...

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Greetings from Washington, D.C.

as Himself
Released: 1981-10-16

A short documentary about the First National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights,...

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Harry Smith at the Breslin Hotel

as uncredited
Released: 2017-12-01

The 94-year-old Robert Frank’s unique recordings of his fellow artists Harry Smith and Allen...

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Suite 212

as Self
Released: 1974-12-28

Suite 212 is Paik's "personal New York sketchbook," an electronic collage that presents multiple...

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Global Groove

as uncredited
Released: 1973-01-01

Global Groove was a collaborative piece by Nam June Paik and John Godfrey. Paik, amongst other...

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A Poet from the Lower East Side

as Himself
Released: 1997-01-01

Filmmaker Gyula Gazdag's fascinating documentary follows Hungarian poet, playwright and activist...

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Ah, Sunflower

as Self
Released: 1967-08-13

Allen Ginsberg in Britain.

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A Supermarket in Californi

as original recording
Released: 2024-07-25

Carved to the beat verses of Allen Ginsberg and his eponymous poem, A Supermarket in California...

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Pickup's Tricks

as uncredited
Released: 1973-01-01

Pickup's Tricks is a beat documentary of Hibiscus and the Cockettes, who were pioneers of San...

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Allan ‘n’ Allen’s Complaint

as uncredited
Released: 1982-01-01

The influence of Jewish fathers on their sons and the complexity of familial relationships are...

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Dylan Speaks 1965

as Self
Released: 2006-10-31

The legendary press conference in San Fransisco at KQED studios on Dec. 3rd 1965. This was a...

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American Magus

as Himself
Released: 2002-01-01

A documentary about the brilliant and versatile cult figure Harry Smith (1923-1991) – compiler...

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Lake Placid '80

as uncredited
Released: 1980-01-01

Paik produced this exuberant, high-speed collage as a commission for the National Fine Arts...

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William S. Burroughs in the Dreamachine

as Self
Released: 2015-04-14

Jon Aes-Nihil's experimental documentary about iconic Beat author William S. Burroughs'...

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The Stars Behind the Iron Curtain

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2014-11-25

Documentary about western popular music concerts as bearer tendencies of democracy and freedom...

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The Dick Cavett Show

as Self - Guest
First aired: 1968-06-06

The Dick Cavett Show has been the title of several talk shows hosted by Dick Cavett on various...

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70 Years of Youth Revolt

as Self (archive footage)
First aired: 2020-11-21

A look back at the social movements, revolts and youth subcultures from the post-war period to...

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New York: A Documentary Film

as Self - Commentator
First aired: 1999-11-14

This eight-part, 16½-hour television event explores New York City's rich history as the premier...

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