Obituaries
-
REMEMBERING ADAM YAUCH, 1964 – 2012
“Where is Cooky Puss at?!?” I still remember breaking up over that line from “Cooky Puss,” the single from the Beastie Boy’s second EP. A recorded prank phone call to Carvel Ice Cream about their inexplicable dessert treat set to sleazy electro-funk and streaming over my college dorm room speakers via WNYU’s New Afternoon Show, it was my introduction to a group that swiftly went from novelty item to cultural force. “Cooky Puss” may not be the group’s highest moment, but it made me laugh then and it makes me laugh now even as it throws me back in time. […]
by Scott Macaulay on May 5, 2012 -
David Doernberg, 1967 – 2012
Production designer David Doernberg, who brought a sensitive, finely crafted and observant touch to many excellent independent films, died in New York on Friday after a battle with cancer. Doernberg began his career in the late ’80s/early ’90s working on music videos for bands like Sonic Youth, Yo La Tengo and Superchunk. He quickly moved into independent features as a propmaster for films by Hal Hartley (Amateur), Daisy von Scherler Mayer (Party Girl) and Eric Schaeffer (If Lucy Fell). Soon after he became a production designer, bookending his career with films by Kelly Reichardt. He designed her 1994 debut film, […]
by Scott Macaulay on Mar 5, 2012 -
DON CORNELIUS, R.I.P.
Sad to hear this week of the death of Don Cornelius, whose Soul Train is burned into my adolescent TV memory. From Bruce Handy at Vanity Fair (who opens with a quote from “American Pie”). I know it’s corny quoting from “American Pie.” But it is February, and like a lot of people, I felt a genuine sense of loss and sadness at the news that Don Cornelius, the creator and host of Soul Train, died of gunshot wounds Wednesday morning in Los Angeles—a possible suicide at the age of 75. The show premiered in Chicago in 1970 and aired […]
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 4, 2012 -
BEN GAZARRA, R.I.P.
Ben Gazarra, 1930-2012. From my favorite movie of his, John Cassavete’s Killing of a Chinese Bookie.
by Scott Macaulay on Feb 4, 2012 -
REMEMBERING BINGHAM RAY, 1954 – 2012
I first met Bingham Ray in 1992, when I interviewed him and October Films partner Jeff Lipsky about their company’s expansion and move to New York. It was for Filmmaker‘s second issue, and in our talk, Bingham was all the things he’s now being remembered for — committed, combative, intelligent and garrulous. He was pitching me on his upcoming slate, a diverse lot that included Alain Corneau’s Tous Les Matins Du Monde, Mike Leigh’s Life is Sweet, and a shorts package that included Michael Moore’s Pets or Meat. The ostensible hook for the article, though, was Ray and Lipsky’s move […]
by Scott Macaulay on Jan 24, 2012 -
LAURA KENNEDY, R.I.P.
Laura Kennedy, bass player for the iconic New York punk/funk band Bush Tetras, died yesterday in Minneapolis of complications from Hep C. From Marc Campbell at Dangerous Minds: Kennedy was in the center of the musical vortex that thrived in downtown Manhattan through the 1970s and into the early 80s. It was a time in which rock and roll was stretching its wings while simultaneously banging its head against the walls and sidewalks of a city both bleak and beautiful. The Bush Tetras pulled uptown downtown and showed the Studio 54 crowd that there was some tribal thunder brewing below […]
by Scott Macaulay on Nov 15, 2011 -
STEVE JOBS, 1955 – 2011
R.I.P., Steve Jobs. Below, his 2005 Stanford University commencement speech.
by Scott Macaulay on Oct 5, 2011 -
GRAHAM LEGGAT, 1960 – 2011
Graham Leggat, the executive director of the San Francisco Film Society and a former Contributing Editor of Filmmaker, died yesterday at his Bay Area home from cancer. Always erudite and elegant, Leggat brought intelligence and real creativity to the worlds of film festivals, exhibition and journalism. From his obituary in Variety: For nearly six exciting and transformative years, Graham Leggat led the San Francisco Film Society with irrepressible determination, dash and design,” said Pat McBaine, president of the Film Society’s board of directors. “His vision, leadership, passion, work ethic, tenacity, imagination and daring along with his colorful language and wicked […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 26, 2011 -
Raul Ruiz Remembered By James Schamus
The great Chilean filmmaker Raul Ruiz passed away today in Paris. Through his feature The Golden Boat, which was James Schamus’s first as a producer, Raul gave a group of us in New York’s nascent ’80s independent scene (including myself and Robin O’Hara) a wonderful and nearly indescribable introduction to filmmaking. So, I’m grateful here to James for this piece remembering Ruiz and those thrilling and formative days. — Scott Macaulay Raul Ruiz: First Thoughts Raul Ruiz passed away today, age 70, in Paris. He’ll be remembered as one of the truly great, idiosyncratic and visionary voices of world cinema. […]
by James Schamus on Aug 19, 2011 -
POLY STYRENE, R.I.P.
Singer Poly Styrene (Marian Joan Elliott-Said), best known for her work in the iconic punk band X-Ray Spex, died today from breast cancer at 53. From Dangerous Minds: Poly upended every stereotype of the female rock and roll front person. She looked like an innocent school girl but when she opened her mouth she had a soul searing wail that made John Lydon sound like a squealing mama’s boy with his dick stuck in a zipper. Poly had one of the greatest punk rock voices in all of rock and roll. From banshee to wounded vulnerability, Styrene emoted with a […]
by Scott Macaulay on Apr 26, 2011
