Kenneth Turan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kenneth Turan
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Turan in 2014
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| Born | October 27, 1946 |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Swarthmore College (BA) Columbia University (MA) |
| Occupation | Film critic, author, lecturer |
Kenneth Turan (born October 27, 1946) is an American who used to be a film critic, a writer, and a teacher. He taught in a special writing program at the University of Southern California. From 1991 until 2020, he was the main film critic for the Los Angeles Times newspaper. A big magazine called The Hollywood Reporter said he was one of the most-read film critics in Hollywood, where many movies are made.
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Early Life and Education
Kenneth Turan grew up in a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. He went to Swarthmore College and earned a bachelor's degree. Later, he studied journalism at Columbia University and received a master's degree. While at Swarthmore, he shared a room with Rudy Rucker, who later became a mathematician and science fiction writer.
Kenneth Turan's Career
Kenneth Turan started his career around the 1970s. Before he became a film critic, he worked as a writer for The Washington Post newspaper from 1969 to 1978. During that time, he also worked as a sportswriter in 1971. By 1976, he became a feature writer, writing longer articles about different topics.
Becoming a Film Critic
Turan also wrote about movies for other magazines. These included The Progressive, TV Guide, California magazine, and GQ. In 1991, he joined The Los Angeles Times as a film critic. This meant he would watch new movies and write reviews, telling people what he thought about them.
In 1993, he was also put in charge of the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes. These awards celebrate great books. Around the year 2000, Turan started working with NPR (National Public Radio). He covered the Cannes Film Festival for them, which is a very famous movie festival in France. After a few years, he became a regular film critic for NPR's Morning Edition show. He would share his movie reviews with listeners across the country.
Kenneth Turan also started a radio show called Arts Alive on KUSC radio. He is also on the board of directors for the Yiddish Book Center, an organization that saves Yiddish books.
Retirement from the Los Angeles Times
On March 25, 2020, Kenneth Turan announced that he was retiring from The Los Angeles Times. The very last movie he reviewed for the newspaper was a German film called Balloon.
Featured in Documentaries
Kenneth Turan appeared in a documentary film called For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism (2009). In this film, he talked about a disagreement he had with the famous movie director James Cameron. Cameron was upset because Turan wrote a very negative review of his movie Titanic (1997). Cameron even sent an email to the Los Angeles Times editors, asking them to fire Turan. He said Turan was being too mean and attacking not just his movie, but the whole film industry and its audiences.
Awards and Recognition
Kenneth Turan has received several awards for his work as a film critic:
- 2006: He received a Special Citation from the National Society of Film Critics Awards.
- 2013: He was given the Luminary Award for Career Achievement by the Los Angeles Press Club. This award recognized his long and successful career.
- 2014: He received the Media Legacy Award at the Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival. This award honors people who have made a big impact in media.
