Les Blank facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Les Blank
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Blank at 43rd KVIFF in 2008
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| Born |
Leslie Harrod Blank Jr.
November 27, 1935 |
| Died | April 7, 2013 (aged 77) Berkeley Hills, California
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Tulane University University of Southern California |
| Occupation | Documentary filmmaker |
Les Blank (born November 27, 1935 – died April 7, 2013) was an American filmmaker. He was famous for making documentary films, especially about traditional American musicians. His films often showed the lives and cultures of these musicians.
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Early Life and Education
Leslie Harrod Blank Jr. was born on November 27, 1935, in Tampa, Florida. He went to Phillips Academy and then to Tulane University in New Orleans. There, he earned a degree in English. Later, he studied filmmaking at the University of Southern California and received his master's degree. He also spent a short time at the University of California, Berkeley.
Starting His Film Career
After college, Les Blank first worked for a company making films that promoted businesses. But he soon wanted to make his own kind of movies. In 1967, he started his own film company called Flower Films. His first film was God Respects Us When We Work, but Loves Us When We Dance. It was a short, colorful film about a "Love-in" event in Los Angeles.
In 1968, he made two films about the blues musician Lightnin' Hopkins: The Blues Accordin' to Lightnin' Hopkins and The Sun's Gonna Shine. From then on, all of Blank's films were made independently. He often got help from grants, which are funds given by cultural groups or governments.
Films About Music and Culture
Most of Les Blank's films focused on different types of traditional American music. These included blues, Appalachian music, Cajun, Creole, Tex-Mex, polka, and Hawaiian music. Many of these films are important because they are the only filmed records of musicians who are no longer alive.
Blank's films didn't just show the music. They also explored the culture and daily lives of the people who made the music. He wanted to show the places and traditions where these unique American sounds came from.
Other Interesting Films
Les Blank also made films about other fascinating subjects. He made a film about garlic called Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers. Another film was about women with gap-toothed smiles, titled Gap-Toothed Women.
He also made two films about the famous German film director Werner Herzog. These were Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (1980) and Burden of Dreams (1982). Burden of Dreams showed the challenges of filming Herzog's movie Fitzcarraldo in the jungle.
Later in his career, Blank started working with digital video. One of his last films, All in This Tea (2007), was about a tea importer named David Lee Hoffman. His final film, How to Smell a Rose: A Visit with Ricky Leacock in Normandy (2014), was finished after his death. It was a portrait of another filmmaker, Richard Leacock.
Awards and Recognition
Les Blank received many important awards for his work. In 2007, he was the first documentary filmmaker to win the Edward MacDowell Medal. This is a national honor given to one artist each year. In 1990, he won the American Film Institute's Maya Deren Award for his great achievements as an independent filmmaker. The International Documentary Association also honored him with a career achievement award in 2011.
Just before he passed away, the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival announced that Blank would receive their 2013 Outstanding Achievement Award. They also planned to show many of his films at the festival.
Personal Life and Legacy
Les Blank lived in the Berkeley Hills area of California for over 30 years. His film company, Flower Films, was based nearby in El Cerrito, Contra Costa County, California. His son, Harrod Blank, also became a documentary filmmaker.
Les Blank passed away on April 7, 2013, from bladder cancer. Today, a nonprofit organization called Les Blank Films continues to share his amazing work with the world. His films are kept safe at the Academy Film Archive, which has preserved many of them.
Filmography Highlights
Here are some of the notable films Les Blank made:
- 1967 - God Respects Us When We Work, But Loves Us When We Dance
- 1968 - The Blues Accordin' to Lightnin' Hopkins
- 1971 - A Well Spent Life
- 1973 - Dry Wood
- 1976 - Chulas Fronteras
- 1978 - Always for Pleasure
- 1980 - Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe
- 1980 - Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers
- 1982 - Burden of Dreams
- 1987 - Gap-Toothed Women
- 1989 - J'ai Été Au Bal / I Went to the Dance
- 1990 - Yum, Yum, Yum! A Taste of Cajun and Creole Cooking
- 2007 - All in This Tea
- 2014 - How to Smell a Rose: A Visit with Ricky Leacock in Normandy
Two of his films, Chulas Fronteras and Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers, were chosen to be part of the National Film Registry. This means they are considered very important films to keep safe for the future.
See also
In Spanish: Les Blank para niños
