The director of The Miracle Worker, Mickey One, The Chase, Bonnie and Clyde, Little Big Man, Night Moves (from which the above image is taken), and Penn and Teller Get Killed, to name but a few films, apparently died on the evening of his 88th birthday. David Hudson rounds up the obits and tributes here.
I must say, NIGHT MOVES is a film that really lingers. RIP.
I’ve always felt the first 20 minutes of “Bonnie and Clyde” were required viewing for anyone seriously considering becoming a filmmaker (or a film editor for that matter).
Rest in peace.
Penn is one of the most underrated American directors of the 60s. There’s nothing like his off-kilter Westerns–THE LEFT-HANDED GUN, THE MISSOURI BREAKS and his greatest film of all LITTLE BIG MAN. Even his failures were auspicious, like getting fired from THE TRAIN so Frankenheimer could turn it into some kind of masterpiece.
This page opened and that image hit me like a punch to the gut, just as it did the first time I saw “Night Moves” and every time since…
So this year we lost Rohmer, who was famously maligned in Penn’s NIGHT MOVES … and then Chabrol, who was originally supposed to be maligned in NIGHT MOVES … and now Arthur Penn himself.
I’m going back to bed.
And in the meantime, I hope Alan Sharp is taking good care of himself.
Stephen, not only that, today, the day Penn’s death was announced, is Robert Benton’s birthday.
I need to see LITTLE BIG MAN again. I saw it a long time ago, and while I thought Faye Dunaway was miscast, the rest of it was quite good. And NIGHT MOVES is a classic. R.I.P.
‘The Missouri Breaks’ is one of those films that got hammered, by critics, when it was released in ’76. I loved it.(still do)
Brando (just off the wall, accents, granny dress) and Nicholson, going toe to toe, along with a supporting cast of some of my favorites (Harry Dean Stanton, Fred Forrest, Randy Quaid and the oh-so-fine, late, great John P. Ryan) make it a pure joy to watch.
A little taste:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N48pqpyyeHA
A wonderful talent, Arthur Penn, may your soul forever Rest In Peace.
Woa – I don’t think I would ever have put those films together – I’ve seen many, but hadn’t really reflected on Arthur Penn’s body of work before.
That’s too bad he has passed.
When I was a kid, I used to see Arthur Penn quite a bit in the Berkshires. My mother taught his children, and he was friendly with a few people she knew. He also made ALICE’S RESTAURANT there – a beautiful handmade film and, for me, a precious record of the world of my childhood. I met him a few times during the last few years, and I remember him as a sweet, extremely intelligent man. It’s difficult to convey exactly how much he meant in the 60s and 70s – as a passionate artist who assumed the responsibility of dramatizing the conflicts and obsessions that were haunting his country, and as an evolving sensibility who acted as a bridge between the Actors’ Studio and Live TV on the one hand and the French New Wave and the New Hollywood on the other.
Amidst all this discussion of deaths in the film world, there was another death this week in the poetry world that I have to acknowledge. Michael Gizzi, a brilliant, funny poet, a wild and beautiful and extravagantly troubled human being, was found dead at the age of 61. He was a great reader, sharp as a knife, and some of his readings can be found here: http://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Gizzi-M.php. I suppose Mike would be classified under Language Poetry, along with his pals Clark Coolidge and John Yau, and with his brother Peter, my closest friend on earth. Mike was always good to me. He was one of the first people to publish my work. And I loved being with him. It’s a shattering loss for those of us who knew and loved him. He just ran out of time.
I had no idea that he was Irving Penn’s brother. I’m sure there’s a meaningful aesthetic linkage to be made but all I can come up with right now was that that was a family with some good eyes.
“…was found dead at the age of 61.”
Is there yet any information on the cause of Michael’s death?
Robert, it seems to have been a heart attack. From “Nostalgia for Mayhem” in MY TERZA RIMA: “infinity has nothing left to do.”
Does anyone have information on when and where Mike Gizzi’s funeral will be?
Elena, there will be a memorial service in a few months.
I’d like to put together a reading here at The Bookstore in Lenox on the Friday night of Thanksgiving weekend, when so many of Michael’s former students can be in town. An open reading for and by any and all. Michael had some very good times here and it’ll be great to gather for him. I’ll post details as we get closer. we’ll probably get some kind of sign-up sheet going. write to me at The Bookstore
MY name is Erik Lomen, I’ve just heard of Michael’s death from Jim Dunn and Gerrit Lansing. I met Michael and Penelope in Lowell last year to photograph them both for paintings. I spent a great day with them and cannot believe he has passed away. I have his email contact but does anyone have Penelope Creely’s email. I feel as though i should get in contact with her to get the painting i did of her and Michael to her and wish my condolences. If anyone has her info please email me at elomen@gmail.com. Sincerely,
Erik Lomen
http://www.eriklomen.com