ANOTHER SIDE OF A KING: FILMS AND LITERATURE OF WOODIE KING, JR. at Maysles Cinema
As part of Black History Month, Maysles Cinema is paying tribute to Woodie King, Jr., a pioneering writer and director for both stage and screen. Born in Alabama, King was raised in Detroit where he worked for Ford Motor Company before becoming an engineer. Dissatisfied with the state of theater and lack of roles for black actors, he began forging his own movement first in Detroit, and later in New York City where he would go on to found the New Federal Theater. You can read more about King’s life in this article by Jerry Tallmer from The Villager.
Another Side of a King: Films and Literature of Woodie King, Jr. will be showcasing several of King’s films including: Death of A Prophet (1981) (Feb. 11 and Feb. 18, 7:00 pm), a documentary about Malcolm X’s last 24 hours and featuring music by Max Roach; Segregating The Greatest Generation (2006) (Feb. 12, 7:00 pm), about black artists during World War II; The Long Night (1976) (Feb. 13, 7:00 pm), his first feature film; and The Torture of Mothers: The Case of the Harlem Six (1980) (Feb. 20, 7:00 pm) based on a true story that occurred in 1963.
Woodie King Jr. will also be at Maysles Cinema in person on Thursday, Feb. 19 at 7:00 pm for a reading and reception.
