The death last week of filmmaker Richard Leacock marks the passing of an important figure in not only the story of film, but also the story of Louise Brooks. Leacock was 89.
Leacock is best known as a documentary film maker and as one of the key figures in cinéma vérité. Born in 1921, Leacock's first efforts with a camera date to his teenage years. Three years as a combat photographer in World War II were followed by 14 months as cameraman assisting Robert Flaherty on Louisiana Story (1941).
Leacock worked on or directed dozens of films. A groundbreaking behind-the-scenes look at John F. Kennedy and the 1960 presidential campaign was followed by portraits of Duchamp and Stravinsky, a collaboration with Jean-Luc Godard, and the still screened Monterey Pop! (assisted by fellow cinéma vérité filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker).
In 1984, Leacock released Lulu in Berlin, a 50 minute filmed interview with Louise Brooks. Shot in 1974, it remains one of the very few interviews (filmed or otherwise) the actress ever gave. In it, the actress discusses her film career in the United States and Germany - as well as her disregard for Hollywood. Lulu in Berlin includes film clips, but was shot entirely "on location" in Brooks' small Rochester, New York apartment. The actress, dressed in a powder blue bathrobe, can be seen seated at her kitchen table across from the documentarian.
Though rarely screened, Lulu in Berlinis likely familiar to film buffs and devotees of the actress. It was include as bonus material on the recently released DVD of Pandora's Box from the Criterion Collection. Excerpts have also been included in a number of documentaries and television programs. Lulu in Berlin can be seen in its entirety YouTube, though in four parts.
Lulu in Berlin was screened in San Francisco in March 2006 (the Louise Brooks centenary) as part of a "Leacock / Pennebaker: Pioneers of Cinema Verite" series which took place at the M.H. de Young Museum. Leacock was present at that special screening.
During the question and answer session after the screening, Leacock recounted the circumstances behind the making of the film, how much "fun" it was, and how much he adored Brooks. Leacock also recounted that after their filming was complete, the actress made an omlet and ordered the filmmaker to go to the liquor store and buy a quart of gin.
According to the Leacock, Lulu in Berlin was shown on the BBC in England (in the 1980's?), though with added dramatic parts depicting Brooks' life. Leacock said he had nothing to do with the added bits, and was dismayed that the BBC altered his film.
Interestingly, it should also be noted that Leacock's Lulu in Berlin was not his first encounter with the Lulu character. In 1967, Leacock shot footage for a Chicago staging of Alban Berg's opera, Lulu. It's original production notes calls for a short filmed interlude. In the 1967 production, under the direction of conductor Sarah Caldwell, pop culture celebrity and Andy Warhol associate Edie Sedgwick played Lulu.
For more info: Obituaries of Leacock appeared in newspapers from around the world, including the New York Times, Boston Globe, Washington Post, and London Telegraph. More about Leacock and his remarkable body of work can be found on http://www.richardleacock.com/ A 400 page autobiographyis due out later this year.
In 1995, Thomas Gladysz founded the Louise Brooks Society, an internet-based archive and international fan club devoted to the legendary film star. Gladysz has contributed to books on the actress, organized exhibits, appeared on television and radio, and introduced her films around the world. Recently, he edited and wrote the introduction to a new “Louise Brooks edition” of Margarete Bohme’s The Diary of a Lost Girl.
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