Murray Lerner

Murray Lerner (May 8, 1927 – September 2, 2017) was an American documentary and experimental film director and producer.

Career Lerner was born May 8, 1927, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Nacham and Goldie (Levine) Lerner. Murray's father left the family shortly after his birth. He was raised by his mother in Brooklyn, New York, where he graduated from high school.

Lerner attended Harvard University on a full scholarship. He helped start a film production society at Harvard and began teaching himself the art of filmmaking. Lerner graduated from Harvard in 1947 with a degree in Poetry.

The filmmaker's break-through was the 1967 documentary Festival! which featured highlights from the Newport Folk Festival in 1963 through 1966. The film, nominated for an Oscar in 1968, captured performances by folk and blues icons such as Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Donovan, Peter, Paul & Mary, Howlin' Wolf, Mississippi John Hurt, and Son House.

Lerner filmed the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 in England in its entirety, with seven crews. After the promoters declared bankruptcy, Lerner fought a four-year battle in the British courts, eventually winning the rights to his footage. The film was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2000.

Death Lerner died of kidney failure on September 2, 2017, at his home in Long Island City, Queens, New York. He was survived by his wife of 60 years, the former Judith Levine, his son Noah and two grandchildren.

Selected filmography Secrets of the Reef (1956) Festival (1967) From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China (1980) Magic Journeys (1982) Message to Love: The Isle of Wight Festival (1995) Listening To You: The Who At The Isle Of Wight Festival (1996) Blue Wild Angel: Jimi Hendrix at the Isle of Wight (2002) Miles Electric: A Different Kind of Blue (2004) Nothing is Easy: Jethro Tull at the Isle of Wight (2005) Emerson, Lake & Palmer (The Birth Of A Band: Isle of Wight 1970) (2006) Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who (2007) The Other Side of the Mirror: Bob Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival (2007) The Moody Blues (Threshold of a Dream: Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970) (2008) Leonard Cohen (Leonard Cohen Live at The Isle of Wight 1970) (2009) Taste (What's Going On Live At The Isle of Wight 1970) (2015) The Doors: Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 (2018) Joni Mitchell: Both Sides Now. Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 (2018)