A Great Day in Harlem
by Jean Bach
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Gerry Mulligan, Marian McPartland, Milt HintonDirector: Jean Bach
Brand: Image Entertainment
Cinematographer: Steve Petropoulos
Writer: Jean Bach
Editor: Susan Peehl
Writer: Susan Peehl
Producer: Matthew Seig
Writer: Matthew Seig
Producer: Stuart Samuels
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Special Edition
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 60 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-01-03
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Homevision
Movie Reviews of A Great Day in Harlem
Movie Review: A Great Documentary
Summary: 5 Stars
In 1958, photographer Art Kane (on his first photographic assignment) assembled a group of legendary Jazz musicians on the steps of a brownstone on 124th Street and Madison Avenue in Harlem for a group photograph. The photo was to appear in a special edition of Esquire magazine. The result is one of the most famous photographs taken in the 20th century. This film tells the story of the photo, the photographer and many of the musicians who took part in the project.
Getting that many jazz musicians together at eleven o'clock in the morning was trickier than you might think - most of the participants were usually sleeping at that hour, as many by trade were working in nightclubs until the wee hours of the morning. Indeed, some of the musicians who were invited failed to show up, either unable to commit themselves to awakening at such unaccustomed hours or misunderstanding the depth of the project completely.
There are wonderful interviews with some of the original musicians, notably Art Blakey and Dizzie Gillespie, but a number of other musicians are heard from as well, including trumpeter Buck Clayton, singer Marian McPartland and the great saxophone player, Gerry Mulligan. The participants in the photo are a veritable who's who of Jazz; some of the musicians include Red Allen, Buster Bailey, Count Basie, Lester Young, Maxine Sullivan, Stuff Smith, Pee Wee Russell, Jimmy Rushing, Sonny Rollins, Theolonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Gene Krupa, Max Kaminsky, Jo Jones, Milt Hinton, Art Farmer, Vic Dickenson, Lawrence Brown, Coleman Hawkins, J. C. Heard and Oscar Pettiford. The surviving musicians interviewed for the film offer fascinating comments on their peers.
The film notes sadly that many of the musicians in the photo are no longer with us. In fact, a new photo was created for the occasion using the survivors from the original shoot, and the number of musicians who have since passed away is shocking. The "new" photo is one of the most touching aspects of the special features; the survivors are each posed in the same spot that they occupied in the original photo, and the number of "blank" spaces (compared with the original photo) is somber, touching and somewhat eerie.
The DVD has a number of other wonderful extras. One menu presents a copy of the original photo; you can navigate to any image in the photo to see any musicians name, and clicking on the name will bring up a collage of all points in the documentary (including outtakes) where that musician is discussed by his or her peers.
To have a record of the story of this historical photograph is truly a blessing. It was a great day for my DVD collection when I acquired this wonderful film.
Summary of A Great Day in Harlem
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