Harry Hurwitz

For the Canadian psychologist, see Harry Hurwitz (psychologist).

Harry L. Hurwitz
Born(1938-01-27)January 27, 1938
New York City, United States
DiedSeptember 21, 1995(1995-09-21) (aged 57)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupations
  • Film director
  • screenwriter
  • producer
  • artist
Years active1971–1994
SpouseJoy Hurwitz[1]

Harry Hurwitz (January 27, 1938 – September 21, 1995) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and producer.[2]

Biography

Hurwitz attended The High School of Music & Art and New York University, where he received a B.S. in 1960 and an M.A. in 1962. Before becoming a director, Hurwitz worked intermittently as a drawing, painting and filmmaking instructor at various institutions, including New York University, the State University of New York at New Paltz, Cooper Union, Parsons School of Design, Queens College, Purchase College, the New York Institute of Technology and the Pratt Institute. His directorial debut film The Projectionist included the first acting role for actor/comedian Rodney Dangerfield.[3] He often used the pseudonym Harry Tampa.

In the early 1970s, Hurwitz was an artist-in-residence at the University of South Florida in Tampa. It was at that time that he produced the black-and-white serigraphic self-portrait that briefly (and inexplicably, as the film is set in Los Angeles) appears on the walls of the main character May's (Susan Dey) apartment in the 1986 film Echo Park.

Painting

As a painter, Hurwitz has work in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art (now defunct) and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.[1]

Filmography

Title Year Director Writer Producer Role Notes
The Projectionist 1970 Yes Yes Yes Friendly Usher directorial debut, also editor
Chaplinesque, My Life and Hard Times 1972 Yes Yes Yes documentary film
Richard 1972 Yes Yes No
Fairy Tales 1978 Yes No No as Harry Tampa
Auditions 1978 Yes No No The Director (uncredited) as Harry Tampa
Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula 1979 Yes Yes No as Harry Tampa
Safari 3000 1980 Yes No No
Under the Rainbow 1981 No Yes No
The Comeback Trail 1982 Yes Yes Yes also editor
The Big Score 1983 No No Executive
The Rosebud Beach Hotel 1984 Yes Uncredited Yes
Once a Hero 1987 Yes No No unknown episodes
That's Adequate 1989 Yes Yes Yes
Fleshtone 1994 Yes Yes No

References

  1. ^ a b "Harry Hurwitz, a Screenwriter, Film Director and Painter, 57". The New York Times. October 11, 1995. Retrieved June 7, 2016.
  2. ^ "Harry Hurwitz". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. September 21, 1995. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
  3. ^ Brennan, Sandra (September 21, 1995). "Harry Hurwitz > Overview". AllMovie. Retrieved September 11, 2010.