Oscar-nominated director Peter Bogdanovich died today, aged 82, of natural causes in Los Angeles.
He was not as prolific as Robert Altman or Woody Allen. His work is not as long-lasting as that of Francis Coppola or Martin Scorsese or as well-known by the general public as Steven Spielberg. Still, Peter Bogdanovich leaves an important legacy behind as an author and filmmaker that is worth taking stock of.
One of the most influential directors of the “New Hollywood,” he is best known for directing The Last Picture Show, a stark and wistful drama about the disintegration of community and the death of innocence in a small town in Texas. It turned young actress Cybil Shepherd into a star and made Oscar winners out of Clois Leachman and Ben Johnson, who had been a stuntman and supporting actor for John Ford. Subsequently, Bogdanovich directed the highly acclaimed comedy What’s up, Doc? with comedic turns by Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neal. Then came the monochromatic Paper Moon with a star-making performance by the young Tatum O’Neal. Recently, he directed the acclaimed documentary, The Great Buster: A Celebration (2018), which explores the life and films of Buster Keaton. As an actor, Bogdanovich is remembered for his recurring role as a head shrink on The Sopranos and in Orson Welles’ last film The Other Side of the Wind, released in 2018.
I came across his name when Turner Classic Movies launched its podcast, The Plot Thickens, with an in-depth, multi-episode retrospective of his long life and career. One month during the pandemic and lockdowns of 2020, TCM even played several of his best known movies, which was complemented by a live interview with Bogdanovich by host Ben Mankiewicz. Even through the low quality Skype image, the octogenarian appeared old and frail, with his wrist bandaged from a recent fall. But his energy remained high, complemented by his trademark ascot. Emotionally, he recounted the story of his father acknowledging his work after seeing his first directed picture, Targets. At the time, I was home, my education as I knew it put on hold, and eager to watch new films. So I dove into those of Bogdanivch.
Aside from having a great name - say it: Bog-dan-o-vich; it feels nice - the guy was everywhere. Having written a book about John Ford in the 1960s, he was constantly mentioned in my research. Turning over his name in my mind, I tuned into every film TCM showed, and sought out some others at a video rental store (yes, I found one - in Bloomington!). His Last Picture Show and Paper Moon were an arresting concoction of nostalgia and 1970s grime and edge. What Woody Allen did with Fellini and Truffaut, Bogdanovich did with Hawks and Welles. He was the ultimate movie-fan-turned-director - a self-taught scholar/filmmaker with the audacity to turn his dreams into a Hollywood reality. See now why I was drawn to his life story?
Bogdanovich skipped college and began by studying acting with Stella Adler in New York. His keen mind and curiosity led him into a career in journalism. By cultivating relationships with directors, including Orson Welles, Howard Hawks, and John Ford, he became immersed in the world and mindsets of the greatest filmmakers from an age that was fast passing. Perhaps that’s reflected in the communal dissolution of Picture Show. He went on to write some of the first books on these directors and hosted retrospective screenings on the careers his favorite filmmakers at the Museum of Modern Art. Bogdanovich got his start in filmmaking under low-budget film director Roger Corman and directed the low-budget thriller Targets.
Tasked with using footage from an old Boris Karloff flick, he crafted a chilling story about a gunman who opens fire at a drive-in movie theatre. One of the most notable sequences features the gunman on a water tower, firing at drivers on a freeway. The sequence was shot by the highway in guerilla-style, which means without permission. When the filmmakers heard police sirens they had to disperse. “Targets” was a success and the economical filmmaking techniques he learned from Corman were key to his success in directing The Last Picture Show on a low budget. Aside from the documentary Directed by John Ford in 1971, the early 70s were characterized by a trio of subsequent hits, kicked off by Picture Show. It continued with What’s Up Doc and ended with Paper Moon, both of which introduced audiences to Madeline Kahn.
His filmmaking was influenced by his appreciation of past masters. In The Plot Thickens, Bogdanovich describes the influences of Welles and the unadorned style of Howard Hawks on Picture Show. What’s Up Doc? Is a lovingly crafted screwball farce topped off with a bizarre car chase through the streets of San Francisco and based on Bringing Up Baby and other fast-paced comedies by Hawks. As already mentioned, he revered the world and personalities created by classical Hollywood. In the DVD commentary for She’s Funny that Way (2014), a modest and forgotten comedy, Bogdanovich expressed admiration for the way Owen Wilson carries a distinct persona in each film, something lacking in many modern stars, and the unrestrained reverence for dramatic versatility.
Bogdanovich’s life was full of ups and downs. His three hits were followed by three devastating flops from which his career never fully recovered. He experimented with different genres and took gambles that failed to pay off, like the Cole Porter musical with actors who didn’t sing, Long Last Love (1975). His directing career recovered somewhat, but even his 1992 film adaptation of Noises Off, featuring an all-star cast, failed to gain critical traction. Many believed he had peaked too early, just like his mentor Orson Welles.
Personally, a very public affair with Cybil Shepherd destroyed his first marriage. In his mid-career phase, the press saddled him with a reputation for being arrogant and the tragic murder of his romantic partner Dorothy Stratten in 1980 rocked his world.
However, in addition to several comeback films, including Mask and Texasville, a sequel to Picture Show, he turned much of his effort to writing books and eventually resumed acting. Among his notable books were Who The Devil Made It: Conversations with Legendary Film Directors, which he discussed in an interview with Charlie Rose.
Bogdanovich was an old fashioned film scholar, neither a pajama boy blogger gushing blindly over the past (that’s not meant to be self-deprecating, although I am writing this in my pajamas) nor a pseudo-intellectual maggot who uses film history to recycle his ideological narrative. The fact that he was a student of film was fundamental to his legacy as a filmmaker. He wrote about Hollywood with a genuine love and appreciation for his subject, something which comes across in his work, both the great and the not-so-great. That’s his legacy, and whether we know it or not, we are all better off for it.
A great tribute - you have really summed up all that Bogdanovich brought to filmmaking. I have so enjoyed his work on the greats he admired - it informed all that he created. My favorite up and coming filmmaker is a lot like that. 😉