(JTA) — Filmmaker Paul Mazursky, who captured the 1960s and ’70s counterculture with a string of successful movies, has died.
Mazursky, who grew up Jewish in Brooklyn but later became a proclaimed atheist, died Monday in Los Angeles. He was 84.
The movies he directed and wrote captured the freewheeling, free-loving, drug-smoking era of the ’60s and ’70s, including such films as “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice” and “An Unmarried Woman” and “Harry and Tonto.” He also wrote and directed “Down and Out in Beverly Hills.”
Mazursky’s work spanned six decades, including the 1989 adaptation of an Isaac Bashevis Singer novel called “Enemies, a Love Story.” In recent years he appeared in several episodes of HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
Mazursky was nominated for five Oscars but never won.
Born Irwin Mazursky in 1930, he changed his name to Paul when he acted in his first movie, Stanley Kubrick’s debut feature, “Fear and Desire,” in 1953.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
