documentaries

[sf sorrow]

Im looking for some documentaries on the Haight-Ashbury district in the 60's, or just hippies in the 60's, summer of love etc. etc. If any of you fine human beings know of any said documentaries and where I could purchase them that would be highly appreciated.

[Shadow_of_A_Doubt]

PBS here just showed a 4 hour movie called Grateful Dead , showcasing the band and the era that they emerged from. It was made in 1977 and i had it on VHS back in the 80s. Its got killer shots of the dead, Janis Joplin, Airplane and some footage of the bands the dead played with during the years of free shows in Golden Gate Park as well as the Fillmore and Avalon Ballroom. Theres fans that were interviewed also from The Haight as well as in some of the concerts. Also you may want to look into Janis : The Way she was. Hollywood has not been kind to Janis Joplin, since the film came out around 1973, 3 years after her death, its a collage of her concerts in SF as well as her appearances on television. Ebay has it from time to time, but the film has long gone out of print. For its age, youd think it would be on dvd now but its has only been issued on VHS. Also theres a Doors dvd out now, with Grace Slick narrating along with Paul Katner about The Doors tour with the Jefferson Airplane as the opening act. It has awsome concert footage from Europe, Grace tells that people were giving out free drugs on the streets and the Airplane would keep it for later, Jim Morrison would down everything right on the spot. Shows Jim Morrison so wasted he cant come out so ray manzeric has to sing....kinda neat. Then theres the old standby Woodstock. Festival Express is awsome. Also you might want to buy the Isle of Wright on dvd. Set in the UK in 1970 its the last dying breath of the hippie movement. Has Jimi Hendrix, The Who, The Doors...killer film. Recorded like 3 weeks or so before Hendrix died i think. If you want actually footage of the Haight-Ashburys transformation from hippie mecca of the world of the 60s to the tourist attraction it is today do a google search, ive seen news footage of it but thats from tv documentaries, and i dont know if thats somewhere that can be bought or downloaded.

[Don Rico]

I don't know if this is commercially available or not, but a few months ago I veritably stumbled across a fantastic one on cable TV. It was on that channel FLIX at about 3:30 a.m. one night, and I believe it was called "REVOLUTION".

This was a beautifully-shot, vividly colorful documentary about the S.F. scene circa 1967. Tons of footage of free and beautiful young people having the time of their life, barefoot and high and full of love and good vibes. This film was the real deal, and it was a total joy to behold.

Shots of kids in Golden Gate park smoking herb in the sunshine... Dancing groovy to the fuzzed-out sounds of a live band (was it Quicksilver Messenger Service?) in a hippie nightclub... Spare-changing barefoot on The Haight... Dropping tabs of Owsley's finest and tripping in a flower-child crash-pad love-in... Getting V.D. shots at the free clinic...

This film flat-out ROCKED and made me wish I could go back in time and have been there and lived as part of that scene... What on earth could be better?

REVOLUTION!

don Rico says: "Check it out!"

[Whenheco]

Search for the Classic albums VH1 special of the gratefull dead.
It's called "Anthem Of Beauty". Has some great footage (mainly GD) and gives you a pretty good look at how it was at that time and place.

Also got the Monterey festival this weekend, that one has some awesome footage also (couldn't resist waiting anymore )

[sf sorrow]

Don, I almost had a full body orgasm while reading your post! Im definatley going to spend some time looking for this documentary. Also Ive read some article about the History channel(I think) doing some similar sort of film which im going to keep a look out for. I know for sure that there has been countless numbers of documentaries made about the hippies but most aren't being sold to the pubic and those that are, well there hard to come by..

oh and im the one who started this thread, just so you know..

[sf sorrow]

disregard that last statement

[Don Rico]

Don, I almost had a full body orgasm ...most aren't being sold to the pubic ...

Yeah... Sucks that more of those aren't being sold to the pubic!