{"product_id":"shirley-clarke-laurence-kardish-9781985903364","title":"Shirley Clarke: The Passionate Life and Radical Works of an Exceptional Filmmaker","description":"\u003cp\u003eShirley Clarke (1919-1997) was an American independent filmmaker, electronic media pioneer, and teacher who resisted the norm wherever life brought her. A decade after receiving her first camera as a wedding present, Clarke launched her film career with the short \u003ci\u003eDance in the Sun\u003c\/i\u003e (1953). Her documentary \u003ci\u003eSkyscraper \u003c\/i\u003e(1959) garnered an Academy Award nomination, and her first feature film, \u003ci\u003eThe Connection \u003c\/i\u003e(1961), adapted from Jack Gelber's off-Broadway play portraying artists with heroin addictions, sparked attention when the State of New York censored it for obscenity. While Clarke's documentary \u003ci\u003eRobert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World\u003c\/i\u003e (1963) won an Oscar, she is perhaps best known for directing \u003ci\u003ePortrait of Jason\u003c\/i\u003e (1967), which features an interview with a gay Black man openly discussing his life as an entertainer and sex worker, his successes, and his experiences with discrimination. Until now, Clarke's legacy has been largely pushed to history's margins.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn\u003ci\u003e Shirley Clarke, \u003c\/i\u003eauthor Laurence Kardish presents a vivid portrait of a filmmaker whose life was often at odds with the societal expectations of a privileged woman born in twentieth-century New York City--a woman who admitted to being deeply conflicted about motherhood and who advocated for reproductive rights. Frequently allowing Clarke to speak through her diaries, this biography traces her life from birth to modern dance training, personal relationships, struggles with mental illness, video adventures on the roof of the Chelsea Hotel, and collaborations with creatives like Agnès Varda, Sam Shepard, and Ornette Coleman. Kardish offers an up-close account of a rebel who battled convention to depict the raw truth on screen, a filmmaker whose countercultural impact and innovations in diverse media deserve wider attention.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Laurence Kardish\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1985903369\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781985903364\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University Press of Kentucky\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/25\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 264\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover","brand":"Laurence Kardish","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48997179162879,"sku":"9781985903364","price":40.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/shirley-clarke-laurence-kardish-9781985903364","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}