Aram Avakian

Aram Avakian
Born	April 23, 1926 Manhattan,New York City
Died	January 17, 1987(1987-01-17)(aged 60) New York City
Nationality	Armenian-American
Alma mater	Horace Mann School Yale University
Occupation(s)	Film editor and director
Partner(s)	Dorothy Tristan(1957-1972) Allegra Kent
Children	2

Aram A. Avakian(April 23, 1926 – January 17, 1987) was an American film editor and director. His work in the latter role includesJazz on a Summer's Day(1959) and the indie filmEnd of the Road(1970).

Life and work

Aram "Al" Avakian was born in Manhattan, New York, in 1926 toArmenianparents from Iran and Soviet Georgia. He graduatedHorace Mann SchoolandYale Universitybefore serving as a Naval officer on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. On theG.I. Billafter the war, he went to France where he attended theSorbonne.There he was part of a tight group of young friends who defined the American literary movement of 1950's Paris, includingTerry Southern,William Styron,John P. Marquand,andGeorge Plimpton.In 1953, Avakian returned to the United States and apprenticed under famed photographer Gjon Mili who got him started in documentary editing. In his spare time Avakian took still photographs of the legendary jazz sessions his brother the jazz producerGeorge Avakianrecorded.

From 1955 to 1958, Avakian was the editor ofEdward R. Murrow's programSee It Now.In his bookVanity of Duluoz,Jack Kerouacbased the character of Charlie on Aram Avakian. Avakian introduced Kerouac to Jazz at Horace Mann, where they both edited the school newspaper.

He soon became a feature film editor and director.In 1958, he directed, a filmed record of theNewport Jazz Festival.The result,Jazz on a Summer's Day(1959), which Avakian also edited, is credited with being "the first feature-film documentary of a music festival."The music was supervised by Avakian's brother George Avakian the legendary Jazz producer.

He edited the feature filmGirl of the Night(1960), "acknowledged for its early use of the freeze frame and the jump cut"in American films. His credits as an editor also includedRobert Frank'sO.K. End Here(1960),Arthur Penn'sThe Miracle Worker(1962),Robert Rossen'sLilith(1964), Penn'sMickey One(1965), in which Avakian also plays the disembodied voice ofWarren Beatty's tormentor, and,Francis Ford Coppola's editor onYou're a Big Boy Now(1966),Jerry Schatzberg'sHoneysuckle Rose(1979)

Avakian directed and edited the movieEnd of the Road(1970), which received an "X" rating for its graphic depiction of an abortion. ForEnd of the Road,Avakian received the Golden Leopard Award at theLocarno International Film Festival.LIFEmagazine's November 7, 1969, issue covered the film in a spectacular 9-page article, and in-depth interviews ran inEsquireandPlayboy.In a review of the film inThe New York Times,Roger Greenspun wrote ofEnd of the Road:"The precise truth of, say, 5 in a summer afternoon on the lawn of an assistant professor in a small country college has perhaps never been caught in a commercial movie before -- but that is the kind of precise truth this movie captures again and again."The film starsJames Earl Jones,Stacy Keach,Dorothy Tristan, andHarris Yulin.In the film Avakian plays The Landlord, The Pigman, and the voice of the psychiatrist on the phone. George Avakian oversaw the music. Avakian's old friend, the novelist Terry Southern, co-produced the film, and co-wrote the screenplay with Avakian and Dennis McGuire.

End of the Roadis an early indie picture which bucked Hollywood conventions and was before its time. Many of the cast and crew went on to distinguished film careers. The film is admired by the directorSteven Soderbergh,who directed an accompanying documentary on the making of the film on the Warner Bros. DVD, titled "An Amazing Time: Conversations AboutEnd of the Road", released on Sept. 18, 2012, as part of a series of great rediscovered movies.Cineastepublished this 1980's interview in advance of the 2012 DVD release:[1]

Avakian also directed and editedCops and Robbers(1973),One Night Standsand11 Harrowhouse(1974).and a lost film made in Paris, in French, in the early 1970s.

From 1983 through 1986, Avakian was chairman of the film department atState University of New York at Purchase. Arthur Penn spoke at Avakian's 1987 memorial. Francis Ford Coppola and Terry Southern wrote letters about Avakian, which were read aloud, andGerry Mulliganplayed his saxophone, as well as others. It was a packed house at the New York City Armenian cathedral.

For fifteen years, Avakian was married to actress and writerDorothy Tristanuntil 1972. During the last two years of his life his companion was former ballerinaAllegra Kent.His children with Dorothy Tristan are photojournalist/authorAlexandra Avakianand guitaristTristan Avakian.

Selected filmography

As editor (partial list)

• Jazz on a Summer's Day(1959)
• Girl of the Night(1960)
• The Miracle Worker(1962)
• Lilith(1964)
• Mickey One(1965)
• You're a Big Boy Now(1966)
• The Comedians(1967)
• The Next Man(1976)
• Honeysuckle Rose(1980)

As director (partial list)

• Jazz on a Summer's Day(withBert Sternas co-director) (1959)
• Lad, A Dog(withLeslie H. Martinson) (1962)
• One Night Stands(1967) (Documentary)
• End of the Road(1970)
• Cops and Robbers(1973)
• 11 Harrowhouse(1974)

External links

• Aram Avakian Website
• Aram AvakianatIMDb