In 1937, after seeing a photo depicting the lynching of a black man in the south, Bronx-born high school teacher Abel Meeropol wrote a poem entitled "Strange Fruit" that begins with the words: "Southern trees bear a strange fruit / Blood on the leaves and blood at the root." He set the poem to music and a few years later convinced Billy holiday to record it in a legendary heartbreaking performance. Intertwining jazz genealogy, biography, performance footage, and the history of lynching, director Joel Katz fashions a fascinating discovery of the lost story behind a true American classic. Written by Excerpted from Coolidge Corner Theatre Program Update
Joel Katz
Director
Dorothy Thigpen
Self
Milton Gabler
Self
Farah Jasmine Griffin
Self
Pete Seeger
Self
Ethel Rosenberg
Self
Julius Rosenberg
Self
Billie Holiday
Self
Cassandra Wilson
Self
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Nail Bomber: Manhunt65%
Fuck64%
Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me84%
Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story62%
Shawn Mendes: In Wonder81%
The Velvet Underground67%
The Perfect Neighbor68%
ReMastered: The Two Killings of Sam Cooke69%
Night Will Fall76%
Biggie & Tupac64%
Maternal Instinct72%
Tupac: Resurrection79%
The Alabama Solution68%
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The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution70%
Beastie Boys Story74%
The Crash69%
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Louis Theroux: Louis and the Nazis72%
