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Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Hal Ashby’s influential, subversive, and short run at making iconic 1970s movies

Director Hal Ashby was a prolific director in the 1970s. He made seven movies in nine years, including “Harold and Maude,” “Shampoo,” “Being There.”

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By Madeleine Brand • Sep 13, 2018 • 1 min read

Director Hal Ashby was a prolific director in the 1970s. He made seven movies in nine years, including “Harold and Maude,” “Shampoo,” “Being There.” Ashby liked to push the limits with his movies -- past what studios thought mainstream audiences could handle. He butted heads with studio executives a lot, and never quite reached “household name” status like some of his auteur peers like Kubrick, Coppola, and Scorsese. He died in 1988 at age 59. A new documentary looks at his career.

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    Madeleine Brand

    Host, 'Press Play'

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    Sarah Sweeney

    Vice President of Talk Programming, KCRW

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    Line Editor, Press Play

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    Digital News & Culture Editor

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    Amy Scott

    director of the documentary “Hal”

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