David Maysles

Directing

David Maysles

Born January 10, 1931 · Brookline, Massachusetts, USA

Died January 3, 1987 · aged 55

Albert (born November 26, 1926, Boston, Massachusetts) and David Maysles (rhymes with "hazels", born 10 January 1932, Boston, Massachusetts) were a documentary filmmaking team whose cinéma vérité works include Salesman (1968), Gimme Shelter (1970) and Grey Gardens (1976). Their 1964 film on The Beatles forms the backbone of the DVD, The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit. Several Maysles films document…

Known For

Bus StopBus Stop · 1956
Bus Stop
6.11956
MovieComedyDrama
Cowboys Beauregard Decker and Virgil Blessing attend a rodeo in Phoenix, where Decker falls in love with beautiful cafe singer Cherie. He wants to take Cherie back to his native Montana and marry her, but she dreams of traveling to Hollywood and becoming famous. When she resists his advances, Decker forces Cherie onto the bus back to Montana with him, but, when the bus makes an unscheduled stop due to bad weather, the tables are turned.
The Prince and the ShowgirlThe Prince and the Showgirl · 1957
The Prince and the Showgirl
6.41957
MovieComedyRomance
An American showgirl becomes entangled in political intrigue when the Prince Regent of a foreign country attempts to seduce her.
Gimme ShelterGimme Shelter · 1970
Gimme Shelter
7.31970
MovieDocumentaryMusic
A detailed chronicle of the famous 1969 tour of the United States by the British rock band The Rolling Stones, which culminated with the disastrous and tragic concert held on December 6 at the Altamont Speedway Free Festival, an event of historical significance, as it marked the end of an era: the generation of peace and love suddenly became the generation of disillusionment.
Salvador Dalí's Fantastic DreamSalvador Dalí's Fantastic Dream · 1966
Salvador Dalí's Fantastic Dream
1966
MovieDocumentary
Produced by 20th Century Fox, this Maysles Brothers short was intended to help promote the release of Disney's Fantastic Voyage (1966) for which Salvador Dali was artistic consultant. Shot in and around New York, the film features a cameo by a bikini clad Raquel Welch, star of Fantastic Voyage and Dali's muse for a series of portraits of Hollywood starlets.
Grey GardensGrey Gardens · 1976
Grey Gardens
7.31976
MovieDocumentary
Edie Bouvier Beale and her mother, Edith, two aging, eccentric relatives of Jackie Kennedy Onassis, are the sole inhabitants of a Long Island estate. The women reveal themselves to be misfits with outsized, engaging personalities. Much of the conversation is centered on their pasts, as mother and daughter now rarely leave home.
OzawaOzawa · 1985
Ozawa
8.51985
MovieDocumentaryMusic
This intimate portrait of the legendary conductor Seiji Ozawa focuses on the Japanese master and teacher's career, his advocacy of modern composers and the behind-the-scenes world of the symphony orchestra.
SalesmanSalesman · 1969
Salesman
7.11969
MovieDocumentary
This documentary from Albert and David Maysles follows the bitter rivalry of four door-to-door salesmen working for the Mid-American Bible Company: Paul "The Badger" Brennan, Charles "The Gipper" McDevitt, James "The Rabbit" Baker and Raymond "The Bull" Martos. Times are tough for this hard-living quartet, who spend their days traveling through small-town America, trying their best to peddle gold-leaf Bibles to an apathetic crowd of lower-middle-class housewives and elderly couples.
Running FenceRunning Fence · 1977
Running Fence
6.61977
MovieDocumentary
Second in the series by the Maysles brothers documenting the monuments/sculptures of Christo, whose art projects are landscape-scaled, and more "pop" performance art designed to question how we relate to art in the public sphere, especially when it's as oblique, non-political (at least, that is what he would claim), and neutral as running a fence through a landscape.

Filmography

Sort
Muhammad and LarryMuhammad and Larry · 2009
Muhammad and Larry
6.42009
MovieDocumentary
In October of 1980 Muhammad Ali was preparing to fight for an unprecedented fourth heavyweight title against his friend and former sparring partner Larry Holmes. To say that the great Ali was in the twilight of his career would be generous; most of his admiring fans, friends and fight scribes considered his bravado delusional. What was left for him to prove? In the weeks of training before the fight, documentarians Albert and David Maysles took an intimate look at Ali trying to convince the world and perhaps himself, that he was still “The Greatest.” At the same time, they documented the mild-mannered and undervalued champion Holmes as he confidently prepared to put an end to the career of a man for whom he had an abiding and deep affection

Sound

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! The Beatles in New YorkYeah! Yeah! Yeah! The Beatles in New York · 1964
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! The Beatles in New York
1964
MovieDocumentary
The American documentary makers - The Maysles Brothers, were given exclusive access to almost every minute of The Beatles first American visit. The first 3 days of film footage shot in New York was rushed over to Granada Television in London who quickly edited the footage for a TV special called "Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! The Beatles in New York" which was broadcast on February 12, 1964 at 10:25pm. The majority of the footage in this UK special featured their arrival at JFK Airport; Arriving at their hotel room; Fans outside the Plaza Hotel; footage from inside their hotel room with Murray The K; Murray The K interviewing them on the phone from WINS radio station; Walking through Central Park for a photo session; Limo ride to CBC TV Studios; Ringo & Murray The K dancing at the Peppermint Lounge.

Director