Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune — Film Screening

For the first time since its initial release some 15 years ago, the Folk Music Society of Huntington joins with the Cinema Arts Centre (423 Park Avenue, Huntington) on Monday, June 8, at 7:30pm, in presenting Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune, a documentary about the iconic American troubadour who sought the bright lights of fame and social justice in equal measure over the course of a meteoric music career that spanned two decades. It was a contradiction that eventually tore him apart. From youthful idealism to rage to pessimism, the arc of Phil Ochs’ life paralleled that of the turbulent times in which he lived, and the anger, satire and righteous indignation that drove his music also drove him to dark despair. 

Phil Ochs: There But For Fortune was originally produced as part of PBS Television’s Emmy Award-winning American Masters series and also screened for two nights at the Cinema Arts Centre in partnership with FMSH. The documentary features commentary by Joan Baez, Billy Bragg, Tom Hayden, Christopher Hitchens, Sean Penn, Pete Seeger, Peter Yarrow and others – interspersed with performance clips of Ochs.  Described as “enthralling and fascinating” by Paper Magazine, the film paints what Entertainment Weekly calls “an essential portrait of an artist who ought to be better known.”  

Of the documentary, Sonny Ochs, Phil’s sister and a veteran folk DJ, told AcousticMusicScene.com in 2011: “It is really interesting because it shows Phil against a background of the times, and it doesn’t try to hide his blemishes. It is very honest and strong which is why audiences seem to like it so much.”

Tickets for Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune are $18; $11 for Cinema Arts Centre/FMSH members and may be purchased online at cinemaartscentre.org or at the box office up until the screening on June 8.