Strange Fruit

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

• Release date
• May 20, 2002
• Runtime
• 57 min
• Genres
• Music, Documentary
• Director
• Joel Katz

Cast

D

Dorothy Thigpen Self

M

Milton Gabler Self

F

Farah Jasmine Griffin Self Pete Seeger Self Ethel Rosenberg Self Julius Rosenberg Self Billie Holiday Self

C

Cassandra Wilson Self