DURGNAT, Raymond (Eric) 1932-2002

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born September 1, 1932, in London, England; died May 19, 2002, in London, England. Film critic, educator, and author. Durgnat was a prominent film critic and film historian with eclectic tastes for all types of cinematic entertainment. He was a sergeant in the Royal Army Education Corps in the Far East before completing his education at Cambridge University, where he earned a B.A. in 1957. Although he worked in the film industry in the late 1950s as a staff writer for Associated British Pictures, Durgnat did not enjoy working directly for a film company and became a freelance writer instead. He also taught film and art history during the 1960s and 1970s at St. Martin's School of Art, Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and Columbia University. It was Durgnat's criticism of film published in various magazines, as well as in a number of books, that gained him widespread attention as a quirky observer of the cinematic art form. He wrote about such topics as sexuality in film and the art of comedy. Among his books are Eros in the Cinema (1966), Films and Feelings (1967), The Crazy Mirror (1969), A Mirror for England (1971), Durgnat on Film (1975), and WR: Mysteries of the Organism (1999).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

BOOKS

Writers Directory, 16th edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 2001.

PERIODICALS

Independent (London, England), May 25, 2002, p. 20.

Times (London, England), May 29, 2002, p. 30.