San Francisco Film Society Oral History Project Interview with ...

MARGARITA LANDAZURI: There’s a funny story about Bondarchuk, because he was there in person,
and you couldn’t find him. Could you tell that story?
CLAUDE JARMAN: He was with me and George Gund up at his ranch in Nevada. We flew up to Elko,
Nevada and visited his ranch and had lunch.
MARGARITA LANDAZURI: Oh, OK, because according to Mark Chase, he was off buying jeans.
CLAUDE JARMAN: No, not that day. Well he may have been one other day, but that day we were up
in Nevada.
MARGARITA LANDAZURI: The Cassavetes film that played at the Festival was Husbands. How was
that received?
CLAUDE JARMAN: I think it was received OK. We showed it at midnight.
MARGARITA LANDAZURI: According to what I read, the tribute to him went on until 3:00 a.m.
CLAUDE JARMAN: To me, Cassavetes could have used a good editor. His films were much too long.
He really just belabored it. I think it was at midnight. And I think he was unhappy in that people were
tired at three in the morning! (LAUGHS)
MARGARITA LANDAZURI: I think he seemed a little defensive, too. He said something like, “Good
or bad, I made the film I wanted to make.”
CLAUDE JARMAN: Anyway, it was at midnight, so it was too late, frankly.
MARGARITA LANDAZURI: Albert Johnson at one point—and this was 1970, the first year that you
charged—threatened to quit over this policy.
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