The Bed (1968)

Director	James Broughton
Producer	Unknown
Contributors	Publisher: San Francisco: Released by Multi-Media Resources Center; Starring Florence Allen, Gavin Arthur, and Imogen Cunningham
Length	20 minutes
B&W/Color	Color
UO Library Catalog description:	Presents the saga of the bed as the center of life, from birth to death. Describes human sexuality in a humorous way
Call #	Mc337
Genre	Experimental
Rare	No, very well known
Online	For sale on Best Buy and Amazon
Copyright status	Protected
Physical condition	Good
Oregon-related	No

Notes: 

Made during the “summer of love”, The Bed projects the quintessential feel and attitude of San Francisco: free, experimental, humorous, loving, weird, and accepting of all things bizarre and unconventional. It is part of MoMA’s collection and continues to be revisited from time to time.

Broughton, a San Francisco artist, was known for his poetry and films, especially The Potted Psalm and Mother’s Day, which helped kick off the West Coast experimental film scene–he also played a big role in the San Francisco Renaissance. Broughton started making films around the age of 30 during a dark time of his life. They pulled him out of his black hole and essentially saved his life. Broughton also taught at the San Francisco Art Institute where, according to SF Weekly, “he developed a cult following amongst his students.” He was accepting, unconventional, and always encouraged people to “follow your own weird.”