The Blank Generation

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title: "The Blank Generation" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1976-films", "american-documentary-films", "documentary-films-about-punk-music-and-musicians", "black-and-white-documentary-films", "punk-films", "films-shot-in-new-york-city", "films-without-speech", "american-independent-films", "music-of-new-york-city", "1976-documentary-films", "american-black-and-white-films", "1970s-english-language-films", "1976-american-films", "english-language-documentary-films", "films-directed-by-amos-poe"] description: "1976 film by Amos Poe, Ivan Kral" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blank_Generation" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary 1976 film by Amos Poe, Ivan Kral ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox film"]

Field	Value
name	The Blank Generation
image	The Blank Generation.jpg
director	Ivan Kral
Amos Poe
producer	Ivan Kral
Amos Poe
starring	Patti Smith Group
Television
Ramones
The Heartbreakers
Talking Heads
Blondie
editing	Amos Poe
Ivan Kral
released
runtime	53 minutes
country	United States
language	English
studio	Poe Productions
distributor	New Line Cinema
::

| name = The Blank Generation | image = The Blank Generation.jpg | director = Ivan Kral Amos Poe | producer = Ivan Kral Amos Poe | starring = Patti Smith Group Television Ramones The Heartbreakers Talking Heads Blondie | music = | editing = Amos Poe Ivan Kral | released = | runtime = 53 minutes | country = United States | language = English | studio = Poe Productions | distributor = New Line Cinema The Blank Generation is a 1976 American documentary film that is the earliest of the released low-budget DIY punk rock films from the No Wave scene in New York City in the mid-1970s. Inspired by Jean-Luc Godard, it was filmed by No wave cinema filmmaker Amos Poe and Patti Smith Group member Ivan Kral.

The film includes footage of Blondie, Patti Smith, The Ramones, Television, Talking Heads, New York Dolls, The Heartbreakers, The Shirts, and Robert Gordon (then with Tuff Darts).

Synopsis

Directors and producers Kral and Poe filmed behind-the-scenes and on and offstage footage of punk musicians before they became icons. The project stemmed from Kral's visual diary of his experiences in New York, filming bandmates and friends with a 16mm camera.

Cast

• Richard Hell
• Patti Smith Group
• Television
• Ramones
• The Heartbreakers
• Talking Heads
• Blondie
• Tuff Darts
• New York Dolls
• The Shirts

Musicians featured in the film include: Clem Burke, David Byrne, Jayne County, Wayne County, Jay Dee Daugherty, Jimmy Destri, Billy Ficca, Chris Frantz, Annie Golden, Robert Gordon, Debbie Harry, Richard Hell, David Johansen, Arthur Kane, Lenny Kaye, Ivan Kral, Richard Lloyd, Walter Lure, Lizzy Mercier Descloux, Jerry Nolan, Dee Dee Ramone, Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, Tommy Ramone, Jeff Salen (Tuff Darts), Fred Smith, Patti Smith, Richard Sohl, Chris Stein, Syl Sylvain, Johnny Thunders, Gary Valentine, Tom Verlaine and Tina Weymouth; as well as CBGB owner Hilly Kristal and others.

Production

The action is centered on the music scene in New York clubs including CBGB and Max's Kansas City. Film locations also include the Hotel Chelsea, The Bottom Line, and other spots in the Bowery and Lower East Side neighborhoods. Legal disputes between Poe and Kral ultimately resulted in the removal of Poe's name from the credits once Kral asserted copyright to the film years after its initial release.

Reception

Dave Kehr of The Chicago Reader called the film "New wave's answer to The T.A.M.I. Show". while Time Out New York put it at #89 on their list of the 100 Best NY Movies.

References

References

1. "The Blank Generation".
2. "dOc DVD Review: Blank Generation/Dancing Barefoot (1976)".
3. (August 27, 2009). "Goldmine - Patti Smith: From poet to punk heroine part 2".
4. Buckley, Cara. (July 30, 2020). "His Film Is a Punk Classic, but the Credits Now Roll Without Him". The New York Times.
5. Kehr, Dave. (June 16, 2006). "The Blank Generation".
6. "The Blank Generation (1976), directed by Amos Poe and Ivan Král".

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