Shoes

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Gender

Male

Birthday

1946-02-15

Place of Birth

Omaha, Nebraska, USA

John Trudell

Biography

John Trudell was an American Indian author, poet, actor, musician, and political activist. He was the spokesperson for the United Indians of All Tribes' takeover of Alcatraz beginning in 1969, broadcasting as Radio Free Alcatraz. During most of the 1970s, he served as the chairman of the American Indian Movement, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After his pregnant wife, three children and mother-in-law were killed in 1979 in a fire at the home of his parents-in-law on the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes Duck Valley Indian Reservation in Nevada, Trudell turned to writing, music and film as a second career. He acted in three films in the 1990s. The documentary Trudell (2005) was made about him and his life as an activist and artist.

Known for

Thunderheart

Thunderheart

A young mixed-blood FBI agent is assigned to work with a cynical veteran investigator on a murder on a poverty-stricken Sioux reservation.

The West

The West

The West, sometimes marketed as Ken Burns Presents: The West, is a documentary film about the American Old West. It was directed by Stephen Ives and the executive producer was Ken Burns. The film originally aired on PBS in September 1996.

Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae

Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae

This true crime docuseries examines the murder of Annie Mae Aquash – a Mi'kmaq woman from Nova Scotia, Canada, a mother of two daughters, a teacher, and a revolutionary who fought for Indigenous rights in the 1970s whose death went unsolved for almost 30 years.

Extreme Measures

Extreme Measures

Guy Luthan, a British doctor working at a hospital in New York, starts making unwelcome enquiries when the body of a man who died in his emergency room disappears. After the trail leads Luthan to the door of an eminent surgeon at the hospital, Luthan soon finds himself in extreme danger from people who want the hospital's secret to remain undiscovered.

On Deadly Ground

On Deadly Ground

Forrest Taft is an environmental agent who works for the Aegis Oil Company in Alaska. Aegis Oil's corrupt CEO is the kind of person who doesn't care whether or not oil spills into the ocean or onto the land—just as long as it's making money for him.

Trudell

Trudell

A chronicle of legendary Native American poet/activist John Trudell's travels, spoken word performances, and politics.

Dreamkeeper

Dreamkeeper

In South Dakota, in an Indian reservation, an old storyteller Indian asks his grandson Shane, who is in trouble owing money to some bad guys, to take his old pony and him to Albuquerque to the great powwow, an Indian meeting. While traveling, Grandpa tells mysterious Indian tales of love, friendship and magic.

Dreamkeeper

Dreamkeeper

The legends of the Native American nations come to life in this epic miniseries, as two generations--a century-old storyteller and his grandson, a troubled 17-year-old boy--embark on a cross-country journey toward self-discovery.

The 11th Hour

The 11th Hour

A look at the state of the global environment including visionary and practical solutions for restoring the planet's ecosystems. Featuring ongoing dialogues of experts from all over the world, including former Soviet Prime Minister Mikhail Gorbachev, renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, former head of the CIA R. James Woolse

Smoke Signals

Smoke Signals

Young Native American man Thomas is a nerd in his reservation, wearing oversize glasses and telling everyone stories no-one wants to hear. His parents died in a fire in 1976, and Thomas was saved by Arnold. Arnold soon left his family, and Victor hasn't seen his father for 10 years. When Victor hears Arnold has died, Thomas offers him funding for the trip to get Arnold's remains.

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World

Documentary about the role of Native Americans in popular music history, a little-known story built around the incredible lives and careers of the some of the greatest music legends.

Powwow Highway

Powwow Highway

Two Northern Cheyenne men take a road trip from Montana to New Mexico to bail out the sister of one of them who has been framed and arrested in Santa Fe. On the way, they begin to reconnect to their spiritual heritage.

Lakota Nation vs. United States

Lakota Nation vs. United States

Poet Layli Long Soldier crafts a searing portrait of her Oyate’s connection to the Black Hills, through first contact and broken treaties to the promise of the Land Back movement, in this lyrical testament to resilience of a nation.

Incident at Oglala

Incident at Oglala

On June 26, 1975, during a period of high tensions on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, two FBI agents were killed in a shootout with a group of Indians. Although several men were charged with killing the agents, only one, Leonard Peltier, was found guilty. This film describes the events surrounding the shootout and suggests that Peltier was unjustly convicted.

Making a Noise: A Native American Musical Journey with Robbie Robertson

Making a Noise: A Native American Musical Journey with Robbie Robertson

This doc explores "The Band" guitarist and songwriter Robbie Robertson's Native American background. Half Mohawk on his mother's side, the film follows him back to the Six Nations reservation in Ontario where he spent summers growing up and picked up his first guitar. The resulting album, "Contact From the Underworld of Red Boy", draws on his childhood First Nation influences and includes musical collaborations wth Native artists such as John Trudell, Rita Coolidge and Buffy Ste Marie.