MICHAEL ULICK

ULICK--Michael Ackerman,

director, photographer, author, and wisenheimer, died Saturday, July 23, 2016. Born in Woodmere, New York during the hangover of the Great Depression, he attended Great Neck High School, and graduated with the class of 1956. He sat next to Francis Ford Coppola in their graduation photo, and claimed the ray of light that shone down upon the famed director caught his knee, bestowing upon him the talent that gained him his reputation in commercial directing. He was a beloved husband, father, brother, uncle, and quipster. He had an unwavering moral compass; he never lied, was never disloyal, and never promised something he wouldn't fulfill. He also never censored himself; what he said was often outrageous, frequently hilarious, but always authentic. For 16 years he struggled with Alzheimer's disease, and how to tell those he loved about it. His mission with all he created was "to appeal to a higher order, that of human feelings," and to give voice to the voiceless. His photography captured the tacit, often poignant, axioms of the human condition. His pro bono work for Mayor John Lindsay's Give A Damn campaign and the National Kidney Foundation served as a testament to his solicitude for those in need. His award-winning short film "Memorial Day" was a celebration of people and community, and was neither political, nor nationalistic. He had a knack for spotting talent, and as executive producer, cast many future stars in the 1988 film Rocket Gibraltar. Later in life, he opened the Church Street Art Gallery in Lenox, MA, as a way to support the work of outsider and self-taught artists. As we reflect upon his passing, let us remember his sentiment from "Memorial Day" - "maybe that feeling of loss, of mourning would bring us a little closer together."