William S. Burroughs
Writing • Born 1914-02-05 – Died 1997-08-02
Biography
William Seward Burroughs II (February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist, widely considered a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodern author who influenced popular culture and literature. Burroughs wrote eighteen novels and novellas, six collections of short stories and four collections of essays, and five books have been published of his interviews and correspondences; he was initially briefly known by the pen name William Lee. He also collaborated on projects and recordings with numerous performers and musicians, made many appearances in films, and created and exhibited thousands of visual artworks, including his celebrated "Shotgun Art". Description above from the Wikipedia article William S. Burroughs, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
73 credits
Chappaqua
Movie • 1966
Opium Jones
FLicKeR
Movie • 2009
Self
William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
Movie • 2010
Self
Take Your Pills
Movie • 2018
Self (archive footage)
Relics: Einstein's Brain
Movie • 1994
Self
Bloodhounds of Broadway
Movie • 1989
Butler
Wax, or The Discovery of Television Among the Bees
Movie • 1991
James "Hive" Maker
Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles
Movie • 1999
Self (archive footage)
The Final Academy Documents
Movie • 1984
Decoder
Movie • 1984
Old Man
September Songs: The Music of Kurt Weill
Movie • 1994
Self
Twister
Movie • 1989
Man in Barn
Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press
Movie • 2008
Self (archive footage)
William Buys a Parrot
Movie • 1963
Self
The Junky's Christmas
Movie • 1993
Narrator
Ornette: Made in America
Movie • 1986
Self
Glitterbug
Movie • 1994
Self
Condo Painting
Movie • 2000
Self (archive footage)
Bill and Tony
Movie • 1972
Self
Towers Open Fire
Movie • 1963
Ghost at No. 9
Movie • 1982
The Cut-Ups
Movie • 1966
Home of the Brave: A Film by Laurie Anderson
Movie • 1986
Self
The Source
Movie • 1999
Self (archive footage)
William S. Burroughs: Commissioner of Sewers
Movie • 1991
Self
Thanksgiving Prayer
Movie • 1991
A Speaker
Destroy All Rational Thought
Movie • 1998
Self
Coda I + Coda II
Movie • 2013
Self (voice) (archive sound)
Coda I
Movie • 2013
Self (voice) (archive sound)
Naked Making Lunch
Movie • 1992
Self
Shamans of the Blind Country
Movie • 1981
Narrator (voice)
Fried Shoes Cooked Diamonds
Movie • 1979
Self
For No Good Reason
Movie • 2012
Self (archive footage)
Wanderlust
Movie • 2006
Tom the Priest
Fix: The Ministry Movie
Movie • 2011
Self
Ah Pook Is Here.
Movie • 1994
Narrator
The Beat Hotel
Movie • 2012
Self (archive footage)
Robert Wilson: The Beauty of the Mysterious
Movie • 2022
Self (archive footage)
Underground and Emigrants
Movie • 1976
Self
Pantelia
Movie • 2006
Self
Burroughs: The Movie
Movie • 1984
Self
Chelsea Hotel
Movie • 1981
Self (uncredited)
Pirate Tape
Movie • 1983
Energy and How to Get It
Movie • 1981
Une semaine dans la vie de camarades
Movie • 1976
Witchcraft Through the Ages
Movie • 1968
Narrator
Drugstore Cowboy
Movie • 1989
Tom the Priest
Thot-Fal'N
Movie • 1978
Self
Words of Advice: William S. Burroughs On the Road
Movie • 2007
William S. Burroughs: The Possessed
Movie • 2015
Cain's Film
Movie • 1969
Self
Nova Express
Movie • 2009
Narrator (voice)
Don't Blink - Robert Frank
Movie • 2015
Self (archive footage)
The Battle for 'I Am Curious-Yellow'
Movie • 2003
Self (archive footage)
Poetry in Motion
Movie • 1982
Self
This Song for Jack
Movie • 1983
Self
Heavy Petting
Movie • 1989
Self
Poem Posters
Movie • 1967
Self
It Don't Pay to Be an Honest Citizen
Movie • 1985
Mafioso
The Making of Drugstore Cowboy
Movie • 1999
Robert E. Fulton III Edit of Burroughs: The Movie
Movie • 2015
Gang of Souls: A Generation of Beat Poets
Movie • 1989
Self
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
Movie • 1994
Self
Uncle Howard
Movie • 2017
Self
The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye
Movie • 2012
The Book of Life
Movie • 1998
Preacher on Radio (voice)
Chicago
Movie • 1968
Self
William S. Burroughs in the Dreamachine
Movie • 2015
Self
Coda II
Movie • 2013
Self (voice) (archive sound)
Nova '78
Movie • 2025
Self (archive footage)
This Is Buzz
Movie • 2026
Himself
Joy Division
Movie • 2009
Saturday Night Live
TV • 1975
Self