Jerry Levitan[1] (born 1954) is a Canadian best known as "the kid who interviewed John Lennon". He produced and starred in the animated short I Met the Walrus about his meeting with John Lennon and Yoko Ono in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1969. Though only 14 years old, Levitan beat the world media and conducted an exclusive 30-minute interview with them about peace, The Beatles, and their music.[2]
Jerry Levitan | |
|---|---|
 Jerry Levitan in 2020 | |
| Born | July 22, 1954 |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation(s) | Politician, Lawyer, Writer, Film Maker, Actor, Musician |
| Known for | I Met the Walrus |
The film won a Daytime Emmy in 2009 in the category of New Approaches, Daytime Entertainment.[3] It was also nominated for an Oscar in 2008 for best animated short,[2] and won Best Animated at the Manhattan Short Film Festival, the American Film Festival and the Middle East International Film Festival.[4] He is the author of the best selling, autobiographical book, I Met The Walrus published May 2009 by HarperCollins. It is the account of Levitan's childhood growing up in the sixties, his love for the Beatles, and traces in detail the day he spent with John Lennon and Yoko Ono.
In 2010, Levitan was honored by the Guggenheim Museum and YouTube when I Met The Walrus was selected in the first Biennial of Creative Video.
In July 2011 Levitan's animated film, Yoko Ono's My Hometown had its world premiere at the Without Borders (Senza Frontiere) Film Festival in Spoleto, Italy to widespread acclaim. Levitan co-produced and directed the film. Yoko Ono narrated her poem and provided her Remember Love song which was the B-Side to Give Peace A Chance, for the soundtrack.
Levitan produced "I Am the Egbert", an animated series of 14 Spotify canvasses written and directed by Sean Ono Lennon for the 2021 release of "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band - The Ultimate Collection".
On May 26, 2021, Jerry Levitan was nominated as the 2022 Ontario Liberal Party Candidate for the Toronto riding of Davenport.
Biography
Levitan graduated with a B.A. from York University in Toronto and an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in 1979,[2] and has been involved throughout his career with high-profile legal cases. He is the author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Winning Everyday Legal Hassles in Canada (ISBN 0-13-575150-0).
Levitan is also an actor with roles in a string of Canadian and international films and television series, including a guest appearance in The West Wing, and one of Canada's pre-eminent children's entertainers. Performing under his alter-ego "Sir Jerry" (sir-jerry.com) and backed by a full band of rock musicians and performers, he has produced four CDs, "Bees, Butterflies & Bugs", "Sir Jerry's World", "Time Machine" and "Sir Jerry Scared Silly" and is developing a television series.
Electoral history
| 2022 Ontario general election: Davenport | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Marit Stiles | 20,242 | 57.06 | −3.20 | $107,755 | |||
| Liberal | Jerry Levitan | 6,815 | 19.21 | +0.53 | $67,441 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Paul Spence | 4,994 | 14.08 | −2.01 | $6,103 | |||
| Green | Karen Stephenson | 1,710 | 4.82 | +1.28 | $542 | |||
| Ontario Party | Diti Coutinho | 400 | 1.13 | $4,541 | ||||
| New Blue | Mario Bilusic | 395 | 1.11 | $2,719 | ||||
| Libertarian | Nunzio Venuto | 375 | 1.06 | +0.60 | $0 | |||
| Communist | Jack Copple | 326 | 0.92 | +0.59 | $0 | |||
| Independent | Nicholas Alexander | 139 | 0.39 | $550 | ||||
| Independent | Simon Fogel | 77 | 0.22 | $300 | ||||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 35,473 | 99.24 | +0.25 | $117,313 | ||||
| Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | 272 | 0.76 | −0.25 | |||||
| Turnout | 35,745 | 43.30 | −15.13 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 83,796 | |||||||
| New Democratic hold | Swing | −1.87 | ||||||
Source(s)
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References
- ^ "Lawyer Contact Information". Law Society of Upper Canada. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
- ^ a b c "Oscar-Nominated Film Producer Jerry Levitan '79 is coming to Osgoode". Retrieved 2008-08-12. [dead link]
- ^ Bravo!FACT-funded short wins Daytime Emmy! Archived 2009-09-15 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Canadian filmmaker in disbelief over Oscar nod". Retrieved 2008-08-12.