Local filmmaker debuts film on Luxton Lake in NYC

NARROWSBURG, NY — On Wednesday, September 16, filmmaker Tina Spangler will premiere her short documentary “Lucky Lake” at Anthology Film Archives in New York City, as part of a program of new documentary work presented by NewFilmmakers. The screening will begin at 6:00 p.m.

“Lucky Lake” is a 14-minute documentary about a racially mixed vacation community that was robbed of its lake. Luxton Lake (aka “Lucky Lake”) has a vibrant, seductive past full of jazz music, lakeside dances and Harlem families saving to build their own cottage in the mountains. Throughout the 1950s and ‘60s, children fished from the bridge over the dam, adults sipped cocktails in the clubhouse and everyone cherished their summers at Lucky Lake.

But in 1982, Luxton Lake’s residents watched in horror as their lake was drained. Bigoted town officials were blamed, and racial tensions escalated. Homeowners hired a prominent civil rights attorney to sue the town for racial discrimination. The town’s defense: the old dam was a hazard and had to go. Today’s decrepit clapboard cabins and rotting rowboats are the only reminders of the lake’s rich history.

Director Tina Spangler, who has produced work for Sundance Channel and PBS, made her debut film, “Lucky Lake,” to reveal this compelling untold story of an African American vacationland.

The NewFilmmakers series gives independent filmmakers a venue to showcase their work and gives New York audiences the opportunity to see outstanding new films. “Lucky Lake” is funded in part by an Individual Artists Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA); the Sullivan County Arts and Heritage Program; and the Decentralization Program of NYSCA.

Anthology Film Archives is located at 32 Second Avenue (at 2nd Street) in New York City. Admission costs $5. For more information call 212/777-7228.