Korla (2015)

29/09/2015
Documentary
1h 18m

Overview

Organist Korla Pandit was an alluring enigma, a television pioneer and the godfather of exotica music. He never spoke a word on 900 episodes of his groundbreaking 1950s TV program but captured the hearts of countless Los Angeles housewives with his soulful, hypnotic gaze and theatrical performance of popular tunes and East Indian compositions on the newly developed Hammond B3 organ. In the ’90s he resurfaced as a cult figure with the tiki/lounge music aficionados and ended up immortalized in the film Ed Wood. Often pegged as a “man of mystery,” Korla lived up to that billing when he took an amazing secret with him to his grave in 1998—one that is finally revealed in KORLA.

  • John TurnerDirector
  • Status

    Released

  • Original Language

    English

Keywords

  • fake identity
  • organist
  • early television
  • tiki culture
  • keyboardist

Top Billed Cast

Korla Pandit

Korla Pandit

self (archival)

Scott Alexander

Scott Alexander

self

Harry Edwards

Harry Edwards

self

Booker T. Jones

Booker T. Jones

self

Marty Pasetta

self

Carlos Santana

Carlos Santana

self

Ben Fong-Torres

self

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