Jo Harvey Allen is an American writer, actress, and artist.

Education

Allen was born and raised in Lubbock, Texas, to a dress shop manager mother and a carpenter father. In 1961, she married artist and singer Terry Allen and moved to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

where she walked away from a BFA degree from the Woodbury College of Design over a disputed sixty dollar fee. She studied with poets, Philip Levine and Kenneth Rexroth and staged her first poetry performance for an audience of one, mentor, dancer, filmmaker,

Yvonne Rainer Yvonne Rainer (born November 24, 1934) is an American dancer, choreographer, and filmmaker, whose work in these disciplines is regarded as challenging and experimental.

. In the 1960s, she was a pioneer of women in radio hosting Los Angeles' ''Rawhide & Roses'', music and talk show, on the early underground rock station,

KPPC-FM KROQ-FM (106.7 Hertz, MHz) is a commercial Radio broadcasting, radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronou ...

in Pasadena, California, produced by her husband, artist/songwriter, Terry Allen. In the 1970s, she was one of the first

performance artists Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

performing throughout the U.S. in alternative spaces, cafes, art galleries and museums.

Film and stage work

She is best known, however, for her work in film and for her one-woman plays which she has toured extensively including off-Broadway productions written and performed by Allen of ''A Moment's Hesitation'', (director Allen), ''As It Is in Texas'', (director Ellen Sabastian), and ''Counter Angel'', (director

Joan Tewkesbury Joan Tewkesbury (born April 8, 1936) is an American film and television director, writer, producer, choreographer and actress. She had a long association with the celebrated director Robert Altman, writing the screenplays for '' Thieves Like Us ...

), (CD of audio available), (play was filmed by Alan Landsbury). ''Counter Angel'' was first performed in truck stops and cafes and based on Allen's book of photographs and interviews titled ''The Beautiful Waitress'' (unpublished). Other plays written and performed by Allen include: ''Hally Lou'' and ''Homerun''. Allen co-wrote the radio play, ''Every Three Minutes'' (National Public Radio) with her son, Bukka Allen. She collaborated with her husband Terry and their sons, Bukka and Bale, on ''Do You Know what Your Children are Tonight?'' (Washington Project for the Arts, Washington, DC). She toured, starred, and co-wrote with Terry Allen and Rinde Eckert the opera, ''Pioneer'' (director, Robert Woodruff), (Spoleto, U.S.A.) music by Paul Dresher Ensemble, and starred as, Chippy, in ''Diaries of a West Texas Hooker'' co-written with Terry Allen, music co-written by the Allens, Joe Ely,

Butch Hancock Butch Hancock (born July 12, 1945 in Lubbock, Texas, United States), is an American country/folk music recording artist and songwriter. Hancock is a member of The Flatlanders along with Joe Ely and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, but he has principally perf ...

, and Jo Carol Pierce, (American Music Theater Festival, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Lincoln Center, New York) (CD, Hollywood Records, ''L.A. Times'' Pick of the Year). Her film credits include '' True Stories'', ''

The Client Client(s) or The Client may refer to: * Client (business) * Client (computing), hardware or software that accesses a remote service on another computer * Customer or client, a recipient of goods or services in return for monetary or other valuabl ...

'' ''

Secondhand Lions ''Secondhand Lions'' is a 2003 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Tim McCanlies. It tells the story of an introverted young boy (Haley Joel Osment) who is sent to live with his eccentric great uncles (Robert Duvall and Michael C ...

'', '' The Wendell Baker Story'' and ''

In the Valley of Elah ''In the Valley of Elah'' is a 2007 American crime drama film written and directed by Paul Haggis. The film stars Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, and Susan Sarandon. Its title refers to the Biblical valley where the battle between David and Go ...

''. She authored a collection of poetry, ''Cheek to Cheek'' (Duckdown Press). Traveling exhibitions (catalogues available) of her photographs and drawings include, ''The Beautiful Waitress'' (Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, Omaha, Nebraska), ''100 Artists See Satan'', (Cal State-Fullerton) and ''100 Artists See God'' (Independent Curators International). Allen has been a visiting professor at

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

and visiting artist and lecturer at many universities including The San Francisco Art Institute,

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

The Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and list of largest art museums, largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visit ...

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

and The Architectural Institute of London. Jo Harvey and her husband Terry have two sons and two grandsons and live in Santa Fe, New Mexico and

Marfa, Texas Marfa is a city in the high desert of the Trans-Pecos in far West Texas, between the Davis Mountains and Big Bend National Park. It is the county seat of Presidio County, and its population as of the 2010 United States Census was 1,981. The cit ...

. She was a recipient of grants from The National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships, ART MATTERS.

Legacy

In 2019 she and her husband donated their records including photos and scripts to

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

to create a living archive.

Appearances

Filmography

*''

'' *'' The Wendell Baker Story'' *''

'' *''Screen Door Jesus'' *'' All the Pretty Horses'' *''Why Is The Dog Howlin' Mama?'' (Cannes 2001) *''Waking Up In Reno'' *'' True Stories'' *'' Fried Green Tomatoes'' *''

'' *''Checking Out'' *''Mi Amigo'' *''Floundering'' *''Motorist'' *''The Outfitters'' (Sundance 1999) *''Fool's Gold'' (Sundance 1999) *''

Tapeheads ''Tapeheads'' is a 1988 comedy film directed by Bill Fishman and starring John Cusack, Tim Robbins, Sam Moore and Junior Walker. The film was produced by Michael Nesmith, who briefly appears as a bottled water delivery man. Plot After losing th ...

Television appearances

*Elysian Fields *Cold Sassy Tree *'' Scattering Dad'' *Floating Away *' The Lazarus Man'' * Charlie Rose

Theater

*Ghost Ship Rodez* *Warboy and the Backboard Blues* *Homerun* *An Evening with Terry and Jo Harvey Allen *Chippy* *Pioneer* *The Embrace ...Advance To Fury* *Duckblind* *Hally Lou* *Anti-Rabbit Bleeder/A Biography* *Do You Know What Your Children Are Tonight?* *Resurrection *Juarez *Leon, Lena & Lenz *A Moment's Hesitation *Counter Angel* *As it is in Texas* ''* Denotes, Original Production and National Tour''

Radio

*Rawhide & Roses *Every Three Minutes *Dugout *Reunion *Bleeder

References

External links

*
Oral history interview with Jo Harvey Allen, 1998 Apr. 21
from the Smithsonian

Archives of American Art The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 20 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washingt ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Jo Harvey Living people American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses People from Lubbock, Texas Actresses from Texas Writers from Texas American women dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American actresses American film actresses American television actresses American radio actresses People from Santa Fe, New Mexico People from Marfa, Texas Year of birth missing (living people)