Andy Warhol's America: Day he fell out with Dylan over Elvis

Andy Warhol spent his life chasing what he thought was cool. He met his match, however, when Bob Dylan visited the artist’s studio to take part in a film about up-and-coming figures in early 1960s New York.

Picking up an Elvis print on his way out the door, Dylan reportedly said: “I think I’ll take one of these for payment, man.” Warhol could only look on, stunned. FYI, a “double Elvis” sold at Sotheby’s in 2012 for 37 million dollars. Dylan saw where the Warhol career was headed, but did others? What did his contribution to art amount to in the end?

Producer-director Francis Whately explores those questions and more in a fascinating three-part series. After “Living the Dream”, an account of Warhol’s early years as the son of first-generation immigrants in Pittsburgh, this second part is subtitled “The American Nightmare”.

It follows Warhol’s transition from a successful commercial artist working for the Mad Men of Madison Avenue into fine art. As part of that metamorphosis, his work began to take on a new seriousness reflecting the times. The Warhol of soup cans and Marilyn was also the artist who made prints of the electric chair that executed convicted spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

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Then again, as Warhol said: “You’d be surprised how many people want to hang an electric chair on their wall.” Sure enough, we are transported to a packed gallery where punters choose which colour wash they like best. 

Warhol’s motives are further questioned when he makes prints from Charles Moore’s era-defining photographs of police and dogs attacking protesters in segregated Birmingham, Alabama. Denise Barefield-Pendleton, a witness to the protests, made clear what she thought. “His intentions were strictly to generate money for him.” 

Another contributor thought Warhol was trying to have his say in the only way he knew how, through art. 

The focus on political violence and anarchy in the USA gave way to an account of wild times on the Factory front, where what began as an experiment in boho living turned into a personal nightmare for Warhol.

It was also in this period that Warhol became manager of The Velvet Underground (dubbed "The psychopaths' Rolling Stones" by one associate). And who should rock up among the talking heads but Mr Lou Reed himself. Other notable contributors from back in the day include Bianca Jagger and Jerry Hall. “He loved talking about cleaning products,” the latter said of Warhol.

Whateley’s use of contributors was as winning as his choice of archive. Whether we hear from art historians, critics, Factory followers, or other friends of Andy, the films are packed with insights. Praise is given where deserved, and the obvious dross is highlighted, including Warhol’s “completely unwatchable” movies.

The final film in the series, which first aired in 2022, deals with the moneymaking years. Whatever Warhol takes your fancy, chances are it is covered. The fact that his life packed several hours - and could easily have filled more - would have delighted Warhol, the of-the-moment pop artist whose works have endured far beyond his times.