Julien Nitzberg

Julien Nitzberg (born 1965) is a US screenwriter, stage writer, lyricist, theater director and film director, best known in the film world as the director of the documentary The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia. In the theater world, Nitzberg is best known for his controversial musical The Beastly Bombing or A Terrible Tale of Terrorists Tamed by the Tangles of True Love. Nitzberg wrote the book and lyrics and directed this musical in Los Angeles and New York. The Beastly Bombing won the LA Weekly Theater Award for Best Musical of the Year.

Nitzberg was born and raised in the Bronx. His mother was an Austrian Holocaust survivor; his maternal grandfather was conductor and composer Hans Knauer, who had studied under Franz Lehár and who had conducted the premiere of Lehar’s opera Eva before Austrian emperor Franz Josef.

As a child, Nitzberg spent three years living in Great Britain and Vienna. Upon returning to America, he attended the Horace Mann School in New York City.

At age 16, Nitzberg became a founding member and guitarist of the notorious Lower East Side hardcore punk band Artless. They frequently played with Minor Threat, Swans, Flipper and other prominent punk bands. Mykel Board was their lead singer. Darryl Jenifer of the Bad Brains was Artless’ second guitarist. Nitzberg was known for antagonizing and getting into fights with skinhead members of the audience. Artless' self-titled first album was produced by Dr. Know of the Bad Brains. The band broke up when Nitzberg left New York City to attend Vassar College. He took one year off from college during which he drove a New York City yellow cab.

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