Kevin Thomas | |
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Born | Kevin Thomas June 12, 1936 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Alma mater | Gettysburg College Pennsylvania State University |
Occupation(s) | Film critic, writer |
Kevin Thomas (born June 12, 1936)[1] is an American film critic who has written reviews for the Los Angeles Times since 1962. His long tenure makes him the longest-running film critic among major United States newspapers.[2]
Thomas was born in Los Angeles in 1936. He earned a bachelor's degree from Gettysburg College in 1958 and master's degree from Pennsylvania State University in 1960.[2][3]
Thomas is known for giving fairly positive reviews compared to other critics, and certainly less critical than Kenneth Turan, who joined the Los Angeles Times in 1991.[4][5][6]
In 2003, the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association gave Thomas a Lifetime Achievement Award.[7] Thomas holds an honorary position on the advisory board of GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics and its Dorian Awards.[8]
In his 2022 book Cinema Speculation – which includes an entire chapter about Thomas – Quentin Tarantino said that Kevin Thomas was the only critic at the Los Angeles Times who seemed to enjoy his job.[9]
I did chuckle, however, at the juxtaposition of Rosenberg's smug "expose" and Kevin Thomas' rave review of "Pearl Harbor".
Even 30 years ago, he was known as "the Will Rogers of film criticism"—he never saw a movie he didn't like.