Columbia Alum and AIDS Activist Danny Sotomayor '80 Subject of New PBS Documentary

PhotoActivist Daniel Sotomayor, the subject of a new documentary, graduated from Columbia College Chicago in 1980.
The WTTW documentary was written, directed, and produced by WTTW Producer and Columbia Alum Daniel Andries and edited by Adjunct Faculty Member and Alum Sharon Zurek ’76.

On Nov. 3, Chicago’s local PBS station WTTW-11 will air a documentary about Columbia College Chicago Alum and AIDS Activist Danny Sotomayor ’80. The show is entitled “The Outrage of Danny Sotomayor.” 

Sotomayor, who studied Art | Design at Columbia, is known for being the first nationally syndicated, openly gay political cartoonist. During his 13-year career, he created more than 200 cartoons highlighting his anger with AIDS, government inaction, the insurance industry, the health care system, and pharmaceutical companies. He died of complications of AIDS in 1992 at age 33. 

The program is one of eight new documentaries in WTTW’s Chicago Stories series, which airs Fridays until Nov. 10. The Sotomayor documentary will air again in November and then be available via streaming on WTTW Passport.  

Emmy-winning WTTW Senior Producer Daniel Andries produced, directed, and wrote the documentary. Andries, who once taught at Columbia, studied Cinematography and Film/Video Production at Columbia during the time Sotomayor attended and created some of archival footage shown in the documentary. Alum Sharon Zurek ‘76, an adjunct faculty member in Cinema and Television Arts, served as the documentary’s editor.  

For airtimes, see WTTW’s schedule.  

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