Michael Scott Lang (December 11, 1944 – January 8, 2022) was an American concert promoter, producer, and artistic manager who was best known as a co-creator of the Woodstock Music & Art Festival in 1969. Lang served as the organizer of the event, as well as the organizer for its follow-up events, Woodstock '94 and the ill-fated Woodstock '99. He later became a producer of records, films, and other concerts, as well as a manager for performing artists, a critically acclaimed author, and a sculptor. Early life Lang was born in Brooklyn to a Jewish-American family. In 1967, Lang dropped out of New York University and moved to Coconut Grove, Florida, to open a head shop. In 1968, after promoting a series of concert events in the Miami area, Lang (with Marshall Brevetz) produced the 1968 Pop & Underground Festival. It drew approximately 25,000 people on day one (May 18) and featured Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, John Lee Hooker, Arthur Brown, and Blue Cheer. On the afternoon of the second day (May 19) it started to rain and the event ended early. Career Woodstock Festivals 1969, 1994, 1999, 2019 After he moved to Woodstock, New York, and met Artie Kornfeld, the two developed the concept for a major festival event to celebrate the 1960s social movements and planned to open a recording studio in the town of Woodstock. With Kornfeld and partners John P. Roberts and Joel Rosenman, Lang initiated the planning of Woodstock festival, which was held on Max Yasgur's farm in Bethel, New York, August 15–18, 1969. Michael Lang was featured in many scenes of the 1970 documentary film, Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music. Lang also produced Woodstock '94 with partners Roberts, Rosenman, and co-producer John Scher, and Woodstock '99 with John Scher and Ossie Kilkenny. In contrast to the previous Woodstock festivals Lang organized, Woodstock '99 proved to be more chaotic and violent. In May 2014, Lang revealed plans for a possible fiftieth anniversary of the first Woodstock concert to be held in 2019, and that he was exploring various locations. On January 9, 2019, Lang announced the official Woodstock 50 festival would take place August 16–18, 2019, in Watkins Glen, New York. However, the event was cancelled after confronting many logistical issues, financial backing issues, and three venue changes. In September 2021, about three months before his death, Lang was interviewed for a three-part