Harold Leventhal, a renowned folk music promoter who worked with Woody Guthrie and introduced Bob Dylan in his first major concert hall show, has died. He was 86.

Leventhal died Tuesday at New York University Medical Center. His death was announced on the Web site of the Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives.

From the 1950s to the end of the 20th century, Leventhal was a champion of folk music who introduced audiences to both foreign and American artists.

On April 12, 1963, he presented the 21-year-old Mr. Dylan at Town Hall in New York, the performer’s first major concert hall appearance. He was also the longtime producer of the Thanksgiving folk concert at Carnegie Hall, which featured Arlo Guthrie and Pete Seeger.

Leventhal won a Grammy in 1989 as a producer for the album “Folkways: A Vision Shared – A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly.” He also produced several movies about the folk music world, including “Alice’s Restaurant” in 1969; a 1976 biography of Woody Guthrie called “Bound for Glory,” and “Wasn’t That a Time!” in 1982. “Bound For Glory” received two Academy Awards, for music and cinematography.

Besides Mr. Dylan and Guthrie, some of the artists Leventhal worked with included Harry Belafonte; Joan Baez; Johnny Cash; the Mamas and the Papas; Peter, Paul and Mary; Earl Scruggs, and Neil Young.

Leventhal was born on May 24, 1919, in Ellenville, N.Y., and grew up in Manhattan and the Bronx. He served in the Army Signal Corps during World War II, stationed in India.

He is survived by his wife, the former Natalie Buxbaum; two daughters, Debra Leventhal-Nuyen and Judy Leventhal, and four grandchildren.