John Hughes (director)

Infobox actor


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name = John Hughes
birthname =
birthdate = birth date and age|mf=yes|1950|2|18
location = Lansing, MI, United States
deathdate =
deathplace =
othername =
yearsactive = 1982 — present
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homepage =

John Hughes, Jr. (born February 18, 1950) is an American film director, producer and writer, responsible for some of the most successful comedy films of the 1980s and 1990s, including "National Lampoon's Vacation", "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", "Weird Science", "The Breakfast Club", "Sixteen Candles", "Pretty in Pink", "Planes, Trains & Automobiles", "Uncle Buck" and "Home Alone".

Biography

Personal life

Hughes was born in Lansing, Michigan to a mother who volunteered in charity work and John Hughes, Sr., who worked in sales. [ [http://www.filmreference.com/film/75/John-Hughes.html John Hughes Biography (1950-) ] ] A 1968 graduate of Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook, Illinois, Hughes used Northbrook and the adjacent North Shore area for shooting locations in many of his films, as well as using the original name of Northbrook (once Shermerville, IL) as the setting of a number of films. Since 1994, Hughes has lived a reclusive life in Chicago, rarely granting or giving interviews or photographs to the media save a select few interviews in 1999 to promote the soundtrack album to "Reach the Rock," an independent film he wrote [ [http://www.ink19.com/issues_F/99_03/screen/john_hughes.shtml 1999 interview with Hughes, Julio Diaz, "Ink 19," March 1999] ] . The album was compiled by Hughes' son, John Hughes III, and released on his son's Chicago-based record label, Hefty Records. ["John Hughes' imprint remains. He's still revered in Hollywood, but whatever happened to the king of the teens?," Patrick Goldstein, "Los Angeles Times," March 24, 2008] He also recorded an audio commentary for the 1999 DVD release of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091042/dvd IMDB: DVD details for Ferris Bueller's Day Off] (Accessed 2008-03-26)] A photograph of him visiting his son on the set of his son's film in 2001 was taken.

Career

Hughes began his career as an ad copywriter in Chicago. During this time, he created what became the famous Edge "Credit Card Shaving Test" ad campaign.

His first attempt at comedy writing was selling jokes to well-established performers such as Rodney Dangerfield and Joan Rivers. This led him to pen a story, inspired by his family trips as a child, that was to become his calling card and entry onto the staff of the "National Lampoon Magazine". That story, "Vacation '58", became the basis for the film "Vacation". Subsequent stories such as the April Fool's Day classics "My Vagina" and "My Penis" gave an early indication of Hughes' ear for the particular rhythm of teen speak, as well as the various indignities of teen life in general.

His first credited screenplay, "Class Reunion", was written while still on staff at the magazine. The resulting film became the second disastrous attempt by the flagship to duplicate the runaway success of "Animal House". It was Hughes' next screenplay for the imprint, "National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983), however, that would prove to be a major hit, putting the Lampoon back on the map. Although Hughes had no involvement in "European Vacation" (1985), he did return to write and co-produce "Christmas Vacation" (1989) based on another of his Lampoon stories.

His first directorial effort "Sixteen Candles", won almost unanimous praise when it was released in 1984, due in no small part to its more realistic depiction of high school life that stood in stark contrast to the "Porky's"-inspired comedies being made at the time. It was also the first in a string of efforts set in or around high school, including "The Breakfast Club", "Pretty in Pink", "Weird Science" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". (See also Brat Pack).

To avoid being pigeonholed as a maker of teen comedies, Hughes branched out in 1987, directing "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" starring Steve Martin and John Candy. His later output would not be so critically well received, though films like "Uncle Buck" (the first film to display changing tastes in teen music from rock to rap) proved popular. Hughes's greatest commercial success came with "Home Alone", a film he wrote and produced about a child accidentally left behind when his family goes away for Christmas, forcing him to protect himself and his house from a pair of inept burglars. "Home Alone" would be the top grossing film of 1990, and remains the most successful live-action comedy of all time. Hughes has not directed a film since 1991's "Curly Sue".

He has been noted as an inspiration for many in the film industry, including Wes Anderson. He has also written screenplays using his pseudonym, Edmond Dantès (protagonist of Alexandre Dumas' novel "The Count of Monte Cristo").

Trademarks and trivia

Casting

Hughes frequently casts actors he has worked with on previous movies, as shown below:

Several director's trademarks can be seen within Hughes' films:
* Set in the fictional Shermer, Illinois, North Shore suburbs or the Chicago metropolitan area.
* Characters breaking the fourth wall (acknowledging the audience)
* Additional scenes under and/or after the closing credits
* Non-linear montages, where characters' actions in preparing for an event are spliced together immediately before the event takes place.
* A strong emphasis on pop songs and music cues

Filmography

Writer

* "Delta House " (1979) (TV Series)
* "National Lampoon's Class Reunion" (1982)
* "At Ease" (1983) (TV Series)
* "Mr. Mom" (1983)
* "National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983)
* "Nate and Hayes" (1983) (with David Odell)
* "Sixteen Candles" (1984)
* "The Breakfast Club" (1985)
* "National Lampoon's European Vacation" (1985; characters)
* "Weird Science" (1985)
* "Pretty in Pink" (1986)
* "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" (1986)
* "Some Kind of Wonderful" (1987)
* "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" (1987)
* "She's Having a Baby" (1988)
* "The Great Outdoors" (1988)
* "Uncle Buck" (1989)
* "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" (1989)
* "Home Alone" (1990)
* "Career Opportunities" (1991)
* "Dutch" (1991)
* "Curly Sue" (1991)
* "Beethoven" (1992) (as Edmond Dantes)
* " (1992)
* "Dennis the Menace (1993)
* "Baby's Day Out" (1994)
* "Miracle on 34th Street" (1994)
* "101 Dalmatians" (1996)
* "Flubber" (1997)
* "Home Alone 3" (1997)
* "Reach The Rock" (1998)
* "Just Visiting (2001) (with Jean-Marie Poire & Christian Clavier)
* "Maid in Manhattan" (2002; story) (originally titled The Chambermaid) (as Edmond Dantes)
* "Drillbit Taylor" (2008; story) (as Edmond Dantes)

Director

* "Sixteen Candles" (1984)
* "The Breakfast Club" (1985)
* "Weird Science" (1985)
* "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" (1986)
* "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" (1987)
* "She's Having a Baby" (1988)
* "Uncle Buck" (1989)
* "Curly Sue" (1991)

Producer

* "The Breakfast Club" (1985)
* "Pretty in Pink" (1986; executive producer)
* "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" (1986)
* "Some Kind of Wonderful" (1987)
* "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" (1987)
* "She's Having a Baby" (1988)
* "The Great Outdoors" (1988; executive producer)
* "Uncle Buck" (1989)
* "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" (1989)
* "Home Alone" (1990)
* "Career Opportunities" (1991)
* " Only the Lonely " (1991)
* "Dutch" (1991)
* "Curly Sue" (1991)
* " (1992)
* "Dennis the Menace (1993)
* "Baby's Day Out" (1994)
* "Miracle on 34th Street" (1994)
* "101 Dalmatians" (1996)
* "Flubber" (1997)
* "Home Alone 3" (1997)
* "Reach the Rock" (1998)
* "New Port South" (2001; executive producer)

Unproduced screenplays

* "The History of Ohio From The Beginning Of Time To The End Of The Universe" (with PJ O'Rourke)
* ""
* "Bartholomew Vs. Neff"
* "The Bee"
* "The Grisbeys"

Books

* "The National Lampoon Sunday Newspaper Parody" (1978) (with PJ O'Rourke)

References

External links

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