"Brat Pack" Director John Hughes Dead at 59

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That was a scene from one of my favorite John Hughes movies, "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". Who better than Ferris (Matthew Broderick) himself to dance to the Beatles? The writer and director of this classic comedy was John Hughes, who wrote and directed numerous of 1980s teen hit movies such as "Sixteen Candles"; "The Breakfast Club"- another one of my favorites- which starred Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, and Judd Nelson, among others.

Here's the trailer for the film:

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He also written and produced two of the "Home Alone" films, and written 1983's "National Lampoon's Vacation", which was based upon his short story in "National Lampoon" magazine about his family's hilarious ill-fated trip to Disneyland. Hughes made other very successful films in the 1980s and 1990s, such as 1987's "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles", starring the late John Candy and Steve Martin as a mismatched traveling pair- the "pillow" scene still makes me laugh to this day.

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Hughes started out as an advertising copywriter before branching out to Hollywood. He created the Edge shaving cream "Credit Card Shaving Test".

Hughes went on to write for the 1979 TV sitcom "Delta House", before his first produced screenplay 1982's "Class Reunion", also a product of "National Lampoon", was released.

Hughes suffered a fatal heart attack while walking in Manhattan today. He was 59, and is survived by his wife of 39 years, Nancy and his sons John and James, and four grandchildren.

(C) 2009 by Darren W. Alexander. All Rights Reserved.