The great celebrity cull of 2009 continues apace with the extremely sad news that filmmaker John Hughes has died at the age of 59.

The director who was credited with creating the teen movie genre passed on after reportedly suffering a heart attack during a morning walk in New York City. He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Nancy, and two sons.

Beloved by children of the 80s (and anyone who remembers the joy/pain of their teenage years), Hughes will forever be remembered as the writer, director and producer who created, among others, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Home Alone, Weird Science, The Breakfast Club and Planes, Trains And Automobiles. Although he dropped out of film-making in 1991, his name is synonymous with the phrase "Teen Movie", having crafted some of the most loved and influential movies in the genre.

After a short time writing jokes for Rodney Dangerfield and Joan Rivers, Hughes moved into screenwriting having made a big splash with National Lampoon's Vacation. His first directorial effort, Sixteen Candles, marked Hughes out as a film-maker of note thanks to the movie’s realistic depiction of middle-class, high-school teenage life - a viewpoint which stood in stark contrast to many of the grosser efforts being turned out at the time (Porky's anyone?). It was the first in a string of huge hits that are still held close to film-lovers’ hearts more than 20 years on. The likes of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Breakfast Club, Pretty In Pink and Weird Science soon followed and solidified his reputation as a film-maker with a unique way of portraying the highs and lows of teen life on the big screen.

He soon made a conscious effort to move away from the genre he helped to create with straight-up comedies such as Uncle Buck, Home Alone and Planes, Trains And Automobiles but while these increased the laughs, they always exhibited the heart that endeared Hughes to so many people.

Check out some of his greatest hits below…

 



And don’t forget to check out this classic scene…

Glen Ferris