Bob Clark

Although this writer/director/producer started out making horror films (Deathdream, Black Christmas), he ended up churning out horrible ones (the Baby Genius flicks, The Karate Dog). However, in between he created a pair of antithetical American classics: the hormone-charged, coming-of-age comedy Porky's and the seasonal staple A Christmas Story. Born in the U.S., he relocated to Canada in the '70s and established himself as an up-and-coming director with bloody, low-budget B-flicks. In 1982, he wrote, produced and directed Porky's, which was inspired by on his own experiences growing up in Florida in the '50s. The movie was a surprise smash and spawned two sequels and a host of imitators. The next year he helmed and cowrote A Christmas Story, based on Jean Shepherd's delightful novel In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash. Although not a big success in its initial theatrical release, it became as ubiquitous as It's a Wonderful Life during the holidays. Unfortunately the film represented Clark's career high. As the decade continued, he helmed a string of infamous critical and commercial duds (Rhinestone, Turk 182!, Loose Cannons) and by the '90s he was back on the B-list, usually working as a director-for-hire. Even It Runs in the Family, a sequel to A Christmas Story, did little to revive his reputation. In the '00s, a renewed interest in his early work led to talks of remakes of Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things and Porky's. Unfortunately, Clark wouldn't live to see those projects pan out: On April 4, 2007, he and his 22-year-old son Ariel Hanrath-Clark were killed in a head-on collision with an allegedly drunk driver on California's Pacific Coast Highway.