Curiosidades

Was a close friend of John Candy. People who knew Hughes well have stated that Candy's death in 1994 had devastated him and may have contributed to his seclusion. Vince Vaughn, who was a close friend of Hughes, told Vanity Fair in 2010 that, "He talked a lot about how much he loved Candy - if Candy had lived longer, I think John would have made more films as a director.".

He notoriously cut off contact with his favorite young performers - Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall - after they rejected some of his scripts in the mid-1980s. When he died in 2009, Hughes hadn't spoken to either of them in over 20 years. In a NY Times editorial about his death, Ringwald wrote: "Most people who knew John knew that he was able to hold a grudge longer than anyone -- his grudges were almost supernatural things, enduring for years, even decades. [Hall] suspects that he was never forgiven for turning down parts in La chica de rosa (1986) and Todo en un día (1986). I turned down later films as well [Una maravilla con clase (1987)]. Not because I didn't want to work with John anymore -- I loved working with him, more than anyone before or since.".

Started out in the 1970s as a writer for National Lampoon magazine.

Hughes died of a sudden heart attack while taking a morning stroll down West 55th Street in Manhattan. At the time he was visiting family in New York City.

Rarely gave interviews. By the 1990s, shunned publicity completely, withdrawing from public life.

He wrote the original script for Dos tontos muy tontos (1994). Due to the deal he made with the directors, his name was to be stripped from the project, including the script.

Although he was offered the distinguished alumni award from Glenbrook North High School, he refused it in reflection of his not so great memories of the north shore and the school itself.

He has written three films that have been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: El club de los cinco (1985), Todo en un día (1986) and Solo en casa (1990). He has also directed two films that are in the registry: The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Chris Columbus was sent two scripts by Hughes while he was staying with his wife's parents in Chicago after the birth of their first child; one was for Solo en casa (1990). Columbus fell in love with it, it really struck a chord with him and he felt he could make a really strong film out of it. He and Hughes hit it off instantly so Hughes gave him the job to direct.

The premiere episode of Community (2009) ("Pilot") is dedicated to his memory.

Was a fan of The Beatles and frequently had characters in his movies sing Beatles songs: Anthony Michael Hall (the Geek) sings "Hey Jude" in 16 velas (1984), Jon Cryer (Duckie) sings "Love" in La chica de rosa (1986), and Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller) sings "Twist & Shout" in Todo en un día (1986).

Used the pen name Edmond Dantès, a homage to the lead character in El conde de Montecristo (1934).

Inspired the "Brat Pack" movement of the 1980s.

One reason that his films are set in Shermer, Illinois, is because Northbrook was once called Shermerville. Furthermore, Glenbrook North High School is located on Shermer Road.

When casting the role of Kevin McCallister in Solo en casa (1990), Chris Columbus had already seen Macaulay Culkin in Solos con nuestro tío (1989) but he wanted to audition some other kids while Hughes had his heart set on Culkin. So Columbus met Culkin in New York and was very charmed by him and thought he was fantastic. Columbus auditioned five other kids and none of them shaped up to Culkin. Columbus went with Culkin because he was not as picture perfect and he had an instant relatability to the kids in the audience. Columbus knew the cameras would love him and he was immensely funny.

Many examples of unproduced screenplays he had written and were rejected by studios were:

• National Lampoon's Jaws 3/People 0 (1979). A documentary spoof of the making of Tiburón (1975). Due to a lawsuit from Steven Spielberg looming if it was made, Universal Studios scrapped it.

• The History of Ohio From the Beginning of Time To the End of the Universe (1980). About a newspaper publishing in small-town Ohio. This was intended to be a "dramatic adaption" parody of National Lampoon's Sunday Newspaper.

• National Lampoon's The Joy of Sex (1981). A comedy anthology film about the life of a young man obsessed with sex, even when he enters adulthood. It was originally to star John Belushi and be directed by Penny Marshall, but when a reluctant Belushi decided to go ahead with the film, he died from a drug overdose the next morning and Paramount did not produce the movie. The script was eventually re-written as the teenage sex comedy Gran lío en la universidad (1984). Matty Simmons was involved with the movie, but ordered to have his name and the National Lampoon moniker taken off the film after he saw the final cut.

• Debs (1983) - a satire on Texas debutantes.

• The New Kid (1985). A movie meant to star Anthony Michael Hall as the new kid in college.

• Oil and Vinegar (1987). A comedy-drama road movie meant to star Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. Broderick would play a groom driving out of town to a wedding with Sheedy as a hitchhiker that he picks up. They both then talk about their personal problems in the car for the remainder of the trip.

• Bartholomew Vs. Neff (1991). A comedy meant to star John Candy and Sylvester Stallone as feuding neighbors.

• The Bee (1994). A feature length Disney film that Daniel Stern was attached to direct.

• Tickets (1997). A group of teenagers pull an all-nighter waiting for tickets to a legendary rock concert.

• Grisbys Go Broke (2003). A middle-class family lose all their money and are forced to spend the holidays frugally. It was rumored that Paramount was going to make this movie upon the passing of Hughes, but this has yet to be determined.

Made it clear to anyone who assumed that he was a Chicago Cubs fan (due to his setting a key sequence in Todo en un día (1986)) that he was most assuredly not and preferred the Chicago White Sox. The only reason he filmed at a Cubs game was the lack of home day games the White Sox were playing during the production schedule.

A number of his movies have a small scene after the credits.

Not only did he have no involvement with Las vacaciones europeas de una chiflada familia americana (1985), he had no idea the film had even been made until he saw a television spot.

Never discussed politics during the rare times he gave interviews. Ben Stein described him as an "ardent Republican and extreme conservative.".

He didn't get to direct Las locas peripecias de un señor mamá (1983), because he wanted to film in Chicago rather than Hollywood.

He wrote two movies where the main character is involved in a race with the theme from Carros de fuego (1981) going on in the background (Las locas peripecias de un señor mamá (1983) and ¡Socorro! Llegan las vacaciones (1983)).

John Hughes often filmed movies super long, to later cut them waaay shorter than the original product. For example planes, trains, and auto mobiles was 3 and a half hours long(now only 1:30). Sadly, the footage is either lost or forgotten.

Dan Aykroyd asked him to direct El gran lío (1991). He was interested in the story, but ultimately turned it down because he only directed his own scripts.

Owned farm land in Harvard, Illinois. (2008).

Father of writer/producer James Hughes and musician John Hughes.

Attended Arizona State University.

Wrote roles for John Candy, Anthony Michael Hall, and Molly Ringwald.

Graduated Glenbrook North High School, Northbrook, Illinois, USA. (1968)

Chicago Filmmaker Mike Krumlauf has stated that Hughes is his all time favorite filmmaker and biggest inspiration. Mike even has the Hughes Entertainment Logo tattooed on his arm in appreciation for all that John did for cinema and Chicagoland.

Lived, for some time, in Williams Bay, Wisconsin.

John took 3 days to write the script for The Breakfast Club (1985) 10 years later he'd picked up speed writing and had the script for Weird Science done in 2 days.

He originally intended to direct Dos cuñados desenfrenados (1988), but scheduling conflicts did not allow it.

He was the son of Marion Joyce (Crawford), from Kenosha, Wisconsin, and John Wilden Hughes, a salesman, from Lowell, Michigan. He was of English, Scottish, Norwegian, and German descent (his maternal grandmother was born in Berlin).

Along with Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, Francis Ford Coppola, David Cronenberg, Robert Zemeckis and a few others he is one of only a handful of directors to have two directed films released in the same year, 1985. The Breakfast Club opened in February that year while Weird Science opened that August.

While filming Mejor solo que mal acompañado (1987) actors John Candy and Steve Martin shared a drink with Hughes at Naperville, Illinois' The Lantern Tavern & Grill.

In 2018, Molly Ringwald wrote an essay about Hughes' films that was inspired by the MeToo movement where she noted that some elements of the films were painful to watch because of the way women (including characters played by Ringwald) were mistreated in them, and that it was important to balance Hughes' brilliance with the ways his films had been morally flawed.

Born on exactly the same date as Cybill Shepherd.