Never before or since has a single name repeated in a drone, monotone voice stuck in memory so firmly… and I’m sorry to say that the man who brought it to us has left for that great film set in the sky. John Hughes, he who brought us the Brat Pack and mastered the coming of age comedy, has died at the age of 59.

We’re all familiar with his exploits. From The Breakfast Club to Weird Science, Christmas Vacation and Home Alone, Hughes’ reach throughout film has stretched far and wide. He had spent the last decade withdrawn from Hollywood, on a farm in Illinois… where so many of his films took place. Despite this, he continued to write and produce screenplays, sometimes under the pseudonym of Edmond Dantes… apparently my man was a Count of Monte Cristo fan, for which I appreciate him that much more.

John Hughes had his fingers on the pulse of 1980’s Americana. For that and so much more, he’s at no risk of being forgotten.