A legend has left us today.

John Hughes, director of such classic movies as Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Breakfast Club, Home Alone, National Lampoon's Vacation, and Christmas Vacation, died this morning of an apparent heart attack while walking with his family in New York City. [What a horrible thing for the family to witness.]

Hughes was a director that had a pretty big impact on my movie watching tastes; Ferris Bueller was my favorite movie for a most of my teenage years (inspiring my license plate that reads "DAY OFF" to this day). Watching Christmas Vacation has been a holiday tradition in my family from the days when they had to fast forward through because I was too young to hear it.

His films spoke to a generation, and influenced pop culture in a profound way. Since 1994, he has become a sort of recluse, refusing to give interviews and writing treatments and rewrites under the pseudonym Edmond Dantes (a Count of Monte Cristo reference). He has left a strong filmic legacy behind, but the man himself will be deeply missed. Until next time...