23 Facts About Wes Craven

1.

Wesley Earl Craven was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and editor.

2.

Amongst his prolific filmography, Wes Craven was best known for his pioneering work in the horror genre, particularly slasher films, where he mixed horror cliches with humor and satire.

3.

Wes Craven additionally directed the first four films in the Scream franchise.

4.

Wes Craven directed cult classics The Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes, the horror comedy The People Under the Stairs, and psychological thriller Red Eye.

5.

Wes Craven received several accolades across his career, which includes a Scream Award, a Sitges Film Festival Award, a Fangoria Chainsaw Award, and nominations for a Saturn Award and several other film festivals.

6.

Wes Craven was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Caroline and Paul Eugene Wes Craven.

7.

Wes Craven earned an undergraduate degree in English and psychology from Wheaton College in Illinois and a master's degree in philosophy and writing from Johns Hopkins University.

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8.

Wes Craven taught at Madrid-Waddington High School in Madrid, New York.

9.

Wes Craven moved into the building where his friend Steve Chapin lived at 136 Hicks St in Brooklyn Heights.

10.

Wes Craven had a letter published in the July 19,1968, edition of Life praising the periodical's coverage of contemporary rock music and offbeat performers such as Frank Zappa.

11.

Wes Craven left the academic world for the more lucrative role of pornographic film director.

12.

Finally, based on advice from a friend about the ease of filming in the Nevada deserts, Wes Craven began to write a new horror film based on that locale.

13.

Wes Craven had a hand in launching actor Johnny Depp's career by casting him in A Nightmare on Elm Street, Depp's first major film role.

14.

Wes Craven designed the Halloween 2008 logo for Google and was the second celebrity personality to take over the YouTube homepage on Halloween.

15.

Wes Craven created Coming of Rage, a five-issue comic book series, with 30 Days of Night writer Steve Niles.

16.

Wes Craven's works tend to explore the breakdown of family structures, the nature of dreams and reality, and often feature black humor and satirical elements.

17.

Several of Wes Craven's films are characterized by abusive familial relationships such as The Hills Have Eyes, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The People Under the Stairs, and others.

18.

Wes Craven tended to employ cinematographers Peter Deming, Mark Irwin and Jacques Haitkin on his films.

19.

Wes Craven often used a number of the same actors on his projects including Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Robert Englund, Michael Berryman, Heather Langenkamp, and David Hess.

20.

In 1984, Wes Craven married a woman who became known professionally as actress Mimi Wes Craven.

21.

Wes Craven was a birder; in 2010, he joined Audubon California's board of directors.

22.

Wes Craven died of a brain tumor at his home in Los Angeles on August 30,2015, aged 76.

23.

In 1977, Wes Craven won the critics award at the Sitges Film Festival for his horror film The Hills Have Eyes.