Roger Corman, known as a pioneer in independent filmmaking and a mentor to many who worked with him, has died. He was 98 years old.
Corman died Thursday at his home in Santa Monica, Calif., according to a statement released Saturday by his wife and daughters obtained by The Associated Press.
Known as the “King of the B,” Corman helped create the low-budget classics “Little Shop of Horrors” and “Attack of the Crab Monsters.” He gave many Hollywood actors and producers their first break.
While making a 2007 documentary about Val Leton, who directed Cat People and other underground classics in the 1940s, he noted that there were “many constraints” on making low-budget films. But he also said the constraints allow for more creativity and experimentation.
‘Blue Bloods’ star Tom Selleck talks about his departure from Starstruck
Roger Corman addresses the audience at the awards ceremony of the 76th International Film Festival on Saturday, May 27, 2023 in Cannes, southern France. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)
Corman’s career as a producer and director began in 1955, making the B-movies “Black Scorpion,” “Bucket of Blood” and “Bloody Mama.” He hired now famous film directors Ron Howard, James Cameron, and Martin Scorsese.
Corman’s B-movie directors were given tiny budgets and were often told to complete their films in as little as five days. When Howard, who would go on to win a Best Director Oscar for A Beautiful Mind, begged for an extra half day to reshoot scenes from 1977’s Grand Theft Auto, Corman told him: I said, “Ron, you can come back,” if you want, but there’s no one else there. ”
Matthew McConaughy talks about how a mother taught her son good manners and put him back in bed if he was ‘grumpy’ at breakfast.
Roger Corman attends the Los Angeles premiere of ‘The Irishman’ at TCL Chinese Theater on Thursday, October 24, 2019. (Richard Shotwell/Invision/Associated Press)
A-list actor Jack Nicholson made his film debut as the title character in Corman’s 1958 quickie, Cry Baby Killer, and remained with the company, appearing in parts in biker films, horror films, and action films. I was in charge of the script and production. Nicholson may be best known for his performance in the 1980 horror film, The Shining.
Corman was born in Detroit and grew up in a “less affluent neighborhood” in Beverly Hills, he once said. He attended Stanford University, earned a degree in engineering, and served three years in the Navy before arriving in Hollywood.
Corman began his career as a messenger boy at 20th Century Fox, eventually graduating to story analyst. After he briefly left his job to study English literature at Oxford University, he returned to Hollywood and began his career as a film producer and director.
Click here to sign up for our entertainment newsletter
Producer Roger Corman poses in his Los Angeles office on May 8, 2013. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)
In 1964, he married Julie Halloran, a UCLA graduate who became a producer.
He is survived by his wife Julie and children Katherine, Roger, Brian and Mary.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“He was generous, generous and kind to all who knew him,” his family said in a statement regarding his death. “When I asked him how he wanted to be remembered, he said, ‘I was a filmmaker, that’s all.'”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
