John Landis
Encyclopedia
John David Landis is an American film director
, screenwriter
, actor
, and producer
. He is known for his comedies
, his horror films, and his music video
s with singer Michael Jackson
.
, Illinois
, the son of Shirley Levine (née
Magaziner) and David Michael Landis, an interior decorator. His family relocated to Los Angeles
when he was four months old.
He began working as a mailboy at 20th Century Fox
. His first noteworthy job in Hollywood was working as an assistant director
during filming MGM's Kelly's Heroes
in Yugoslavia
in 1969; he replaced the film's original assistant director, who suffered from a nervous breakdown and was sent home by the producers. While filming, he met actors Don Rickles
and Donald Sutherland
, both of whom he would later cast in his own films. Following this, Landis worked on many films made in Europe (especially in Italy and England), most notably, Once Upon a Time in the West
, El Condor
and A Town Called Bastard (a.k.a. A Town Called Hell). Landis also worked as a stunt double
.
Landis recalled:
After his experience working as a stunt double, he moved to London and worked as an uncredited co-writer for the film The Spy Who Loved Me
.
for The Film That Changed My Life
, inspired him to become a director.
In 1971, Landis made his feature debut as a director in the US with Schlock
. He was 21 years old. The film, which he also wrote and appeared in, is a tribute to monster movie
s. The gorilla suit for the film was made by Rick Baker--the beginning of a long-term collaboration between Landis and Baker. Schlock
was a failure, and Landis was not offered another directing job for some time.
In his own words, he "parked a lot of cars" during this fallow period. In 1977, Landis directed Kentucky Fried Movie. The film was inspired by the satirical sketch comedy
of shows like Monty Python
, Free the Army, The National Lampoon Radio Hour
and Saturday Night Live
.
, National Lampoon's Animal House
, which was both critically and financially successful. This created new opportunities for Landis under Universal's umbrella.
In 1980, Landis co-wrote and directed The Blues Brothers
, a comedy
starring John Belushi
and Dan Aykroyd
. It features musical numbers by R&B
and soul
legends James Brown
, Cab Calloway
, Aretha Franklin
, Ray Charles
and John Lee Hooker
. It was, at the time, one of the most expensive films ever made (cost: almost $30 million) (for comparison: the earlier Steven Spielberg
's contemporary 1941
cost $35 million). Some believe that Spielberg and Landis engaged in a rivalry, the goal of which was to make the more expensive movie. The rivalry might have been a friendly one, as Spielberg makes a cameo appearance in Blues Brothers (as the unnamed desk clerk near the very end) and Landis had made a cameo in 1941
as a messenger.
In 1981, Landis wrote and directed another cult-status movie
, the comedy-horror An American Werewolf in London
. American Werewolf was perhaps Landis' most personal project; he had been planning to make it since 1969, while in Yugoslavia.
Landis next directed the opening teaser and first segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie
in 1983.
and child extras
Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen were killed in an accident involving an out-of-control helicopter
. The National Transportation Safety Board
reported in October 1984:
Landis and several crew members were subsequently charged with involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment. The prosecutor
s attempted to show that Landis was reckless and had violated laws relating to child actors by not telling parents and others of the children's proximity to explosives and helicopters and of limitations on their working hours. Numerous members of the film crew testified that the director was warned, but ignored these dangers. After an extended jury trial, Landis, represented by a Nashville
attorney, James F. Neal
, and the other crew members were acquitted of the charges.
Landis was later reprimanded for circumventing the State of California's child labor laws in hiring the two children killed in the accident. This tragedy resulted in stricter safety measures and enforcement of child labor laws, in the State of California. The parents of the children sued, and would later settle out of court for $2 million per family. Vic Morrow's daughters, Carrie Morrow and actress Jennifer Jason Leigh
, similarly pursued a lawsuit
that settled for an undisclosed amount purportedly in the $800,000 range.
Despite these settlements, Landis (during interviews with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan) has never publicly accepted responsibility for the accident. He has stated: "When you read about the accident, they say we were blowing up huts – which we weren't – and that debris hit the tail rotor of the helicopter – which it didn't. (...) The FBI Crime Lab, who was working for the prosecution, finally figured out that tail rotor delaminated, which is why the pilot lost control. The Special FX man who made the mistake, by setting off a fireball at the wrong time, he was never charged."
Steven Spielberg reportedly ended his friendship with Landis over the accident and the fact that Landis had live ammunition on the set.
, a Prince and the Pauper
-style comedy starring Dan Aykroyd
and Eddie Murphy
was filmed directly after the Twilight Zone accident. After filming ended, Landis and his family went to London: then he was approached by Michael Jackson
to make a video for his song, "Thriller
". "Thriller" forever changed MTV
and the concept of music videos; it has won many awards, including the Video Vanguard Award for The Greatest Video in the History of the World. In 2009 (months before Jackson died), Landis sued Jackson in a dispute over royalties
for the video; he claims to be owed four years' worth of royalties.
Next, Landis directed Into The Night, starring Jeff Goldblum
, Michelle Pfeiffer
and David Bowie
(a film was inspired by Hitchcock productions; Landis played in this film a mute member of the quartet of Iranian hitmen). To promote this movie, he collaborated with Jeff Okun to direct a documentary film called B.B. King "Into the Night"
. Landis directed music videos for three of King's songs as part of the film: "Lucille
", "Into the Night" (specially composed by Ira Newborn for movie Into the Night) and "In the Midnight Hour."
His next film, Spies Like Us
, (starring co-writer Dan Aykroyd
and Chevy Chase
) was an homage to the Road to...
films, starring Bob Hope
and Bing Crosby
. Hope made a cameo in the film as himself. The movie also pays homage to spy movies such as the James Bond series; the crew included special effects makers Ray Harryhausen
and Derek Meddings
, both of whom had worked on Bond movies. Landis also directed a video for Paul McCartney
as part of the promotion for Spies Like Us. He also co-wrote the comedy film Clue
.
In 1986, Landis directed ¡Three Amigos!
for HBO. The film starred Chevy Chase
, Martin Short
and Steve Martin
. Landis was the second choice to direct; Steven Spielberg
had refused. The film was a tribute to old Mexican style westerns and musical movies. Randy Newman wrote three original songs for the film, and the film was shot in Technicolor
to make it look like older Westerns.
Landis next directed the Eddie Murphy
film, Coming to America
, which was a huge commercial success. It was also the subject of Buchwald v. Paramount
, a civil suit filed by Art Buchwald
in 1990 against the film's producers. Buchwald claimed that the concept for the film had been stolen from a 1982 script that Paramount
optioned from Buchwald. Buchwald won the breach of contract action.
In 1991, Landis collaborated again with Michael Jackson on the music video for the song "Black or White". In the same year, he directed Sylvester Stallone
in the title role in Oscar
, based on a Claude Magnier stage play. Oscar recreates a 1930 era film, including the gestures along with bit acts and with some slapstick, as a homage to old Hollywood films. In 1992, he directed Innocent Blood
, a horror
-crime film
.
In 1994, Landis directed Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop III
. They had previously worked together on Trading Places
and Coming to America
. In 1996, he directed The Stupids
. Landis returned to Universal to direct Blues Brothers 2000
in 1998, the same year he directed Susan's Plan
.
Burke and Hare
was released in 2010, Landis's first theatrical release for over a decade.
In August 2011 Landis said he would return to horror and will be writing a new film.
and directed by Jack Perez. Filming is expected to begin in January 2010 and stars Kevin Corrigan
in a lead role.
in the same vein. Landis has been active in television as the executive producer (and often director) of the series Dream On
(1990), Weird Science
(1994), Sliders
(1995), Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show
(1997), Campus Cops (1995), Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World (1998), and Masters of Horror
. He made also commercials for DirecTV
, Taco Bell
, Coca Cola, Pepsi
, Kellogg's, and Disney.
from 1982, was released only on VHS
. Next, he co-directed B.B. King "Into the Night"
(1985) and in 2002 directed Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
, which can be seen as a part of the Animal House DVD
extras. Initially, his documentaries were only made to promote his feature films. However, later in his career, he became more serious about the oeuvre and made Slasher
(2004), Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
(2007) and the upcoming Starz Inside: Ladies or Gentlemen (2009). All of these documentaries were filmed for television; Landis won a 2008 Emmy Award
for Mr. Warmth. He worked currently on the Making of Thriller
which will shot in 3-D. Landis stars in the Spanish documentary The Man Who Saw Frankenstein Cry, which centers the life and career of Paul Naschy
.
, an Oscar-nominated costume designer and president of the Costume Designers Guild
), with whom he has two children: Max
, writer of the upcoming Good Time Gang and Amnesty
, and Rachel.
In a BBC Radio interview he stated that he is an atheist.
One of Landis' trademarks is to insert references to a fictional film called See You Next Wednesday
in movies that he directs. The line is from Stanley Kubrick
's 2001: A Space Odyssey
; this is how Frank Poole
's parents end their video to him. The line is also mentioned in the opening scene of Michael Jackson's "Thriller
", when the police decode a message from Jackson's werecat character.
, from John Landis movies made for Universal. This is also referring (shown at the end of the credits) to the character Babs from the movie National Lampoon's Animal House
. When in Hollywood... is showing at the end of the credits, and it consists of three blue cards, the first saying "Universal Studios—the Entertainment Center of the World," the second saying "When in Hollywood Visit Universal Studios," and the last adding "Ask for Babs". The new version of this advertisement, which appeared in Blues Brothers 2000
(the first film directed by Landis for Universal since Amazon Women on the Moon) includes only one card: "Universal Studios—Hollywood and Florida. See the stars and ride the movies! (Ask for Babs)." Patrons who asked for Babs were once given a certain degree of reward; any promo was long since discontinued, save a simple smile or acknowledgment from a park staffer. In one DVD release of Animal House, there was a Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
mockumentary that featured, among others, Martha Smith (who played Babs) indeed working the rounds as a tour guide at Universal Studios in Hollywood.
List of films with When in Hollywood, Visit Universal Studios. Ask for Babs:
In non-Landis works:
This device was first used in Animal House, but does not feature in Schlock, The Kentucky Fried Movie, An American Werewolf in London, Three Amigos or Beverly Hills Cop III. The montages for Spies like Us and Innocent Blood also contain jokes.
has several in one memorable scene). He frequently invited director Frank Oz to play small parts in his movies, and others such as Roger Vadim
, Paul Mazursky
, Jim Henson
, Jonathan Demme
, and David Cronenberg
in Into the Night; Terry Gilliam
, Joel Coen, Michael Apted
in Spies Like Us; Sam Raimi
in Spies Like Us and Innocent Blood; George Lucas
in Beverly Hills Cop III; Steven Spielberg
in Blues Brothers; and Dario Argento
in Innocent Blood; Costa-Gavras
in The Stupids. In 2011, this trademark was paid homage to when Landis himself was cast to play the part of a director in episode two of the second series of British TV horror-comedy Psychoville
. Although he didn't direct the movie, he made a cameo appearance as a doctor in the Sam Raimi movie Darkman, starring Liam Neeson (Landis is one of the doctors examining Neeson after he was burned in the building.)
. In Animal House, Bluto turns to the camera and raises an eyebrow while peeking through the window of a sorority house. In Trading Places, Billy Ray Valentine shares a glance with the audience while being patronized by the Duke brothers' explanation of commodities markets. In An American Werewolf in London, David stares for a moment into the camera during his first transformation. In Coming to America, Prince Akeem raises his eyes to look at the camera after seeing his new bride make animal sounds at his request. Later in that same movie, Daryl looks up at the camera in surprise as Patrice starts to unzip him after he comes in from the rain. Another example is at the end of the Thriller music video, when Michael Jackson looks back at the camera with the infamous yellow eyes.
. It appeared in Animal House (Mayor Carmine DePasto owns an Oldsmobile dealership and allows his vehicles to be used during the parade), Trading Places (Duke & Duke limousine), Thriller (Jackson's car), Twilight Zone (during Prologue), Into the Night (Diana's brother's car), Blues Brothers (while driving through the mall, Elwood said: "The new Oldsmobiles are in early this year"), Three Amigos (during scenes in Santo Poco), and Oscar.
In many Landis movies, there are also car crashes: the final sequence in Animal House; in many scenes in Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000; during the final sequence near Piccadilly Circus
in American Werewolf; during the opening sequence in Into the Night (while the crew's credits are showing); during the final sequence in Innocent Blood (when Macelli was run down by bus and taxi); and during one scene in The Stupids (cars crashes because of Mrs. Stupid).
in his films (including Schlock – the title hero; in Kentucky Fried Movie – animal showing during TV's show; in An American Werewolf in London in ZOO; in Trading Places in the train during New Year's Eve) or inserted images of gorillas in his films as part of production designs: in Blues Brothers on promotional poster of fictional movie called See You Next Wednesday (the same situation in The Stupids) and on the poster in Three Amigos (shows as one of advertisement of Goldsmith Studios), in Innocent Blood we may see a monkey from the movie playing on television; in Blues Brothers 2000 it appears as a huge gorilla's figure in Queen Mousette's House.
, John Landis has won or been nominated for the following awards:
Nominations
Awards won:
Landis was honoured by:
Aykroyd wrote the original script for the movie The Blues Brothers, which at 324 pages was three times longer than a standard screenplay. Landis was given the task of editing the script into a usable screenplay, and the film was realised in 1980 as a musical comedy. Aykroyd then starred (along with Murphy) in Trading Places. In the same year (1983) he appeared in Twilight Zone: The Movie. Two years later, he made a cameo in Into the Night and B.B. King "Into the Night" (as one of B.B. King's band members) and starred in (as well as co-wrote) Spies Like Us. This would be Aykroyd's last role in a Landis film until 1998.
With Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy first collaborated with Landis during Trading Places. Murphy frequently collaborated with Landis, and appeared also in Coming to America and Beverly Hills Cop III. Murphy made a cameo in Landis's two videos for B.B. King: In the Midnight Hour and My Lucille in which he played band's member as drummer.
With Michael Jackson
When Landis and his family were living in London, he was approached by Michael Jackson
to make a video for his song, "Thriller
". "Thriller" forever changed MTV
and the concept of music videos; it has won many awards. In 2009, Landis sued Jackson in a dispute over royalties
for the video; he claims to be owed four years' worth of royalties. In 1991 Landis directed a second video for Jackson, "Black or White", in which Landis appeared as himself.
During an interview with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan Landis said:
With Frank Oz
Landis has cast Oz in small roles in several of his movies. Oz played a corrections officer in Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000. He also had roles in An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Spies Like Us, and Innocent Blood. Even if he's not appeared in a Landis movie, his name is often spoken in the background. During airport scenes in Into the Night and Coming to America, there are announcements on the PA system requesting a 'Mr. Frank Oznowicz' to pick up the white courtesy phone. Oznowicz is Oz's given name. During interview with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan, Frank Oz said:
Throughout his career, Landis has utilized his wife, Deborah Nadoolman Landis, as a costume designer. She created such costumes as Bluto's toga in Animal House; black suits, hats and glasses for the Blues Brothers; Michael Jackson's red jacket in Thriller; sheepskin jackets for Spies Like Us; the protagonists' costumes in ¡Three Amigos!; and Prince Akeem's coronation outfit in Coming to America. Deborah Nadoolman was nominated for an Academy Award in 1988 for Coming to America.
With Rick Baker
Richard Baker is an Academy Award-winning special makeup effects
artist known for his realistic creature effects. Baker worked with Landis for the first time during Schlock. Baker also created special makeup effects for Landis' An American Werewolf in London (for which he won the Academy Award), Twilight Zone: The Movie, Thriller, and Coming to America (which garnered him an Academy Award nomination). Baker also appeared in Into the Night as a drug dealer.
With George Folsey Jr.
George Folsey is a producer and editor. He edited or co-edited six Landis' films, from Schlock (1973) to The Blues Brothers (1980), Thriller and Coming to America. Folsey produced eleven films directed or co-directed by Landis (Schlock, The Blues Brothers, all films from An American Werewolf in London to Coming to America). He was also second unit director collaborated with Landis during his Trading Places, Into the Night and ¡Three Amigos!.
With Leslie Belzberg
Leslie Belzberg is a film and television producer. She produced ten films directed by Landis, from Into the Night to Susan's Plan) and four TV series in which Landis participated, including The Lost World and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show. Belzberg was George Folsey's assistant during filming Trading Places, and also was Blues Brothers 2000 executive music producer. She won – along with Landis – CableACE Awards for Dream on series and appeared in The Making of "Blues Brothers 2000" as herself.
With Elmer Bernstein
Bernstein composed music for eight of Landis' movies: National Lampoon's Animal House ("Faber College Theme"), Blues Brothers ("God's Music"), An American Werewolf in London (about 7-minutes of score), Trading Places (most of score is variations on Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro"), Thriller ("Scary Music"), Spies Like Us, ¡Three Amigos! and Oscar (score is adaption of "The Barber of Seville
" by Rossini). Bernstein was nominated for Academy Award for Trading Places score in 1984.
With Ira Newborn
Newborn composed music for three of Landis' movies: the smoky jazz score for Into the Night, for which he wrote music for B.B. King (included two songs especially wrote for the film soundtrack: My Lucille
and Into the Night); 'wallpaper' music for "Mondo Condo" novel from Amazon Women on the Moon
and urban jazzy big-band score for Innocent Blood
. He supervised and conducted music for Blues Brothers movie. Newborn's music was also used by Landis in a 1985 documentary film
directed by Jeff Okun called B.B. King "Into the Night". This film contains three music videos directed by Landis to two songs written by Newborn and one arranged by the composer. Two songs co-written by Newborn were also added to "Into the Night" LP soundtrack edition, but neither of them were used in the film.
With Robert Paynter
Landis worked with cinematographer Robert Paynter on five films: An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Thriller, Into the Night and Spies Like Us. Paynter helped to create a "pop" comic book-style of American Werewolf, Thriller and Into the Night. He also made a cameo in Into the Night (as Security Guard), Spies like Us (as Dr. Gill) and Burke and Hare (as Distinguished Doctor) - his last credit before his death.
With Mac Ahlberg
Landis worked with a Swedish cinematographer Mac Ahlberg on three feature films in early 90s : Oscar, Innocent Blood and Beverly Hills Cop III. Ahlberg was also director of photography of two television episodes from Dream on series: The First Episode and The Second Greatest Story Ever Told - both directed by Landis. Ahlberg and Landis also collaborated on Michael Jackson's Black or White music video.
Co-directed by Landis:
For Television:
Co-directed by Landis:
:
For B.B. King (from film B.B. King "Into the Night"):
For Paul McCartney
:
Interviews
About Twillight Zone accident
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. He is known for his comedies
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, his horror films, and his music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s with singer Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
.
Early life and career
Landis was born to a Jewish family in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, the son of Shirley Levine (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Magaziner) and David Michael Landis, an interior decorator. His family relocated to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
when he was four months old.
He began working as a mailboy at 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
. His first noteworthy job in Hollywood was working as an assistant director
Assistant director
The role of an Assistant director include tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, maintaining order on the set. They also have to take care of health and safety of the crew...
during filming MGM's Kelly's Heroes
Kelly's Heroes
Kelly's Heroes is an offbeat 1970 comedy/war film about a group of World War II soldiers who go AWOL to rob a bank behind enemy lines. Directed by Brian G...
in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
in 1969; he replaced the film's original assistant director, who suffered from a nervous breakdown and was sent home by the producers. While filming, he met actors Don Rickles
Don Rickles
Donald Jay "Don" Rickles is an American stand-up comedian and actor. A frequent guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Rickles has acted in comedic and dramatic roles, but is best known as an insult comic....
and Donald Sutherland
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland, OC is a Canadian actor with a film career spanning nearly 50 years. Some of Sutherland's more notable movie roles included offbeat warriors in such war movies as The Dirty Dozen, , MASH , and Kelly's Heroes , as well as in such popular films as Klute, Invasion of the...
, both of whom he would later cast in his own films. Following this, Landis worked on many films made in Europe (especially in Italy and England), most notably, Once Upon a Time in the West
Once Upon a Time in the West
Once Upon a Time in the West is a 1968 Italian epic spaghetti western film directed by Sergio Leone for Paramount Pictures. It stars Henry Fonda cast against type as the villain, Charles Bronson as his nemesis, Jason Robards as a bandit, and Claudia Cardinale as a newly widowed homesteader with a...
, El Condor
El Condor
El Condor may refer to following:*El Condor *The Condor *El Condor...
and A Town Called Bastard (a.k.a. A Town Called Hell). Landis also worked as a stunt double
Stunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
.
Landis recalled:
After his experience working as a stunt double, he moved to London and worked as an uncredited co-writer for the film The Spy Who Loved Me
The Spy Who Loved Me (film)
The Spy Who Loved Me is a spy film, the tenth film in the James Bond series, and the third to star Roger Moore as the fictional secret agent James Bond. It was directed by Lewis Gilbert and the screenplay was written by Christopher Wood and Richard Maibaum...
.
Beginnings
When Landis was a young boy, he watched The 7th Voyage of Sinbad which, as told to Robert K. ElderRobert K. Elder
Robert K. Elder is an American journalist, author and film columnist.- Early life and education :A Montana native, Elder interviewed Ken Kesey for his high school newspaper. The author encouraged Elder to attend his alma mater, the University of Oregon, which Elder did two years later...
for The Film That Changed My Life
The Film That Changed My Life
The Film That Changed My Life is a non-fiction collection of interviews compiled by American journalist, author and film columnist Robert K. Elder...
, inspired him to become a director.
I had complete suspension of disbelief—really, I was eight years old and it transported me. I was on that beach running from that dragon, fighting that Cyclops. It just really dazzled me, and I bought it completely. And so, I actually sat through it twice and when I got home, I asked my mom, “Who does that? Who makes the movie?”
In 1971, Landis made his feature debut as a director in the US with Schlock
Schlock (film)
Schlock is a 1973 low-budget satire film, written, directed by and starring filmmaker John Landis.-Plot:Schlock, a prehistoric apeman who falls in love with a teenage blind beauty and terrorizes her Southern California suburb. Schlock is no ordinary simian; he possesses some very unusual skills....
. He was 21 years old. The film, which he also wrote and appeared in, is a tribute to monster movie
Monster movie
Monster movie is a name commonly given to movies, which centre on the struggle between human beings and one or more monsters...
s. The gorilla suit for the film was made by Rick Baker--the beginning of a long-term collaboration between Landis and Baker. Schlock
Schlock (film)
Schlock is a 1973 low-budget satire film, written, directed by and starring filmmaker John Landis.-Plot:Schlock, a prehistoric apeman who falls in love with a teenage blind beauty and terrorizes her Southern California suburb. Schlock is no ordinary simian; he possesses some very unusual skills....
was a failure, and Landis was not offered another directing job for some time.
In his own words, he "parked a lot of cars" during this fallow period. In 1977, Landis directed Kentucky Fried Movie. The film was inspired by the satirical sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
of shows like Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
, Free the Army, The National Lampoon Radio Hour
The National Lampoon Radio Hour
The National Lampoon Radio Hour was a comedy radio show which was created, produced and initially written by staff from National Lampoon magazine. The show ran weekly, for a little over a year, from November 17, 1973 to December 28, 1974...
and Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
.
Transition to Hollywood
In 1978, Landis directed his first film for Universal StudiosUniversal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, National Lampoon's Animal House
National Lampoon's Animal House
National Lampoon's Animal House is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis. The film was a direct spin-off of National Lampoon magazine...
, which was both critically and financially successful. This created new opportunities for Landis under Universal's umbrella.
In 1980, Landis co-wrote and directed The Blues Brothers
The Blues Brothers (film)
The Blues Brothers is a 1980 musical comedy film directed by John Landis and starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as "Joliet" Jake and Elwood Blues, characters developed from a musical sketch on the NBC variety series Saturday Night Live. It features musical numbers by R&B and soul singers James...
, a comedy
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
starring John Belushi
John Belushi
John Adam Belushi was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known as one of the original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, The Star of the Films National Lampoon's Animal House and the The Blues Brothers and for fronting the American blues and soul...
and Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
. It features musical numbers by R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
legends James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
, Cab Calloway
Cab Calloway
Cabell "Cab" Calloway III was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was strongly associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City where he was a regular performer....
, Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
and John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
. It was, at the time, one of the most expensive films ever made (cost: almost $30 million) (for comparison: the earlier Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's contemporary 1941
1941 (film)
1941 is a 1979 period comedy film directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and featuring an ensemble cast including John Belushi, Ned Beatty, John Candy, Toshiro Mifune, Christopher Lee and Dan Aykroyd...
cost $35 million). Some believe that Spielberg and Landis engaged in a rivalry, the goal of which was to make the more expensive movie. The rivalry might have been a friendly one, as Spielberg makes a cameo appearance in Blues Brothers (as the unnamed desk clerk near the very end) and Landis had made a cameo in 1941
1941 (film)
1941 is a 1979 period comedy film directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and featuring an ensemble cast including John Belushi, Ned Beatty, John Candy, Toshiro Mifune, Christopher Lee and Dan Aykroyd...
as a messenger.
In 1981, Landis wrote and directed another cult-status movie
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
, the comedy-horror An American Werewolf in London
An American Werewolf in London
An American Werewolf in London is a 1981 British-American horror film, written and directed by John Landis. It stars David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, and Griffin Dunne....
. American Werewolf was perhaps Landis' most personal project; he had been planning to make it since 1969, while in Yugoslavia.
Landis next directed the opening teaser and first segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Twilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 science fiction horror film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis as a theatrical version of The Twilight Zone, a 1959 and '60s TV series created by Rod Serling. Those starring in the film are: Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Scatman Crothers,...
in 1983.
Accident and trial
On July 23, 1982, during the filming of Twilight Zone, actor Vic MorrowVic Morrow
Victor "Vic" Morrow was an American actor whose credits include a starring role in the 1960s TV series Combat!, prominent roles in a handful of other television and cinema dramas, and numerous guest roles on television...
and child extras
Extra (actor)
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen were killed in an accident involving an out-of-control helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
. The National Transportation Safety Board
National Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
reported in October 1984:
Landis and several crew members were subsequently charged with involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment. The prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
s attempted to show that Landis was reckless and had violated laws relating to child actors by not telling parents and others of the children's proximity to explosives and helicopters and of limitations on their working hours. Numerous members of the film crew testified that the director was warned, but ignored these dangers. After an extended jury trial, Landis, represented by a Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
attorney, James F. Neal
James F. Neal
James Foster Neal was an American trial lawyer who prosecuted labor leader Jimmy Hoffa as well as top officials of the Nixon Administration....
, and the other crew members were acquitted of the charges.
Landis was later reprimanded for circumventing the State of California's child labor laws in hiring the two children killed in the accident. This tragedy resulted in stricter safety measures and enforcement of child labor laws, in the State of California. The parents of the children sued, and would later settle out of court for $2 million per family. Vic Morrow's daughters, Carrie Morrow and actress Jennifer Jason Leigh
Jennifer Jason Leigh
Jennifer Jason Leigh is an American film and stage actress, best known for her roles in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Single White Female, Last Exit to Brooklyn, Georgia and Short Cuts...
, similarly pursued a lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
that settled for an undisclosed amount purportedly in the $800,000 range.
Despite these settlements, Landis (during interviews with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan) has never publicly accepted responsibility for the accident. He has stated: "When you read about the accident, they say we were blowing up huts – which we weren't – and that debris hit the tail rotor of the helicopter – which it didn't. (...) The FBI Crime Lab, who was working for the prosecution, finally figured out that tail rotor delaminated, which is why the pilot lost control. The Special FX man who made the mistake, by setting off a fireball at the wrong time, he was never charged."
Steven Spielberg reportedly ended his friendship with Landis over the accident and the fact that Landis had live ammunition on the set.
Later career
Trading PlacesTrading Places
Trading Places is a 1983 American comedy film, of the satire genre, directed by John Landis, starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy. It tells the story of an upper class commodities broker and a homeless street hustler whose lives cross paths when they are unknowingly made part of an elaborate bet...
, a Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper is an English-language novel by American author Mark Twain. It was first published in 1881 in Canada before its 1882 publication in the United States. The book represents Twain's first attempt at historical fiction...
-style comedy starring Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
and Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
was filmed directly after the Twilight Zone accident. After filming ended, Landis and his family went to London: then he was approached by Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
to make a video for his song, "Thriller
Thriller (song)
"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller. It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records...
". "Thriller" forever changed MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and the concept of music videos; it has won many awards, including the Video Vanguard Award for The Greatest Video in the History of the World. In 2009 (months before Jackson died), Landis sued Jackson in a dispute over royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
for the video; he claims to be owed four years' worth of royalties.
Next, Landis directed Into The Night, starring Jeff Goldblum
Jeff Goldblum
Jeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is an American actor. His career began in the mid-1970s and he has appeared in major box-office successes including The Fly, Jurassic Park and its sequel Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Independence Day...
, Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1980 in The Hollywood Knights, but first garnered mainstream attention with her performance in Brian De Palma's Scarface . Pfeiffer has won numerous awards for her work...
and David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
(a film was inspired by Hitchcock productions; Landis played in this film a mute member of the quartet of Iranian hitmen). To promote this movie, he collaborated with Jeff Okun to direct a documentary film called B.B. King "Into the Night"
B.B. King "Into the Night"
B.B. King "Into the Night" is a 1985 documentary film directed by Jeff Okun and co - directed by John Landis for the Universal and it was produced by Leslie Belzberg, John Landis and George Folsey Jr.-Plot:...
. Landis directed music videos for three of King's songs as part of the film: "Lucille
Lucille (B.B. King song)
"My Lucille" is a 1985 song to the title of the 1985 Universal John Landis motion picture called Into the Night, starring Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Pfeiffer. It was written by Ira Newborn and recorded by B.B. King. The title of the song is reference to the legendary B.B. King's guitar...
", "Into the Night" (specially composed by Ira Newborn for movie Into the Night) and "In the Midnight Hour."
His next film, Spies Like Us
Spies Like Us
Spies Like Us is a 1985 American comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Steve Forrest, and Donna Dixon...
, (starring co-writer Dan Aykroyd
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
and Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase
Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, writer, and television and film actor, born into a prominent entertainment industry family. Chase worked a plethora of odd jobs before moving into comedy acting with National Lampoon...
) was an homage to the Road to...
Road to...
Road to ... refers to a series of seven comedy films starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour. They are also often referred to as the "Road" pictures or the "Road" series. The movies were a combination of adventure, comedy, romance, and music...
films, starring Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
. Hope made a cameo in the film as himself. The movie also pays homage to spy movies such as the James Bond series; the crew included special effects makers Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen is an American film producer and special effects creator...
and Derek Meddings
Derek Meddings
Derek Meddings was a British television and cinema special effects expert, initially noted for his work on the "Supermarionation" television puppet series produced by Gerry Anderson, and later for the 1970s James Bond films and the Superman film series.-Early years:Both Meddings' parents had...
, both of whom had worked on Bond movies. Landis also directed a video for Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
as part of the promotion for Spies Like Us. He also co-wrote the comedy film Clue
Clue (film)
Clue is a 1985 comedy mystery film based on the board game of the same name . The film is a murder mystery set in a Gothic Revival mansion, and is styled after Murder by Death and other various murder/dinner parties of mystery...
.
In 1986, Landis directed ¡Three Amigos!
¡Three Amigos!
Three Amigos is a 1986 American adventure musical comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Lorne Michaels, Steve Martin, and Randy Newman...
for HBO. The film starred Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase
Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, writer, and television and film actor, born into a prominent entertainment industry family. Chase worked a plethora of odd jobs before moving into comedy acting with National Lampoon...
, Martin Short
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer, singer and producer. He is best-known for his comedy work, particularly on the TV programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live...
and Steve Martin
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn "Steve" Martin is an American actor, comedian, writer, playwright, producer, musician and composer....
. Landis was the second choice to direct; Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
had refused. The film was a tribute to old Mexican style westerns and musical movies. Randy Newman wrote three original songs for the film, and the film was shot in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
to make it look like older Westerns.
Landis next directed the Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
film, Coming to America
Coming to America
Coming to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...
, which was a huge commercial success. It was also the subject of Buchwald v. Paramount
Buchwald v. Paramount
Buchwald v. Paramount was a breach of contract lawsuit filed and decided in California in which humorist and writer Art Buchwald alleged that Paramount Pictures stole his script idea and turned it into the 1988 movie Coming to America...
, a civil suit filed by Art Buchwald
Art Buchwald
Arthur Buchwald was an American humorist best known for his long-running column in The Washington Post, which in turn was carried as a syndicated column in many other newspapers. His column focused on political satire and commentary...
in 1990 against the film's producers. Buchwald claimed that the concept for the film had been stolen from a 1982 script that Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
optioned from Buchwald. Buchwald won the breach of contract action.
In 1991, Landis collaborated again with Michael Jackson on the music video for the song "Black or White". In the same year, he directed Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
in the title role in Oscar
Oscar (1991 film)
Oscar is a 1991 American comedy film directed by John Landis. Based on the Claude Magnier stage play, it is can be considered a remake of the 1967 film of the same name, but the settings has been moved to the Depression era New York City and centers around a mob boss trying to go straight...
, based on a Claude Magnier stage play. Oscar recreates a 1930 era film, including the gestures along with bit acts and with some slapstick, as a homage to old Hollywood films. In 1992, he directed Innocent Blood
Innocent Blood (film)
Innocent Blood is a 1992 American horror-crime film directed by John Landis. The film stars Anne Parillaud as a vampire who finds herself against a blood-sucking legion of mobsters after biting a notorious crime boss played by Robert Loggia....
, a horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
-crime film
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
.
In 1994, Landis directed Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop III
Beverly Hills Cop III
Beverly Hills Cop III is a 1994 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by John Landis, who had previously worked with Murphy on Trading Places and Coming to America...
. They had previously worked together on Trading Places
Trading Places
Trading Places is a 1983 American comedy film, of the satire genre, directed by John Landis, starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy. It tells the story of an upper class commodities broker and a homeless street hustler whose lives cross paths when they are unknowingly made part of an elaborate bet...
and Coming to America
Coming to America
Coming to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...
. In 1996, he directed The Stupids
The Stupids (film)
The Stupids is a 1996 American comedy/adventure film directed by John Landis. The film is based on The Stupids, characters from a series of books written by Harry Allard and illustrated by James Marshall....
. Landis returned to Universal to direct Blues Brothers 2000
Blues Brothers 2000
Blues Brothers 2000 is a 1998 American musical comedy film that is a sequel to the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. Directed by John Landis, the film featured Dan Aykroyd and John Goodman, with cameos by many musicians.-Plot:...
in 1998, the same year he directed Susan's Plan
Susan's Plan
Susan's Plan is a 1998 black comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Nastassja Kinski, Dan Aykroyd, Billy Zane, Rob Schneider, Lara Flynn Boyle and Michael Biehn. The plot revolves around Susan's plan to kill her former husband and collect his life insurance....
.
Burke and Hare
Burke and Hare (film)
Burke and Hare is a British black comedy film, loosely based on the Burke and Hare murders. Directed by John Landis, the film stars Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis as William Burke and William Hare respectively. It was Landis's first feature film release in twelve years, the last being 1998's Susan's...
was released in 2010, Landis's first theatrical release for over a decade.
In August 2011 Landis said he would return to horror and will be writing a new film.
Some Guy Who Kills People
Landis is set to produce the crime thriller Some Guy Who Kills People, written by Ryan LevinRyan LeVin
Ryan LeVin is a jewelry heir and a hit-and-run killer. On February 23, 2009, a valet at YOLO, a Fort Lauderdale restaurant, observed LeVin leave at 1 AM in his Porsche 911 Turbo. LeVin then proceeded to drive the car up and down Las Olas Boulevard. Hours later, the same Porsche struck and killed...
and directed by Jack Perez. Filming is expected to begin in January 2010 and stars Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Fitzgerald Corrigan is an American actor who has appeared mostly in independent films and television since the 1990s.-Life and career:Corrigan was born in The Bronx, New York to an Irish-American father and a Puerto Rican mother...
in a lead role.
Television
Landis directed Kentucky Fried Movie, which is a tribute to television. Later he co-directed Amazon Women on the MoonAmazon Women on the Moon
Amazon Women on the Moon is a 1987 American satirical comedy film that parodies the experience of watching low-budget movies on late-night television...
in the same vein. Landis has been active in television as the executive producer (and often director) of the series Dream On
Dream On (TV series)
Dream On is an American adult-themed situation comedy about single New Yorker, Martin Tupper. The show used a gimmick where old black and white clips were used to punctuate the main character's feelings or thoughts...
(1990), Weird Science
Weird Science (TV series)
Weird Science is a mid-1990s American comedy series made for television, based on the 1985 film of the same name.-Plot:The series follows the adventures of Gary Wallace and Wyatt Donnelly , two socially inept high school students in an unspecified town in California...
(1994), Sliders
Sliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
(1995), Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show is an American syndicated science fiction sitcom based on the 1989 film, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. It expands upon the original film's concept of a shrinking experiment gone wrong to include a myriad of experiments gone awry...
(1997), Campus Cops (1995), Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World (1998), and Masters of Horror
Masters of Horror
Masters of Horror is an informal social group of international film writers and directors specializing in horror movies and an American television series created by director Mick Garris for the Showtime cable network.- Origin :...
. He made also commercials for DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
, Taco Bell
Taco Bell
Taco Bell is an American chain of fast-food restaurants based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., which serves American-adapted Mexican food. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, other specialty items, and a variety of "Value Menu" items...
, Coca Cola, Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
, Kellogg's, and Disney.
Documentaries
His first documentary, Coming SoonComing Soon (1982 film)
Coming Soon is a 1982 documentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. Landis used trailers of old Universal horror and thriller movies to create his own contribution to his favourite movie genres. The film is narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis....
from 1982, was released only on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
. Next, he co-directed B.B. King "Into the Night"
B.B. King "Into the Night"
B.B. King "Into the Night" is a 1985 documentary film directed by Jeff Okun and co - directed by John Landis for the Universal and it was produced by Leslie Belzberg, John Landis and George Folsey Jr.-Plot:...
(1985) and in 2002 directed Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update is a 2002 mockumentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. It shows the main characters from National Lampoon's Animal House 30 years on and purports that the original film had been a documentary. It was never shown in theaters, but only as part of...
, which can be seen as a part of the Animal House DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
extras. Initially, his documentaries were only made to promote his feature films. However, later in his career, he became more serious about the oeuvre and made Slasher
Slasher (film)
Slasher is a 2004 documentary film directed by John Landis for the Independent Film Channel. The film was produced by Chris Kobin, Stephen Cantor, and Daniel Laikand....
(2004), Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project is a documentary about stand-up comedian Don Rickles.-Structure:The film consists of performance clips from throughout Rickles' career interspersed with recent interviews with him. A show at the Stardust Casino in Las Vegas from 2006 is featured most prominently...
(2007) and the upcoming Starz Inside: Ladies or Gentlemen (2009). All of these documentaries were filmed for television; Landis won a 2008 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for Mr. Warmth. He worked currently on the Making of Thriller
Thriller (song)
"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller. It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records...
which will shot in 3-D. Landis stars in the Spanish documentary The Man Who Saw Frankenstein Cry, which centers the life and career of Paul Naschy
Paul Naschy
Paul Naschy was a Spanish movie actor, screenwriter, and director working primarily in horror films. His portrayals of numerous classic horror figures—the wolfman, the hunchback, Count Dracula, the mummy—have earned him recognition as the Spanish Lon Chaney...
.
Personal life
Landis is married to Deborah Nadoolman LandisDeborah Nadoolman Landis
Dr. Deborah Nadoolman Landis is an American film and theater costume designer. She worked on such notable films as Animal House, Three Amigos, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Landis recently completed her second term as president of the Costume Designers Guild of which she has been a member for more...
, an Oscar-nominated costume designer and president of the Costume Designers Guild
Costume Designers Guild
The Costume Designers Guild , IATSE LOCAL 892 was founded in 1953 by a group of 30 motion picture costume designers. In 1986, the Costume Designers Guild joined the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and added Local 892 to its name...
), with whom he has two children: Max
Max Landis
-Early Life:The son of director John Landis and costume designer and historian Deborah Nadoolman Landis, Max Landis was born in Beverly Hills, California. He attended a stringent boarding school after being "kicked out" of Beverly Hills High...
, writer of the upcoming Good Time Gang and Amnesty
Amnesty (film)
Amnesty is a 2011 Albanian drama film written and directed by Bujar Alimani. The film has been selected as the Albanian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards.-See also:...
, and Rachel.
In a BBC Radio interview he stated that he is an atheist.
See You Next Wednesday
See You Next Wednesday
See You Next Wednesday is a recurring gag in most of the films directed by John Landis, usually referenced as a fictional film. No version of See You Next Wednesday in any Landis film ever looks the same as it did in any previous Landis film....
in movies that he directs. The line is from Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
's 2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey (film)
2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, partially inspired by Clarke's short story The Sentinel...
; this is how Frank Poole
Frank Poole
Frank Poole is a fictional character from Arthur C. Clarke's Space Odyssey series. In Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, Poole was portrayed by Gary Lockwood....
's parents end their video to him. The line is also mentioned in the opening scene of Michael Jackson's "Thriller
Thriller (music video)
Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 14-minute music video for the song of the same name released on December 2, 1983 and directed by John Landis, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jackson....
", when the police decode a message from Jackson's werecat character.
When in Hollywood, Visit Universal Studios. Ask for Babs
This is an advertisement for the tour at Universal StudiosUniversal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, from John Landis movies made for Universal. This is also referring (shown at the end of the credits) to the character Babs from the movie National Lampoon's Animal House
National Lampoon's Animal House
National Lampoon's Animal House is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis. The film was a direct spin-off of National Lampoon magazine...
. When in Hollywood... is showing at the end of the credits, and it consists of three blue cards, the first saying "Universal Studios—the Entertainment Center of the World," the second saying "When in Hollywood Visit Universal Studios," and the last adding "Ask for Babs". The new version of this advertisement, which appeared in Blues Brothers 2000
Blues Brothers 2000
Blues Brothers 2000 is a 1998 American musical comedy film that is a sequel to the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. Directed by John Landis, the film featured Dan Aykroyd and John Goodman, with cameos by many musicians.-Plot:...
(the first film directed by Landis for Universal since Amazon Women on the Moon) includes only one card: "Universal Studios—Hollywood and Florida. See the stars and ride the movies! (Ask for Babs)." Patrons who asked for Babs were once given a certain degree of reward; any promo was long since discontinued, save a simple smile or acknowledgment from a park staffer. In one DVD release of Animal House, there was a Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update
Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update is a 2002 mockumentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. It shows the main characters from National Lampoon's Animal House 30 years on and purports that the original film had been a documentary. It was never shown in theaters, but only as part of...
mockumentary that featured, among others, Martha Smith (who played Babs) indeed working the rounds as a tour guide at Universal Studios in Hollywood.
List of films with When in Hollywood, Visit Universal Studios. Ask for Babs:
- National Lampoon's Animal HouseNational Lampoon's Animal HouseNational Lampoon's Animal House is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis. The film was a direct spin-off of National Lampoon magazine...
(1978) - The Blues BrothersThe Blues BrothersThe Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedy actors Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live...
(1980) - An American Werewolf in LondonAn American Werewolf in LondonAn American Werewolf in London is a 1981 British-American horror film, written and directed by John Landis. It stars David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, and Griffin Dunne....
(1981) - Coming SoonComing Soon (1982 film)Coming Soon is a 1982 documentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. Landis used trailers of old Universal horror and thriller movies to create his own contribution to his favourite movie genres. The film is narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis....
(1982) - Into the Night (1985)
- Amazon Women on the MoonAmazon Women on the MoonAmazon Women on the Moon is a 1987 American satirical comedy film that parodies the experience of watching low-budget movies on late-night television...
(1987) - Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000 is a 1998 American musical comedy film that is a sequel to the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. Directed by John Landis, the film featured Dan Aykroyd and John Goodman, with cameos by many musicians.-Plot:...
(1998) - Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni UpdateWhere Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni UpdateWhere Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update is a 2002 mockumentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. It shows the main characters from National Lampoon's Animal House 30 years on and purports that the original film had been a documentary. It was never shown in theaters, but only as part of...
(2003)
In non-Landis works:
- Smokey and the BanditSmokey and the BanditSmokey and the Bandit is a 1977 American film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. It inspired several other trucking films, including two sequels, Smokey and the Bandit II, and Smokey and the Bandit Part 3...
(1977) - Dracula (1979)
- Buck Rogers in the 25th CenturyBuck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series)Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is an American science fiction adventure television series produced by Universal Studios. The series ran for two seasons between 1979–1981, and the feature-length pilot episode for the series was released as a theatrical film several months before the series aired....
(1979) - More American GraffitiMore American GraffitiMore American Graffiti is the 1979 sequel film to George Lucas's hit film American Graffiti. Whereas the first film followed a group of friends during the summer evening before they set off for college, this film shows us where the characters from the first film end up a few years later.Most of the...
(1979) - Galactica III: Conquest of the EarthGalactica 1980Galactica 1980 is a science fiction television series, and a spin-off from the 1978–1979 series Battlestar Galactica. It was first broadcast on the ABC network in the United States from January 27 to May 4, 1980.-Development:...
(1980) - The Nude BombThe Nude BombThe Nude Bomb is a 1980 comedy film based on the television series Get Smart. It starred Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, and was directed by Clive Donner...
(1980) - E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial (1982)
- Fast Times at Ridgemont HighFast Times at Ridgemont HighFast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name...
(1982) - ScarfaceScarface (1983 film)Scarface is a 1983 American epic crime drama movie directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone, produced by Martin Bregman and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana...
(1983) - The Last StarfighterThe Last StarfighterThe Last Starfighter is a 1984 science fiction adventure film directed by Nick Castle. The film tells the story of Alex Rogan , an average teenage boy recruited by an alien defense force to fight in an interstellar war. It also featured Dan O'Herlihy, Catherine Mary Stewart, Robert Preston, Norman...
(1984) - Sixteen CandlesSixteen CandlesSixteen Candles is a 1984 American film starring Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling and Anthony Michael Hall. It was written and directed by John Hughes.- Plot :...
(1984) - The Great Outdoors (1988)
- Uncle BuckUncle BuckUncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby Hoffman, and Macaulay Culkin, and co-stars Jay Underwood and Laurie Metcalf.-Plot:Bob Russell Uncle Buck is a 1989 John Hughes comedy film starring John Candy, Amy Madigan, Jean Louisa Kelly, Gaby...
(1989) - Cape FearCape Fear (1991 film)Cape Fear is a 1991 thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese and a remake of the 1962 film of the same name. It stars Robert De Niro, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange and Juliette Lewis and features cameos from Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum and Martin Balsam, who all appeared in the 1962 original film...
(1991) - Sneakers (1992)
- The FlintstonesThe Flintstones (film)The Flintstones is a 1994 American live-action comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon television series of the same name about a Stone-Age man, his family and his best friend. The film was directed by Brian Levant, written by Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein and Steven E...
(1994) - The Flintstones in Viva Rock VegasThe Flintstones in Viva Rock VegasThe Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas is a 2000 comedy film and prequel to 1994's The Flintstones based on the hit cartoon series of the same name, produced by Amblin Entertainment and Hanna-Barbera and distributed by Universal Studios...
(2000) - Drag Me to HellDrag Me to HellDrag Me to Hell is a 2009 American horror film, directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Sam and Ivan Raimi. The plot focuses on loan officer Christine Brown , who tries to impress her boss by refusing to extend a loan to a gypsy woman by the name of Mrs. Ganush...
(2009) - Fast Five (2011)
- Cowboys & AliensCowboys & AliensCowboys & Aliens is a 100-page Platinum Studios 2006 graphic novel created by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg and written by Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley, with illustrator Dennis Calero and penciler Luciano Lima.-Publication history:-Plot synopsis:...
(2011) - Tower HeistTower HeistTower Heist is a 2011 crime comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson based on a story by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Griffin. It was released on November 2, 2011 in the United Kingdom, with a United States release following two days later...
(2011)
Closing credits
Landis's films often feature a montage either before or during the end credits, which shows clips or outtakes from the movie, with the names of the featured actors at the bottom of the screen.This device was first used in Animal House, but does not feature in Schlock, The Kentucky Fried Movie, An American Werewolf in London, Three Amigos or Beverly Hills Cop III. The montages for Spies like Us and Innocent Blood also contain jokes.
Directors' cameos
Landis casts famous film directors in cameo appearances in almost all of his movies (Spies Like UsSpies Like Us
Spies Like Us is a 1985 American comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Steve Forrest, and Donna Dixon...
has several in one memorable scene). He frequently invited director Frank Oz to play small parts in his movies, and others such as Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim was a French screenwriter, director, and producer as well as a journalist, author and actor, who launched Brigitte Bardot's career in the film And God Created Woman.-Early life:...
, Paul Mazursky
Paul Mazursky
Paul Mazursky is an American film director, screenwriter and actor.-Personal life:He was born Irwin Mazursky in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Jean , a piano player for dance classes, and David Mazursky, a laborer. Mazursky was born to a Jewish family; his grandfather was an immigrant from...
, Jim Henson
Jim Henson
James Maury "Jim" Henson was an American puppeteer best known as the creator of The Muppets. As a puppeteer, Henson performed in various television programs, such as Sesame Street and The Muppet Show, films such as The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper, and created advanced puppets for...
, Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme
Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
, and David Cronenberg
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg, OC, FRSC is a Canadian filmmaker, screenwriter and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror or venereal horror genre. This style of filmmaking explores people's fears of bodily transformation and infection. In his films, the...
in Into the Night; Terry Gilliam
Terry Gilliam
Terrence Vance "Terry" Gilliam is an American-born British screenwriter, film director, animator, actor and member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. Gilliam is also known for directing several films, including Brazil , The Adventures of Baron Munchausen , The Fisher King , and 12 Monkeys...
, Joel Coen, Michael Apted
Michael Apted
Michael David Apted, CMG is an English director, producer, writer and actor. He is one of the most prolific British film directors of his generation but is best known for his work on the Up Series of documentaries and the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.On 29 June 2003 he was elected...
in Spies Like Us; Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
in Spies Like Us and Innocent Blood; George Lucas
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
in Beverly Hills Cop III; Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
in Blues Brothers; and Dario Argento
Dario Argento
Dario Argento is an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre, particularly in the subgenre known as giallo, and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies....
in Innocent Blood; Costa-Gavras
Costa-Gavras
Costa-Gavras, is a Greek filmmaker, who lives and works in France, best known for films with overt political themes, most famously the fast-paced thriller, Z...
in The Stupids. In 2011, this trademark was paid homage to when Landis himself was cast to play the part of a director in episode two of the second series of British TV horror-comedy Psychoville
Psychoville
Psychoville is an award-winning British dark comedy television serial written by and starring The League of Gentlemen members Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. It debuted on BBC Two on 18 June 2009. Pemberton and Shearsmith each play numerous characters, with Dawn French and Jason Tompkins in...
. Although he didn't direct the movie, he made a cameo appearance as a doctor in the Sam Raimi movie Darkman, starring Liam Neeson (Landis is one of the doctors examining Neeson after he was burned in the building.)
Break the fourth wall
Several of Landis' films break the fourth wallThe Fourth Wall
The Fourth Wall is a 1992 play by the American playwright A.R. Gurney.It was originally produced in the United States in regional theatre...
. In Animal House, Bluto turns to the camera and raises an eyebrow while peeking through the window of a sorority house. In Trading Places, Billy Ray Valentine shares a glance with the audience while being patronized by the Duke brothers' explanation of commodities markets. In An American Werewolf in London, David stares for a moment into the camera during his first transformation. In Coming to America, Prince Akeem raises his eyes to look at the camera after seeing his new bride make animal sounds at his request. Later in that same movie, Daryl looks up at the camera in surprise as Patrice starts to unzip him after he comes in from the rain. Another example is at the end of the Thriller music video, when Michael Jackson looks back at the camera with the infamous yellow eyes.
Oldsmobiles and car crashes
Many of his films feature references to the OldsmobileOldsmobile
Oldsmobile was a brand of American automobile produced for most of its existence by General Motors. It was founded by Ransom E. Olds in 1897. In its 107-year history, it produced 35.2 million cars, including at least 14 million built at its Lansing, Michigan factory...
. It appeared in Animal House (Mayor Carmine DePasto owns an Oldsmobile dealership and allows his vehicles to be used during the parade), Trading Places (Duke & Duke limousine), Thriller (Jackson's car), Twilight Zone (during Prologue), Into the Night (Diana's brother's car), Blues Brothers (while driving through the mall, Elwood said: "The new Oldsmobiles are in early this year"), Three Amigos (during scenes in Santo Poco), and Oscar.
In many Landis movies, there are also car crashes: the final sequence in Animal House; in many scenes in Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000; during the final sequence near Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space of London's West End in the City of Westminster, built in 1819 to connect Regent Street with the major shopping street of Piccadilly...
in American Werewolf; during the opening sequence in Into the Night (while the crew's credits are showing); during the final sequence in Innocent Blood (when Macelli was run down by bus and taxi); and during one scene in The Stupids (cars crashes because of Mrs. Stupid).
Image of King Kong
Landis created several characters with similarities to King KongKing Kong
King Kong is a fictional character, a giant movie monster resembling a gorilla, that has appeared in several movies since 1933. These include the groundbreaking 1933 movie, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, as well as various sequels of the first two films...
in his films (including Schlock – the title hero; in Kentucky Fried Movie – animal showing during TV's show; in An American Werewolf in London in ZOO; in Trading Places in the train during New Year's Eve) or inserted images of gorillas in his films as part of production designs: in Blues Brothers on promotional poster of fictional movie called See You Next Wednesday (the same situation in The Stupids) and on the poster in Three Amigos (shows as one of advertisement of Goldsmith Studios), in Innocent Blood we may see a monkey from the movie playing on television; in Blues Brothers 2000 it appears as a huge gorilla's figure in Queen Mousette's House.
Awards
According to the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
, John Landis has won or been nominated for the following awards:
Nominations
- Schlock for Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films
- Twilight Zone: The Movie for Best Film at FantasportoFantasportoFantasporto, also known as Fantas, is an international film festival, annually organized since 1981 in Porto, Portugal. Giving screen space to commercial feature films, auteur films and experimental projects from all over the world, Fantasporto has created enthusiastic audiences, ranging from...
- "Dream On" was nominated four times in the Comedy Series category at the CableACE Awards
Awards won:
- Schlock won the Best Film award during Fantafestival
- Into the Night won the Special Jury Prize at the Cognac Festival du Film Policier
- "Dream On" won a CableACE AwardCableACE AwardThe CableACE Award was an award that was given from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in American cable television programming...
in the Comedy Series in 1992 - Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project won in the "Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special" category at the Emmy Awards
Landis was honoured by:
- FrenchFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
government in 1985 (Chevalier dans l'ordre des Arts et des Lettres) - Rimini Cinema Festival in ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(Federico Fellini Prize) - The Eastman House in Rochester, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
(named a George Eastman Scholar) - Sitges Film Festival in SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(Time Machine Career Achievement Award)
Cast
With Dan AykroydDan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
Aykroyd wrote the original script for the movie The Blues Brothers, which at 324 pages was three times longer than a standard screenplay. Landis was given the task of editing the script into a usable screenplay, and the film was realised in 1980 as a musical comedy. Aykroyd then starred (along with Murphy) in Trading Places. In the same year (1983) he appeared in Twilight Zone: The Movie. Two years later, he made a cameo in Into the Night and B.B. King "Into the Night" (as one of B.B. King's band members) and starred in (as well as co-wrote) Spies Like Us. This would be Aykroyd's last role in a Landis film until 1998.
With Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
Eddie Murphy first collaborated with Landis during Trading Places. Murphy frequently collaborated with Landis, and appeared also in Coming to America and Beverly Hills Cop III. Murphy made a cameo in Landis's two videos for B.B. King: In the Midnight Hour and My Lucille in which he played band's member as drummer.
With Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
When Landis and his family were living in London, he was approached by Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
to make a video for his song, "Thriller
Thriller (song)
"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller. It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records...
". "Thriller" forever changed MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and the concept of music videos; it has won many awards. In 2009, Landis sued Jackson in a dispute over royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
for the video; he claims to be owed four years' worth of royalties. In 1991 Landis directed a second video for Jackson, "Black or White", in which Landis appeared as himself.
During an interview with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan Landis said:
With Frank Oz
Frank Oz
Frank Oz is a British-born American film director, actor, voice actor and puppeteer who is known for creating and performing the characters Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear in The Muppet Show, Cookie Monster, Bert and Grover in Sesame Street, and for directing films, including the 1986 Little Shop of...
Landis has cast Oz in small roles in several of his movies. Oz played a corrections officer in Blues Brothers and Blues Brothers 2000. He also had roles in An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Spies Like Us, and Innocent Blood. Even if he's not appeared in a Landis movie, his name is often spoken in the background. During airport scenes in Into the Night and Coming to America, there are announcements on the PA system requesting a 'Mr. Frank Oznowicz' to pick up the white courtesy phone. Oznowicz is Oz's given name. During interview with Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan, Frank Oz said:
Crew
With Deborah Nadoolman LandisDeborah Nadoolman Landis
Dr. Deborah Nadoolman Landis is an American film and theater costume designer. She worked on such notable films as Animal House, Three Amigos, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Landis recently completed her second term as president of the Costume Designers Guild of which she has been a member for more...
Throughout his career, Landis has utilized his wife, Deborah Nadoolman Landis, as a costume designer. She created such costumes as Bluto's toga in Animal House; black suits, hats and glasses for the Blues Brothers; Michael Jackson's red jacket in Thriller; sheepskin jackets for Spies Like Us; the protagonists' costumes in ¡Three Amigos!; and Prince Akeem's coronation outfit in Coming to America. Deborah Nadoolman was nominated for an Academy Award in 1988 for Coming to America.
With Rick Baker
Richard Baker is an Academy Award-winning special makeup effects
Prosthetic makeup
Prosthetic makeup is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects...
artist known for his realistic creature effects. Baker worked with Landis for the first time during Schlock. Baker also created special makeup effects for Landis' An American Werewolf in London (for which he won the Academy Award), Twilight Zone: The Movie, Thriller, and Coming to America (which garnered him an Academy Award nomination). Baker also appeared in Into the Night as a drug dealer.
With George Folsey Jr.
George Folsey is a producer and editor. He edited or co-edited six Landis' films, from Schlock (1973) to The Blues Brothers (1980), Thriller and Coming to America. Folsey produced eleven films directed or co-directed by Landis (Schlock, The Blues Brothers, all films from An American Werewolf in London to Coming to America). He was also second unit director collaborated with Landis during his Trading Places, Into the Night and ¡Three Amigos!.
With Leslie Belzberg
Leslie Belzberg
Leslie Belzberg is an American film and TV producer. She is best known for her collaborations with director John Landis.-With John Landis:Leslie Belzberg produced ten films directed by Landis and four TV series in which Landis participated...
Leslie Belzberg is a film and television producer. She produced ten films directed by Landis, from Into the Night to Susan's Plan) and four TV series in which Landis participated, including The Lost World and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show. Belzberg was George Folsey's assistant during filming Trading Places, and also was Blues Brothers 2000 executive music producer. She won – along with Landis – CableACE Awards for Dream on series and appeared in The Making of "Blues Brothers 2000" as herself.
With Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein was an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career which spanned fifty years, he composed music for hundreds of film and television productions...
Bernstein composed music for eight of Landis' movies: National Lampoon's Animal House ("Faber College Theme"), Blues Brothers ("God's Music"), An American Werewolf in London (about 7-minutes of score), Trading Places (most of score is variations on Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro"), Thriller ("Scary Music"), Spies Like Us, ¡Three Amigos! and Oscar (score is adaption of "The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville , which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music...
" by Rossini). Bernstein was nominated for Academy Award for Trading Places score in 1984.
With Ira Newborn
Ira Newborn
Ira Newborn is an American musician and composer, best known for his work composing motion picture soundtracks....
Newborn composed music for three of Landis' movies: the smoky jazz score for Into the Night, for which he wrote music for B.B. King (included two songs especially wrote for the film soundtrack: My Lucille
Lucille
Lucille may refer to:* Lucille * Lucille, a 1954 song by Clyde McPhatter with The Drifters* "Lucille" , 1957* "Lucille" , 1977* "Lucille" , 1985...
and Into the Night); 'wallpaper' music for "Mondo Condo" novel from Amazon Women on the Moon
Amazon Women on the Moon
Amazon Women on the Moon is a 1987 American satirical comedy film that parodies the experience of watching low-budget movies on late-night television...
and urban jazzy big-band score for Innocent Blood
Innocent Blood
Innocent Blood may refer to:*Innocent Blood , a 1980 novel by P. D. James*Innocent Blood , a 1989 album by Resurrection Band*Innocent Blood , a 1992 film by John Landis...
. He supervised and conducted music for Blues Brothers movie. Newborn's music was also used by Landis in a 1985 documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed by Jeff Okun called B.B. King "Into the Night". This film contains three music videos directed by Landis to two songs written by Newborn and one arranged by the composer. Two songs co-written by Newborn were also added to "Into the Night" LP soundtrack edition, but neither of them were used in the film.
With Robert Paynter
Robert Paynter
Robert William Paynter BSC was an English cinematographer. He entered the film industry at the age of 15 as a camera trainee with the Government Film Department...
Landis worked with cinematographer Robert Paynter on five films: An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Thriller, Into the Night and Spies Like Us. Paynter helped to create a "pop" comic book-style of American Werewolf, Thriller and Into the Night. He also made a cameo in Into the Night (as Security Guard), Spies like Us (as Dr. Gill) and Burke and Hare (as Distinguished Doctor) - his last credit before his death.
With Mac Ahlberg
Mac Ahlberg
Mac Ahlberg is a Swedish film director and cinematographer.The first feature Ahlberg directed was the Danish erotic classic I, a Woman which went on to international success, especially in the United States...
Landis worked with a Swedish cinematographer Mac Ahlberg on three feature films in early 90s : Oscar, Innocent Blood and Beverly Hills Cop III. Ahlberg was also director of photography of two television episodes from Dream on series: The First Episode and The Second Greatest Story Ever Told - both directed by Landis. Ahlberg and Landis also collaborated on Michael Jackson's Black or White music video.
Feature films
Directed by Landis:- SchlockSchlock (film)Schlock is a 1973 low-budget satire film, written, directed by and starring filmmaker John Landis.-Plot:Schlock, a prehistoric apeman who falls in love with a teenage blind beauty and terrorizes her Southern California suburb. Schlock is no ordinary simian; he possesses some very unusual skills....
(1973) (also writer) - The Kentucky Fried MovieThe Kentucky Fried MovieThe Kentucky Fried Movie is an American comedy film, released in 1977 and directed by John Landis. The film's writers were the team of David Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Jerry Zucker. This same team would go on to write and direct Airplane!, Top Secret! and the Police Squad! television series and its...
(1977) - National Lampoon's Animal HouseNational Lampoon's Animal HouseNational Lampoon's Animal House is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis. The film was a direct spin-off of National Lampoon magazine...
(1978) - The Blues BrothersThe Blues Brothers (film)The Blues Brothers is a 1980 musical comedy film directed by John Landis and starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as "Joliet" Jake and Elwood Blues, characters developed from a musical sketch on the NBC variety series Saturday Night Live. It features musical numbers by R&B and soul singers James...
(1980) (co-written with Dan AykroydDan AykroydDaniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
) - An American Werewolf in LondonAn American Werewolf in LondonAn American Werewolf in London is a 1981 British-American horror film, written and directed by John Landis. It stars David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, and Griffin Dunne....
(1981) (also writer) - Trading PlacesTrading PlacesTrading Places is a 1983 American comedy film, of the satire genre, directed by John Landis, starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy. It tells the story of an upper class commodities broker and a homeless street hustler whose lives cross paths when they are unknowingly made part of an elaborate bet...
(1983) - Into the Night (1985)
- Spies Like UsSpies Like UsSpies Like Us is a 1985 American comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, Steve Forrest, and Donna Dixon...
(1985) - Three Amigos (1986)
- Coming to AmericaComing to AmericaComing to America is a 1988 comedy film directed by John Landis. The screenplay was written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, from a story by Eddie Murphy, who also stars in the film. Murphy plays an African prince, who heads to the United States in hopes of finding a woman he can marry...
(1988) - OscarOscar (1991 film)Oscar is a 1991 American comedy film directed by John Landis. Based on the Claude Magnier stage play, it is can be considered a remake of the 1967 film of the same name, but the settings has been moved to the Depression era New York City and centers around a mob boss trying to go straight...
(1991) - Innocent BloodInnocent Blood (film)Innocent Blood is a 1992 American horror-crime film directed by John Landis. The film stars Anne Parillaud as a vampire who finds herself against a blood-sucking legion of mobsters after biting a notorious crime boss played by Robert Loggia....
(1992) - Beverly Hills Cop IIIBeverly Hills Cop IIIBeverly Hills Cop III is a 1994 action-comedy film starring Eddie Murphy and directed by John Landis, who had previously worked with Murphy on Trading Places and Coming to America...
(1994) - The StupidsThe Stupids (film)The Stupids is a 1996 American comedy/adventure film directed by John Landis. The film is based on The Stupids, characters from a series of books written by Harry Allard and illustrated by James Marshall....
(1996) - Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000 is a 1998 American musical comedy film that is a sequel to the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. Directed by John Landis, the film featured Dan Aykroyd and John Goodman, with cameos by many musicians.-Plot:...
(1998) (co-written with Dan AykroydDan AykroydDaniel Edward "Dan" Aykroyd, CM is a Canadian comedian, actor, screenwriter, musician, winemaker and ufologist. He was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live, an originator of The Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters and has had a long career as a film actor and screenwriter.-Early...
) - Susan's PlanSusan's PlanSusan's Plan is a 1998 black comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Nastassja Kinski, Dan Aykroyd, Billy Zane, Rob Schneider, Lara Flynn Boyle and Michael Biehn. The plot revolves around Susan's plan to kill her former husband and collect his life insurance....
(1998) (also writer) - Burke and HareBurke and Hare (film)Burke and Hare is a British black comedy film, loosely based on the Burke and Hare murders. Directed by John Landis, the film stars Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis as William Burke and William Hare respectively. It was Landis's first feature film release in twelve years, the last being 1998's Susan's...
(2010)
Co-directed by Landis:
- Twilight Zone: The MovieTwilight Zone: The MovieTwilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 science fiction horror film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis as a theatrical version of The Twilight Zone, a 1959 and '60s TV series created by Rod Serling. Those starring in the film are: Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Scatman Crothers,...
(1983) (also writer) - Amazon Women on the MoonAmazon Women on the MoonAmazon Women on the Moon is a 1987 American satirical comedy film that parodies the experience of watching low-budget movies on late-night television...
(1987)
Documentary films
For Video/DVD:- Coming SoonComing Soon (1982 film)Coming Soon is a 1982 documentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. Landis used trailers of old Universal horror and thriller movies to create his own contribution to his favourite movie genres. The film is narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis....
(1982) - Where Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni UpdateWhere Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni UpdateWhere Are They Now?: A Delta Alumni Update is a 2002 mockumentary film directed by John Landis for Universal. It shows the main characters from National Lampoon's Animal House 30 years on and purports that the original film had been a documentary. It was never shown in theaters, but only as part of...
(2002)
For Television:
- SlasherSlasher (film)Slasher is a 2004 documentary film directed by John Landis for the Independent Film Channel. The film was produced by Chris Kobin, Stephen Cantor, and Daniel Laikand....
(2004) - Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles ProjectMr. Warmth: The Don Rickles ProjectMr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project is a documentary about stand-up comedian Don Rickles.-Structure:The film consists of performance clips from throughout Rickles' career interspersed with recent interviews with him. A show at the Stardust Casino in Las Vegas from 2006 is featured most prominently...
(2006)
Co-directed by Landis:
- B.B. King "Into the Night"B.B. King "Into the Night"B.B. King "Into the Night" is a 1985 documentary film directed by Jeff Okun and co - directed by John Landis for the Universal and it was produced by Leslie Belzberg, John Landis and George Folsey Jr.-Plot:...
(video segments, 1985)
Music videos
Shorts films for Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
:
- ThrillerThriller (music video)Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 14-minute music video for the song of the same name released on December 2, 1983 and directed by John Landis, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jackson....
(1983) - Black or WhiteBlack or White (song)"Black or White" is a single by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. The song was released by Epic Records on November 11, 1991 as the first single from Jackson's eighth studio album, Dangerous...
(1991)
For B.B. King (from film B.B. King "Into the Night"):
- My LucilleLucille (B.B. King song)"My Lucille" is a 1985 song to the title of the 1985 Universal John Landis motion picture called Into the Night, starring Jeff Goldblum and Michelle Pfeiffer. It was written by Ira Newborn and recorded by B.B. King. The title of the song is reference to the legendary B.B. King's guitar...
- Into the Night
- In the Midnight HourIn the Midnight Hour"In the Midnight Hour" is a song originally performed by Wilson Pickett in 1965 and released on the 1966 album The Exciting Wilson Pickett. It was composed by Pickett and Steve Cropper at the historic Lorraine Motel in Memphis where Martin Luther King, Jr. would later be murdered in April 1968...
For Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
:
- Spies Like UsSpies Like Us (song)"Spies Like Us" is the title song to the 1985 Warner Bros. motion picture of the same name, starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd and Donna Dixon. It was written and performed by Paul McCartney, and was a top-ten hit in the United States in early 1986, reaching #7 on the singles chart, making it...
(1986)
Television episodes
- Disneyland's 30th Anniversary Celebration (1 episode, 1985)
- George Burns Comedy WeekGeorge Burns Comedy WeekGeorge Burns Comedy Week was a comedy anthology television series broadcast in the United States by CBS as part of its 1985 fall lineup.As he was age 89 when the show premiered, George Burns was billed as the oldest person ever to "star" in a television series...
(1 episode, "Disaster at Buzz Creek", 1985) - Disneyland's 35th Anniversary Celebration (1 episode, 1990)
- Dream OnDream On (TV series)Dream On is an American adult-themed situation comedy about single New Yorker, Martin Tupper. The show used a gimmick where old black and white clips were used to punctuate the main character's feelings or thoughts...
(9 episodes, 1990–1995) - Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV ShowHoney, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV ShowHoney, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show is an American syndicated science fiction sitcom based on the 1989 film, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. It expands upon the original film's concept of a shrinking experiment gone wrong to include a myriad of experiments gone awry...
(1 episode, 1999) - Masters of HorrorMasters of HorrorMasters of Horror is an informal social group of international film writers and directors specializing in horror movies and an American television series created by director Mick Garris for the Showtime cable network.- Origin :...
- "Deer WomanDeer Woman (Masters of Horror episode)Deer Woman is the seventh episode of the first season of Masters of Horror. It originally aired in North America on December 9, 2005.-Plot:An ancient Native American mythological creature wreaks havoc in this horror comedy....
" (2005) - "FamilyFamily (Masters of Horror episode)Family is the second episode of the second season of Masters of Horror. It originally aired in North America on November 3, 2006. The DVD was released on April 17, 2007...
" (2006)- The Great Sketch Experiment (segments, 2006)
- PsychPsychPsych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
(3 episodes, 2007, 2008) - Fear ItselfFear Itself (TV series)Fear Itself was a horror/suspense anthology television series shot in the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with some additional shooting in the city of St. Albert and the town of Devon, Alberta. It began airing on June 5, 2008 on NBC....
- "In Sickness and in Health" (2008)
- PsychovillePsychovillePsychoville is an award-winning British dark comedy television serial written by and starring The League of Gentlemen members Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. It debuted on BBC Two on 18 June 2009. Pemberton and Shearsmith each play numerous characters, with Dawn French and Jason Tompkins in...
(1 episode, 2011)
- Psychoville
Books about John Landis
- Alberto Farina (1995). "John Landis". Il Castoro. ISBN 978-88-8033-030-1
- Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan (2008). "John Landis". M Press. ISBN 1-59582-041-8
External links
- 80's Movie Rewind Profile about Director
- Daily Variety, May 24, 1994: Spotlight on John Landis — Billion Dollar Director
Interviews
About Twillight Zone accident