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Roger Corman, the renowned director dubbed the "King of the Bs," has died at the age of 98. His legacy extends far beyond his own films; he helped shape Hollywood by giving early breaks to many famous actors and directors.
Starting in 1955, Roger Corman produced and directed hundreds of films, often on shoestring budgets. His works included titles like Black Scorpion, Bucket of Blood and Bloody Mama. His keen eye for talent led him to hire aspiring filmmakers who would later become legends: Francis Ford Coppola, Ron Howard, James Cameron and Martin Scorsese. In 2009, Corman received an honorary Academy Award for his significant contributions to cinema.
Corman’s films served as launching pads for many actors. Jack Nicholson made his film debut in Corman’s 1958 film The Cry Baby Killer and continued collaborating with the director on biker, horror and action films. Other notable actors whose careers began in Corman movies include Robert De Niro, Bruce Dern and Ellen Burstyn.
Corman’s directors faced small budgets and tight schedules. Some were tasked with completing films in as little as five days. When Ron Howard, who would later win an Oscar for A Beautiful Mind, requested extra time for reshoots, Corman’s response was blunt “Ron, you can come back if you want, but nobody else will be there.”
Hollywood’s golden age in the 1970s owes much to Corman’s influence. His films paved the way for more daring content, addressing topics like sex and drugs. The Trip (1967), an explicit story about LSD written by Nicholson and starring Jane Fonda and Dennis Hopper, exemplified Corman’s willingness to push boundaries. Beyond B-movies, Corman also released prestigious foreign films in the United States, including works by Ingmar Bergman, Federico Fellini and Volker Schlöndorff.
His daughter, Catherine Corman, described him as “generous, open-hearted and kind. When asked how he wanted to be remembered, he simply said, 'I was a filmmaker, just that.”
