Stuart Gordon, a cult classic horror director, has died at the age of 72:
I believe I've seen all of Stuart Gordon's feature films, except for 'The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit' (1998), which I hope to see one day. He was, for me, probably the greatest American horror filmmaker to emerge during the 1980s home video boom, though he was already one of the most prominent theatre directors of his generation. As such, Gordon really belonged to the generation of Wes Craven, George Romero, Tobe Hooper, Joe Dante, John Carpenter and John Landis, something that shone through every morsel of the adventurous, rule-breaking spirit of his work.
These men weren't just his contemporaries, either - they were all rivals at one time or another, pushing each other on - and they were friends; friends who encouraged, appreciated and assisted (where necessary) in the creation of each other's work.
"Stuart was a longtime attendee at the Masters of Horror dinners in Hollywood, a gathering of (usually out-of-work) genre filmmakers, which allowed me to recruit him as a valued Trailers from Hell Grindhouse Guru. His taste in commentaries was eclectic, running from the expected Cannibal Holocaust to the unexpected Calamity Jane!"
- Joe Dante, Talkhouse Film
"Stuart Gordon was a master of his (Love)craft, whose mad movies became part of my childhood currency, passed from friend to friend with an awed “You *have* to see this!” He even made it into my creative DNA: there is no Tusk the movie without him."
- Kevin Smith
Tobe Hooper, Wes Craven, Stuart Gordon, Rob Zombie & Eli Roth
Gordon co-founded the Organic Theater Company in 1969 in Madison, Wisconsin (he studied theatre at the University of Wisconsin-Madison), with writer and performer Carolyn Purdy. Gordon was the company's artistic director and a contributing playwright. They set up shop back home in Chicago, Illinois, where the company recruited actors like Dennis Franz, Joe Mantegna and Meshach Taylor. Their first production in Chicago was 'The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit' by Ray Bradbury.
"We are deeply saddened here at Shadow Theatre HQ by the news of Stuart Gordon’s passing. Stu was the founder of Chicago’s Screw Theater who staged a notorious 1968 anti-war adaptation of Peter Pan (inspired by the Democratic National Convention riots of that year) that got him and his then-girlfriend (and later wife) Carolyn Purdy arrested on obscenity charges. The case received national attention before the charges were finally quashed."
- Richard Stanley, Talkhouse Film
"At the first “Masters of Horror” dinner, Stuart said something which resonated with every horror filmmaker: "Horror films are a rehearsal for our own deaths." In eight words he answered why we make them and watch them. Stuart, you made the finest. RIP, my friend."
- Don Coscarelli
Stuart Gordon, Larry Cohen, John Carpenter, Don Coscarelli, Bob Burns, Guillermo Del Toro, John Landis, William Malone, Tobe Hooper & Mick Garris
In the mid-1970s, the Organic Theater Company launched the premiere of David Mamet's play 'Sexual Perversity In Chicago'. Gordon and Mamet respected each other's abilities and would collaborate further. Around this time, the Steppenwolf Theater Company was established in Chicago. Both theatre companies had interactions with talents being fostered at Second City, said to be the first ongoing improvisational comedy troupe to be continuously home-based in Chicago.
Without a shadow of a doubt, Stuart Gordon will be remembered as one of Chicago's favourite sons, even if it's the creepy step-son with an oedipal complex who lurked in the basement.
Upon entering the world of film, Gordon signed on with one of my two film production heroes, Charles Band, becoming one of Band's greatest in-house directors in the process (his associates pretty much all held this view, and Gordon sensibly retained a degree of separation by developing projects with producer and filmmaker Brian Yuzna). To Band's credit, it was a tremendous talent pool that he invited Gordon to join, arguably the deepest and most diverse in independent American horror cinema to emerge since Roger Corman's rolling companies of the 1960s & 1970s.
"Stuart Gordon was a god to me for almost 30 years before I ever met him. Like many of his fans, I first discovered his talent via his debut feature Re-Animator, a movie I still consider to be one of the 10 greatest horror films of all time. When it was released in 1985, I was a rabid 13-year-old movie nut who pored over Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael’s reviews like a rabbi studying the Talmud. They were sacred texts, and I vividly remember both Ebert and Kael championing Re-Animator in reviews that made me salivate for the film. (The fact that it had been released unrated because no cuts imaginable could make it palatable to the MPAA made it even more appealing.) When I finally saw it after what seemed like an eternity of waiting (it was probably about two weeks), the most shocking thing about Re-Animator wasn’t its explicit violence or sex but the fact that it exceeded my stratospherically high expectations; it was smart, hilarious, scary, and as philosophical as it was visceral – the work of a true visionary.
I don’t have the space here to go through my ongoing relationship with Stuart’s films, but I’ll just say that after Re-Animator I looked forward to every new Stuart Gordon release with the same breathless anticipation that met each movie by Scorsese, Eastwood, Bigelow, Demme, and the other masters in my personal pantheon. In 2015, I finally had the opportunity to interview Stuart for Paste Magazine, and the experience proved that whoever said you should never meet your heroes was an idiot. Stuart was every bit as intelligent and funny as one of his films, but with a soft side that might surprise some. (It didn’t really surprise me, since in my experience meeting filmmakers like Wes Craven and Sam Raimi I’ve often found that directors who make the most savage movies can be the nicest, most well-adjusted human beings on the planet.)
We struck up a friendship via email and then in person, and I found out what a special man Stuart was. He seemed genuinely interested in me and my work, taking the time to watch my movie The Trouble with the Truth and giving me advice about where to go next. Making films is such a brutal and difficult business that many people who do it are too busy treading water in their own careers to help others, but Stuart always had time for me and my questions, no matter how dumb or frivolous. When you finished a conversation with Stuart, you always felt better about yourself and the world than when the conversation began; he was a man of faith and empathy, and I think that’s the key to the greatness of his films – they were dark movies by a pure soul, giving them a complexity and resonance that makes them endlessly rewarding on repeat viewings. I felt honored and flattered by Stuart’s mentorship and generosity, and in the hours since he passed away I’ve discovered that he had a similar relationship with dozens of other filmmakers – I thought I was special, but it turns out Stuart was the one who was special."
- Jim Hemphill, Talkhouse Film
"Dear Friends. Everyone in our Full Moon family is deeply saddened by the passing of Stuart Gordon. Our history with Stuart goes back over 35 years, when he and Brian Yuzna came into the Empire Entertainment office and found a home for RE-ANIMATOR.
Films like FROM BEYOND, DOLLS, ROBOT JOX, PIT & THE PENDULUM and CASTLE FREAK followed and throughout all of them, Stuart and I remained good friends. He and my Dad had an especially great relationship and hung out until my dad left us in 2002.
Beyond his talent, Stuart was a super sweet man: if you had met him on the street you would never imagine that he was the creator of such compelling, yet depraved work. Lovers of our genre have lost a unique kindred spirit and we will miss him very much."
- Charles Band
"To know Stuart Gordon was to love Stuart Gordon. One of the true Masters of Horror and a wonderful, wonderful man. He was brilliant, funny, and always at the top of his game. So hard to say goodbye. We love you and miss you, Stuart."
- Mick Garris
George Romero, Larry Cohen, Tobe Hooper, John Landis, Mick Garris, Don Coscarelli, Joe Dante & Stuart Gordon
As of now, I'm shocked and saddened by his passing. Another of the pivotal underground figures to emerge from the counterculture movement has shifted from this mortal coil; a good man, who became a father figure to many. He was one of experimental theatre and horror cinema's true legends, and my thoughts are with his friends and family during this difficult time.
"I had known Stuart Gordon through his work since Re-Animator came out. I was always charmed by that film’s wry sensibility and the theatrical panache with which he pulled off the special effects. It instantly felt like a new voice in horror had arrived. I remember sitting with my future wife watching From Beyond a few years later. In my memory, we were in some sleazy theater on 42nd Street, but that’s just the spell cast by the movie. And I remember watching Stuck, from 2007, and wishing he had gotten to work more."
- Larry Fessenden, Talkhouse Film
"RIP to a legend of theater as well as horror cinema, and a really nice guy. My impression was that no matter the situation, he always tried to take care of everyone."
- Don Mancini
Thank you, Mr. Gordon ... see you on the other side ...
"The film world lost a master and many lost a dear friend. As a filmmaker he was bold, brash and brave. He was a true visionary. As a friend he was kind, gentle and always encouraging. He was like a brother to me. I am flooded with golden memories of Stu. Sympathies to his family."
- Jeffrey Combs
"An enormous talent, vibrant & boundary breaking, his work was in a class by itself. He created countless moments on film which were at once, funny, scary, daring & smart. He gave me my career. I lost a dear friend. I’m heartbroken. No words can do him justice. RIP Stuart Gordon."
- Barbara Crampton
"RIP #StuartGordon. Brilliant Artist and sweet man! Let’s reanimate him!"
- Lloyd Kaufman
William H. Macy & Stuart Gordon
Stuart Gordon & Bai Ling
Stuart Gordon & Mena Suvari
'Something In This City Changes People' - Chicago
R.I.P.