Tobe Hooper
| Tobe Hooper | |
|---|---|
| Born | William Tobe Hooper January 25, 1943 Austin, Texas, US |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Film director, screenwriter, producer |
| Years active | 1969-present |
| Known for | The Texas Chain Saw Massacre Salem's Lot Poltergeist |
William Tobe Hooper (born January 25, 1943) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work in the horror film genre. His works include the The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974); its sequel, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986); the Emmy-nominated, Stephen King film adaptation, Salem's Lot (1979); and the Steven Spielberg-produced, Academy Award-nominated paranormal movie classic, Poltergeist (1982).
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Early life and work [edit]
Hooper was born in Austin, Texas, the son of Lois Belle (née Crosby) and Norman William Ray Hooper,[1] who owned a theater in San Angelo. He first became interested in filmmaking when he used his father's 8 mm camera at age 9. Hooper took Radio-Television-Film classes at the University of Texas at Austin and studied drama in Dallas under Baruch Lumet.[2]
Hooper spent the 1960s as a college professor and documentary cameraman. His short film The Heisters (1965) was invited to be entered in the short subject category for an Oscar, but was not finished in time for the competition that year.[2] In 1969, Hooper wrote, directed and edited Eggshells, a film about a group of hippies in a commune house having to deal with the presence of a possible supernatural force. Eggshells did not receive a theatrical release, but did win Hooper several awards, including the Atlanta Film Festival Award, when the film played around different colleges. Hooper had shot over 60 documentaries, commercials, and short films before making The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. His intention was to go to Hollywood to become a feature film director.
Recent work [edit]
In 2002, Hooper directed the pilot for the miniseries Taken. The same year, it was announced that New Line Cinema and Michael Bay would be remaking Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Hooper served as producer on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), which became a box office success, grossing $120 million worldwide. In early 2003, Hooper himself remade a 1970s film entitled The Toolbox Murders (1978). Toolbox Murders (2004) received some of Hooper's best critical reviews in years.
From 2005-2006, Showtime aired the Mick Garris-produced series, Masters of Horror. Hooper directed two episodes, Dance of the Dead (2005) and The Damned Thing (2006). The series allowed Hooper and other directors "final cut" approval, which meant freedom from interference by producers.
In 2004, Hooper started his own film production company, called T.H. Nightmares. So far, no films have emerged under this banner. In late 2006, Hooper talked about possibly producing a TV series, Texas Chainsaw Chronicles. No further details about the series have emerged. In 2007, Hooper was attached to two films, Training Ground and Tequila Joe. Similarly, no details have emerged on these two films since late 2007.
During the summer of 2008, Kim Henkel (co-writer of the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and writer-director of the fourth installment, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)), announced he would write and direct a new Chainsaw film set in the present day, however, nothing is yet known regarding Hooper's involvement in this possible remake.[citation needed] In October 2009, Twisted Pictures, the company behind the Saw films, bought the rights to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and made a new Chainsaw film in 3D, Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013).[3]
Hooper had also planned on adapting Stephen King's 2002 novel From a Buick 8. Mick Garris, executive producer of Masters of Horror, was attached as a producer on the film. However, funding could not be produced, so the film has been put on hold.
Hooper began shooting a paranormal thriller, called Djinn in April 2011. The film is set in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, and will be released in 2013.
In June 2009, it was revealed that Hooper would be writing a horror novel, due to be released in Summer 2011. Midnight Movie, which chronicles the bizarre aftermath of a screening of Hooper's student film Destiny Express, was published by Three Rivers Press in July 2011.
In 2010, writer and actor Mark Gatiss interviewed the director for his BBC documentary series A History of Horror; Hooper appeared in the third episode.[4]
Filmography [edit]
Film [edit]
- Eggshells (1969)
- The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
- Eaten Alive (1977)
- The Funhouse (1981)
- Poltergeist (1982)
- Lifeforce (1985)
- Invaders from Mars (1986)
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
- Spontaneous Combustion (1990)
- I'm Dangerous Tonight (1990)
- Night Terrors (1993)
- Body Bags (1993)
- The Mangler (1995)
- The Apartment Complex (1999)
- Crocodile (2000)
- Toolbox Murders (2004)
- Mortuary (2006)
- Destiny Express Redux (2009)
- Djinn (2013)
Television [edit]
- Salem's Lot (1979)
- Haunted Lives: True Ghost Stories (1991)
- Tales from the Crypt: Dead Wait (1991)
- Nowhere Man (1995)
- Dark Skies (1997)
- Dance of the Dead (Masters of Horror) (2005)
- The Damned Thing (Masters of Horror) (2006)
Bibliography [edit]
- Midnight Movie (2011)
References [edit]
- ^ Tobe Hooper Biography (1943-)
- ^ a b Alison Macor. Chainsaws, Slackers, and Spy Kids 30 Years of Filmmaking in Austin, Texas University of Texas Press: Austin, 2010.
- ^ Billington, Alex. "Might Tobe Hooper Return for More Texas Chainsaw Massacre?".
- ^ "A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss - Q&A with Mark Gatiss". BBC. Retrieved November 12, 2010.
External links [edit]
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