Roger Corman, legendary director and producer of B-movies, dies at 98

Roger Corman, the prolific director and producer of B-movies who gave numerous filmmakers and actors their start, has died. He was 98.

Corman's death was confirmed in a statement shared early Saturday on his official Instagram account, which said he died Thursday at his home in Santa Monica, California, surrounded by his family.

"He was generous, open-hearted and kind to all those who knew him," the statement read, which was signed by his wife Julie Corman and daughters Catherine and Mary. "A devoted and selfless father, he was deeply loved by his daughters. His films were revolutionary and iconoclastic, and captured the spirit of an age. When asked how he would like to be remembered, he said, 'I was a filmmaker, just that.' "

Corman was known for finishing low-budget films cheaply and quickly, sometimes directing as many as eight in a single year, beginning in the 1950s. Perhaps his best known work was 1960's "The Little Shop of Horrors," a cult film that was later turned into a stage musical that was adapted back into a 1986 movie starring Rick Moranis.

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Corman's other movies included "Machine-Gun Kelly" and "Attack of the Crab Monsters," and he directed multiple films based on the work of Edgar Allan Poe, including "The Pit and the Pendulum." In 1970, he co-founded the independent production company New World Pictures.

A number of Hollywood directors worked for Corman early in their careers and have described him as a mentor, such as Francis Ford Coppola, whose early film "Dementia 13" was produced by Corman, and James Cameron, who worked on Corman's "Battle Beyond the Stars." Robert De Niro and Jack Nicholson are among the actors who starred in Corman movies as they were starting out.

Corman received an honorary Academy Award in 2009, and directors Quentin Tarantino and Jonathan Demme paid tribute during the ceremony. Tarantino described Corman as a "producer and director unlike any in Hollywood's history," while Demme praised his "mind-boggling ability to create great success through impossibly low budgets and tight schedules" and noted he was "one of the first American independent filmmakers to create work entirely on his own terms and his own turf."

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In his acceptance speech, Corman reflected, "To succeed in this world, you have to take chances."

"It's very easy for a major studio or somebody else to repeat their successes, to spend vast amounts of money on remakes, on special effects-driven tentpole franchise films," he said. "But I believe the finest films being done today are done by the original, innovative filmmakers who have the courage to take a chance and to gamble."

"Halloween" director John Carpenter remembered Corman on X as "one of the most influential movie directors in my life," as well as a "great friend," adding, "He shaped my childhood with science fiction movies and Edgar (Allan) Poe epics. I'll miss you, Roger."

Ron Howard, whose directorial debut "Grand Theft Auto" was produced by Corman, also remembered him on X as a "great movie maker and mentor."

"When I was 23 he gave me my 1st shot at directing," Howard said. "He launched many careers & quietly lead our industry in important ways. He remained sharp, interested and active even at 98. Grateful to have known him."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Roger Corman dead: 'Little Shop of Horrors' filmmaker dies at 98