John Hughes: The Arizona Connection You Probably Never Knew

Quick, think of your favorite John Hughes movie. Do you have more than one? The iconic director captured the essence of what it meant to be a teenager fighting for a sense of place in a world full of adults who didn't have the time, focus, or memory to understand the angst.

I lived in a suburb of Chicago when I was young, so Hughes' movies always had some added nostalgia for me. Most of us associate John Hughes with Chicago. The suburbs, the high‑school hallways, and the unmistakable 1980s energy that shaped films like The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

But did you know that John Hughes has a connection to Arizona? Tucked into his biography is a lesser‑known chapter: Hughes spent part of his college years at Arizona State University. Now I'm an even bigger fan! One of Hollywood’s most influential storytellers spent some time attending one of Arizona's biggest state colleges, ASU!

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John Hughes's Link to Arizona

I was surprised and delighted to learn that director John Hughes attended the University of Arizona before leaving to pursue writing full‑time, and long before he directed some of the most beloved films of the late 20th century.

Related: 7 Famous Arizonans: The Last One Surprised Me!

Hughes was only in Arizona for a short time, but his films and deep understanding of adolescece has touched generations of teens.

READ: 5 Things That Will Make You Love Arizona

John Hughes Filmography

Hughes' filmography captures the late 1980s and 90s in a cinematic time capsule: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Uncle Buck, and Home Alone, among many others.

These movies shaped the tone of what it was like to be an American teen, and that tonecontinues to resonate with kids and families to this day.

I've watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Uncle Buck more times than I could possibly count, and I have some great memories of watching The Breakfast Club with my daughter. Which movies are your favorites?

Listen to the man himself, director John Hughes, as he talks about how he shifted from directing kids to teens in this interview on YouTube by User Andrew Montonera.