When it comes to teen films, writer/director John Hughes and actress Molly Ringwald reigned supreme throughout the '80s, and weirdly enough, they share the same birthday -- February 18th, 1950 for him and 1968 for her. His coming-of-age films dominated the metroplex, and she was the star in most of them: Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985), Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986), Pretty in Pink (1986), Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), just to name a few of his blockbuster hits.
Hughes was also a huge new wave fan, introducing artists like The Smiths and Echo & the Bunnymen to a wider audience via his soundtracks. He even turned to Ringwald for ideas: her Sixteen Candles character Sam Baker had "The Rave-Ups" scrawled on her 3-ring binder, and the band later performed in the movie Pretty In Pink. When Ringwald wanted to move on to more "mature" roles, it created a rift that the two didn't repair for nearly 20 years. Sadly, Hughes passed away in 2009, but he leaves behind a legacy in film and music. In honor of their birthdays, KEXP has compiled a roundup of songs that the two popularized through their film collaborations (and a few without Molly) -- see if you can listen without seeing the scene in your head, because we bet you can't.
Photos and review by Alan Lawrence
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