James McCullough Sr. (May 12, 1928 – April 6, 2012) was an American film director and producer who wrote and directed several
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
s in the 1980s.
Early life
McCullough was born in
Mansfield, Louisiana
Mansfield is a small city in, and the parish seat of, DeSoto Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,001 at the 2010 census, a decline of more than 10 percent from the 2000 tabulation. Mansfield is 77 percent African Americ ...
, and raised in
Lebanon, Missouri
Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Laclede County in Missouri. The population was 14,474 at the time of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Laclede County. The Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Laclede County.
Hi ...
.
Career
He formed Jim McCullough Productions after graduating from the
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
.
[ While a student, he appeared in CBS's live-action ''Playhouse 90 Theater''. In 1974, he co-produced '' Where the Red Fern Grows'' (1974).][ Prior to establishing his film company, McCullough had two minor acting credits in ''Teenage Monster'' (1958) and '']The Love Bug
''The Love Bug'' is a 1968 American comedy film directed by Robert Stevenson and the first in a franchise by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Buena Vista Distribution that starred an anthropomorphic pearl-white, fabric-sunroofed 19 ...
'' (1971).Charge of the Model T's
''Charge of the Model T's'' is a 1977 American comedy spy film directed by Jim McCullough Sr. with the screenplay by Jim McCullough Jr. based upon the novel of the same name by Lee Somerville. Starring John David Carson, Carol Bagdasarian, Louis ...
'' (1977), followed by the horror film ''Mountaintop Motel Massacre
''Mountaintop Motel Massacre'' (originally released under the titles ''Mountaintop Motel'' and ''Horrors at Mountaintop Motel'') is a 1983 American independent psychological slasher film written and directed by Jim McCullough Sr. and starring An ...
'' (1983), and the science-fiction film ''The Aurora Encounter
''The Aurora Encounter'' is a 1986 American Weird Western film directed by Jim McCullough Sr., written by Melody Brooke and Jim McCullough, Jr., and starring Jack Elam, Mickey Hays, Peter Brown, Carol Bagdasarian, and Dottie West. Its plot fol ...
'' (1986).
Personal life
McCullough had two children: James Jr., and Cathy, with his wife Lel.[
]
Filmography
Acting credits:
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCullough Sr.
1928 births
2012 deaths
Film directors from Louisiana
University of California, Los Angeles alumni