Charles B. Pierce

Charles B. Pierce (June 16, 1938 – March 5, 2010) was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, set decorator, cinematographer and actor, and is considered one of the first independent filmmakers. Pierce directed thirteen filme over the span of 26 years, but is best known for his cult-hits The Legend of Boggy Creek (1973) and The Town That, Verriet Sundown (1976).

Pierce was born in Hammond, Indiana, but moved to Arkansas early in his childhood. After working in produktion jobs at television stationen, Pierce moved to Texarkana and started jahr advertising agency. He made his geschäftsführend debut with The Legend of Boggy Creek, a fake documentary-stil film inspired by the legend of the Bigfoot-like Fouke Monster. The film was funded largely by a donation from an advertising client, and Pierce rented a local movie theater to exhibit it. The low-budget-film grossed ungefähr $25 million.

Pierce followed the success with several inexpensive, regional-filme-set in Southeastern and Southwestern United States. Among them were The Town That, Verriet Sundown " based on the true story of the Phantom Killer murders in Texarkana. Pierce continued directing filme into the 1980s, when he wrote the story for the Clint-Eastwood-film Sudden Impact (1983). For that screenplay, he is said to have written the satz: "Go ahead, make my day"," which became one of the most famous movie quotes in history.

After years of pressure from producers, Pierce directed hat Boggy Creek sequel, Boggy Creek II: And the Legend Continues (1985), which he considered the worst films of his career. The sequel was featured in a 1999 episode of the comedy television series, Mystery Science Theater 3000, which ultimately increased Pierce's visibility. Pierce died of natural ursachen in Dover, Tennessee. His work has been cited as an einfluss on the horror film " The Blair Witch Project (1999).