Wes Craven

• Birth name:

  Wesley Earl Craven

• Date of Birth:

  2 August 1939 Cleveland, Ohio, USA

• Height:

  6' 2" (1.88 m)

Wes was born in Cleveland in 1939 and raised in a Baptist family. After an unhappy childhood, he left Cleveland to study for a degree in English Literature, at Wheaton College, Illinois. But after illness, he left the school for one year before returning to study psychology. In 1963, he took a degree in writing and psychology and in 1964 he took a Masters from J. Hopkins University. While he was a humanities college teacher, Wes married Bonnie Broecker, mother of both his children, Jonathan and Jessica... more

Wes was born in Cleveland in 1939 and raised in a Baptist family. After an unhappy childhood, he left Cleveland to study for a degree in English Literature, at Wheaton College, Illinois. But after illness, he left the school for one year before returning to study psychology. In 1963, he took a degree in writing and psychology and in 1964 he took a Masters from J. Hopkins University. While he was a humanities college teacher, Wes married Bonnie Broecker, mother of both his children, Jonathan and Jessica. But after few years, they separated, and the children stayed with Bonnie.Wes left his job as a teacher, and after employment as taxi driver, he became a sound editor for a post-production company in New York. And after the co-direction of Together (1971) with Sean S. Cunningham, Wes made the horror movie The Last House on the Left (1972). The movie, released in August 1972, was a big success as was his second movie, The Hills Have Eyes (1977), winning the critic's prize at the Sitges Film Festival.Wes has gone onto win many more awards, including one for the best movie at the Avoriaz Film Festival for A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). In 1999 he directed Music of the Heart (1999), a change of direction from the horror genre for which he is known.