From "Rainbow Connection" to "Don't You Forget About Me"

One of the first things I thought of after hearing that John Hughes died was, oddly enough, Jim Henson's death. I've been mulling over why this was (other than the obvious connection that they were both J.H.). And I think it's a symbol of teen years being over, where Henson's death was a loss of my childhood. Of course, when Hughes's seminal work came out in the 80s--Breakfast Club, 16 Candles, Pretty in Pink, Weird Science--I wasn't even 10. But those movies speak to all teenagers; those teenagers were the people I looked up to, in a way. They were who I thought teenagers were supposed to be.

The movies are endlessly quotable, but it's true what countless other people are saying--he understood teenagers. Probably the line that sticks with me the most is from 16 Candles: "That's why they're called crushes. If they were easy, they'd be called something else."

RIP, John Hughes.