Wes Craven

Biography

Wes Craven was born on August 2, 1939, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Caroline (née Miller) and Paul Eugene Craven, of English, Scottish, and German descent. He was raised in a strict Baptist family and earned an undergraduate degree in English and psychology from Wheaton College in Illinois from 1957 to 1963, developing Guillain-Barré Syndrome during his senior year. After recovering, Craven went on to earn a master's degree in philosophy and writing from Johns Hopkins University. Craven taught English at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, and was a humanities professor at Clarkson College of Technology (later named Clarkson University) in Potsdam, New York. He also taught at Madrid–Waddington High School in Madrid, New York. Craven purchased a used 16 mm film camera and began making short movies during this time. His first creative job in the film industry was as a sound editor. Craven worked briefly in the pornographic film industry before pursuing filmmaking full-time. He earned his master's degree in philosophy and writing from Johns Hopkins University, then taught English and humanities at Westminster College and Clarkson College of Technology before deciding to pursue a career in cinema. Craven's first feature film as director was The Last House on the Left, released in 1972. He went on to direct cult classics such as The Hills Have Eyes (1977), The People Under the Stairs (1991), Red Eye (2005), and Music of the Heart (1999).