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Who
was Colin Higgins?
 Colin
Higgins was one of Hollywood's most beloved directors and screenwriters.
Born in the South Pacific island of New Caledonia to an Australian
mother and American father, Higgins moved with his family to Redwood,
CA from Sydney in the fifties. After attending Stanford University
for a year, he dropped out to hitchhike across the country. His
travels took him first to the Actors Studio in New York and then
to Europe where he volunteered for the Army as a sports reporter
for The Stars and Stripes. He eventually returned to Stanford
to receive his degree in English and later attended film school
at UCLA. During his final year, he wrote the screenplay for Harold
and Maude.
While
today it is considered to be one of the great Hollywood movies,
Harold and Maude was a huge flop when it opened during the
Christmas season of 1971 with little fanfare and advertising. The
unusual romance between a young man and a much older woman, starring
Bud Cort and Ruth Gordon, struck a chord with audiences and soon
became a cult favorite around the world. His stage version ran in
Paris for seven years.
Following
the success of Harold and Maude, Higgins went on to write
and direct some of the most successful films of the 70s and 80s,
working with some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Jane
Fonda, Goldie Hawn, Richard Pryor and Burt Reynolds. His critically
acclaimed films include Silver Streak, Foul Play, Nine to Five
and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.
In
1986, Higgins established a foundation in his name to further his
humanitarian concerns. That year, he also completed a television
mini-series based on Shirley MacLaine's book Out on a Limb,
which turned out to be his last film project. Higgins died of AIDS
in 1988.
 The
films of Colin Higgins...
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