Allan Arkush

A graduate of Roger Corman's school for future Hollywood directors, Allan Arkush debuted as editor and co-director (with Joe Dante) of "Hollywood Boulevard" (1976), an uneven but amusing study of an actress who goes to work for a Cormanesque director. His first solo effort was the enjoyable 50s spoof "Rock 'n' Roll High School" (1979) which centered on a rebellious teen who takes on her uptight principal played out against a soundtrack by the Ramones. "Heartbeeps" (1981), on the other hand, teamed Andy Kaufman and Bernadette Peters in a subpar comedy about two robots who fall in love; Stan Winston's Oscar-nominated makeup all but overpowered the film's gentle story. After helming the inferior sequel "Caddyshack II" (1988), Arkush abandoned features to concentrate on his burgeoning small screen career. He helmed numerous episodics including "St. Elsewhere," "L.A. Law," "Moonlighting," for which he earned an Emmy nomination, "I'll Fly Away" and more recently, "Ally McBeal" and "Dawson's Creek." Arkush also steered the New Jersey-set TV-movie "Young at Heart" (CBS, 1995) and the highly-regarded Showtime movie "Elvis Meets Nixon" (1997), which was based on a true story.