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Rock ‘n’ Roll High School is a 1979 musical comedy film produced by Roger Corman, directed by Allan Arkush, and featuring the American punk rock band The Ramones. The film also starred P.J. Soles as the ultimate Ramones fan who dreams of meeting and giving them a song she wrote. She and her best friend attempt to go so see the band in concert but are opposed by Principal Togar (played by Mary Woronov) and must find a way to attend.

The film was originally called Girls Gym, then it was changed to Disco High by Corman, who wanted to capitalize on the disco craze, but was persuaded otherwise by Arkush. Originally, the filmmakers wanted Devo and then Van Halen before approaching the Ramones. They finally settled on Rock ‘n’ Roll High School after Arkush convinced Corman that the Ramones were the perfect band for the film. Guitarist Johnny Ramone was a huge fan of Corman’s films and when he heard that the producer was behind the film, he agreed to do it.

Shot in only 15 days, Rock ‘n’ Roll High School embodies the essence of the punk rock music that made the Ramones famous. Corman cannily marketed it as a Midnight Movie in the hopes that the same people who flocked religiously to The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) would come to see the Ramones. It was a modest commercial success upon its initial release. Repeated midnight screenings, coupled with steady appearances on TV, have helped the film endure over the years so that is has become a beloved cult classic.

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Samuel Fuller was an American film director, screenwriter and producer born in Worcester, Massachusetts. At the age of 12, he began working in journalism with his first newspaper job as a copyboy. He became a crime reporter in New York City at age 17, working for the New York Evening Graphic. Fuller wrote pulp novels and screenplays from the mid-1930s onwards.

During World War II, he joined the United States Army infantry and was assigned to the 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. Fuller saw heavy fighting and was involved in landings in Africa, Sicily, and Normandy. For his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star, the Silver Star, and the Purple Heart. He used his wartime experiences as material in his films. Hats Off (1936) marked Fuller’s first credit as screenwriter. He accomplished the move to direction by being approached to write three films and offered to do so if he would be allowed to direct them, with no extra fee.

His first film was I Shot Jesse James (1949). Fuller’s third film, The Steel Helmet, established him as a major force. It was one of the first films about the Korean War. He was sought after by the major studios to join them and signed a contract with 20th Century Fox for seven films. Pickup on South Street (1953) remains his most well-known film. Fuller’s work throughout the 1950s and early 1960s followed a basic format: lower-budget genre films that explored controversial topics.

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Peter Cushing was an English actor known for his many appearances in Hammer films, in which he played Baron Frankenstein and Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite his close friend Christopher Lee. Cushing was born in Kenley, Surrey, England. After working in repertory theater, he left for Hollywood in 1939, but returned in 1941 after roles in several films.

In the 1950s, he worked in television, most notably as Winston Smith in BBC’s 1954 adaptation of the George Orwell novel, 1984. His first appearance in his two most famous roles were in Terrence Fisher’s films The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958). Cushing will always be associated with playing Victor Frankenstein and Van Helsing in a long string of horror films produced by Hammer Horror. These provided him with 20 years of steady employment. Cushing was often cast opposite the actor Christopher Lee, with whom he became best friends.

In the mid-1960s, he played the eccentric Dr. Who in two films based on the TV series Doctor Who. Cushing also played Sherlock Holmes many times, starting with Hammer’s The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959). In 1976, he was cast in Star Wars and appeared as one of his now most recognized characters, Grand Moff Tarkin despite having originally been considered for the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi. After Star Wars, Cushing continued appearing in films and TV sporadically, as his health allowed. He died in 1994 from cancer in a Canterbury hospice.

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The Transformers: The Movie is a 1986 animated feature film based on the animated television series of the same name. The film was directed by Nelson Shin, who produced the original Transformers TV series, and features the voices of Eric Idle, Judd Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, and Robert Stack. It was also the final role for both Orson Welles and Scatman Crothers.

The story takes place in 2005, 20 years after the events of the TV series’ second season and serves to bridge into the third season. Set to hard-driving metal music soundtrack, Transformers: The Movie has a decidedly darker tone than the TV series and Decepticon villains that are more menacing, killing without hesitation. The film features several large-scale battles in which a handful of major characters meet their end. One of the intentions of the film was to rid the Transformers cartoon universe of the majority of characters from season 1 and 2. The 1984/1985 toy line was discontinued and Hasbro wanted to get rid of them to make room for new characters and toys.

After the writers of the G.I. Joe film got permission to kill of Duke, the main hero of that series, Hasbro insisted that the writers of Transformers: The Movie adopt the same fate for Optimus Prime, the main hero of that series. However, his death sparked much controversy and incurred a passionate backlash from fans. The film was a huge flop at the box office but went on to develop a cult following. It was also met with largely negative reviews with critics panning the animation style and Optimus Prime’s death coming as a shock to audiences.

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