Boggy Creek Director In Hall of Fame
Posted by: Loren Coleman on September 11th, 2010
The Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame at 6:30 p.m. on September 9, 2010, at the Governor’s Mansion, inducted a pioneer in cryptofiction film history into its hallowed membership. Richard Davies, executive director of the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, was the master of ceremonies.
Davies gave a posthumous award to the late film director Charles Pierce (The Legend of Boggy Creek), which was accepted by producer Harry Thomason. Others who have received the award in the past include Billy Bob Thornton and Johnny Cash.
Lyle Blackburn made these comments on the award:
“Pierce made his directorial debut with The Legend of Boggy Creek after putting aside a career in advertising to pursue film making. Though The Legend of Boggy Creek ended up being his most widely known achievement due to its classic scares, monetary success, and subsequent influence on future filmmakers, he did direct other films such as The Town That Dreaded Sundown, Bootleggers, Winterhawk, Grayeagle, The Norseman, The Evictors, and eventually the less-than-classic sequel, Boggy Creek II. In addition, Pierce’s credits included the story for the 1983 hit, Sudden Impact, starring Clint Eastwood, and set decoration on several movies including The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1976.
“A resident of Texarkana in the early 1970’s, Pierce was drawn to the sensational newspaper reports describing a hairy, Bigfoot-like creature which haunted the creeks near Fouke, Arkansas. Pierce, wanting to capitalize on the frenzy, borrowed some money, got a camera, and set out to make a movie based on the alleged beast. The result was of course, The Legend of Boggy Creek, which was produced for a mere $160,000 and eventually went on to make $25 million as it was a huge hit in theaters and drive-ins. The movie still enjoys classic horror film status, now on DVD. The movie was also significant for its influence on later film directors. Daniel Myrick, one of the directors of Blair Witch Project, said in a 1999 interview with The Tulsa World: ‘We just wanted to make a movie that tapped into the primal fear generated by the fact-or-fiction format, like Legend of Boggy Creek.'”
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
