This series of articles will be dedicated to champions of nerd-dom: people whose achievements in pop culture, literature, film, or simply life, have deemed them a Nerd Hero. Today, I celebrate John Hughes, master of the nerd protagonist, and an all around reminder of the good times of the 80s.

A triple threat writer, producer, and director of some of the biggest hits of the 1980s, John Hughes is perhaps most well-known for familiarizing the public with the plight of teenagers and their overabundance of angst. He created characters with hearts and souls, and yes, many times, glasses and acne. By putting vulnerable characters in the spotlight for once and not as merely comic relief, he developed movies that many people could relate to, not just the rich and beautiful.

Allow me to highlight some particularly fine achievements:

National Lampoon’s Vacation – Aside from Mr. Mom, this was one of his first successful screenplays. It is the epic tale of a nearly dysfunctional family and their fun-filled family trip to Wally World. By extension, I am awarding Anthony Michael Hall with the title of Nerd Sidekick; it was his harmless physique and metal mouth that helped secure Hughes’ place as a true Hero. This movie is the introduction of AMH as Rusty, teenaged boy extraordinaire. The squeaky-voiced, lanky-framed thespian would go on to appear in…

Sixteen Candles – While I wouldn’t necessarily call Samantha a “nerd,” she certainly does not fit in. But the scenery in this film is littered with social outcasts, from the aforementioned appearance of Farmer Ted, the panty-thieving geek, a random girl (played by Joan Cusack) in a rather inhibiting back brace, and, of course, the extremely misunderstood Long Duk Dong.

The Breakfast Club – In my opinion, this is the greatest teen flick of all time. But that’s not what is relevant here. It is truly an accurate portrayal of one young man, The Brain, as a nerd with complexities reaching far beyond chewing his pen out of nervous frustration of being trapped in detention. His heartbreaking revelation that he brought a loaded gun to school, albeit a flare, is one that feels genuine even today.

Weird Science – While I’m not particularly fond of this film, it is a shining example of what two utterly brilliant teenagers might do if given the right formula. And by formula, I mean a hot cyber chick.

Pretty In Pink – Duckie. Every nerd girl’s fantasy man. Why on earth Andie would give up that darling piece for Blain (sounds like a major appliance, not a name!) is beyond me.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Ferris is no nerd. He’s down with the sportos, the motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, waistoids, dweebies – they all adore him. They think he’s a righteous dude. The real nerd is Cameron, the wingman, the guy who always doubts the situation because, well, he has a bit of sense. But things turn out alright in the end for Cameron, because John Hughes, above all things, takes care of his nerds.

*This is not a definitive list of Mr. Hughes’ works, by far. For another excellent piece of teen cinema, might I suggest the highly under appreciated Some Kind of Wonderful, starring a young Eric Stoltz and Mary Stuart Masterson. No real nerdiness in the film; I just like it.