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Joe Camp | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph Shelton Camp Jr. April 20, 1939 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | March 15, 2024 (aged 84) Bell Buckle, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
| Spouses | Andrea Carolyn Camp
(m. 1960; died 1997)Kathleen Camp (m. 2001) |
| Children | 1 |
Joseph Shelton Camp Jr. (April 20, 1939 – March 15, 2024) was an American film director and writer who is best known as the creator and director of the Benji films,[1][2][3] as well as Hawmps![4] and The Double McGuffin.[5] He made over $600 million in gross income and was one of the most successful independent filmmakers in history.
He studied advertising and marketing at the University of Mississippi from 1957–1961, and married his college sweetheart, Carolyn Hopkins, in 1960. He was with her until her death from heart disease in 1997. He married a second and final time to Kathleen Camp in 2001, whom he was with until his death in 2024.
Camp was also known for his work with horses. He owned and trained five horses at his Valley Center Ranch where he lived in Valley Center, California. He wrote two books about his experiences with horses, The Soul of a Horse: Life Lessons from the Herd and Born Wild: The Journey Continues.[6] He wrote eleven more books including three novels, a dog training book, an autobiography, and children's books.
Camp owned a production company with his first wife, Mulberry Square Productions; he had a minority interest in the film studio, Filmdallas Pictures.[7] He lived in Bell Buckle, Tennessee, with his second wife until he died on March 15, 2024, at the age of 84.[1]
- ^ a b Barnes, Mike (March 15, 2024). "Joe Camp, Writer and Director of the 'Benji' Movies, Dies at 84". Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 15, 2024. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ Deb, Sopan (March 15, 2024). "Joe Camp, Filmmaker Behind 'Benji' Franchise, Dies at 84". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 15, 2024. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
- ^ "Joe Camp". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2008. Archived from the original on June 21, 2008.
- ^ Eder, Richard (May 28, 1976). "Hawmps (1976) Screen: Camels In the Old West". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 6, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- ^ Hal Erickson (2014). "The Double McGuffin". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 5, 2014.
- ^ "Joe Camp film writer-director, author, speaker, animal rescue advocate". joecamp.info. Archived from the original on July 31, 2023. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ "Embark, New Texas Prod. Co. To Debut With Pair of Pictures". Variety. March 19, 1986. p. 25.