Edd Griles, the director of Cyndi Lauper’s 80s classic “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” music video, has passed away. The veteran director died on October 22 at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey. He was 78 years old and had been battling Alzheimer’s disease, as confirmed by his daughter, Allyson Monson, in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
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If you grew up in the 80s watching MTV, Griles no doubt impacted your life.
His music video portfolio featured a deep bench of artists, including Huey Lewis and the News with hits like “The Heart of Rock & Roll,” “If This Is It,” and “Stuck with You”; Lee Greenwood’s iconic “God Bless the USA”; Peter Wolf’s “Come as You Are”; Sheena Easton’s “Jimmy Mack”; as well as tracks from Deep Purple and Rainbow.
Griles also directed the music video to Eddie Murphy’s kinda bonkers collaboration with Rick James, “Party All the Time.”
Griles Got His Start with NHL Films
Born Edward Mori Griles on November 18, 1945, he graduated from Flushing High School in Queens before attending the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. His career commenced in 1965 at DDB Worldwide as an art director in advertising.
In 1972, he transitioned to the National Hockey League, where he served as the editor and creative director of Goal Magazine and as the executive producer of NHL Films.
Griles began his career in music videos in 1979, initially working with Blue Angel, which featured Cyndi Lauper. Following the band’s breakup, he partnered with Lauper on her groundbreaking solo single, filming “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” in the summer of 1983 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. This iconic video, which evolved into a feminist anthem, included Lauper’s mother, Catrine, and wrestler Captain Lou Albano as her parents, and it premiered on MTV that December.
The video helped the song reach No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1984 and won the first MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video. In January 2022, it also surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube.
Griles continued his partnership with Lauper by directing music videos for “Time After Time,” which earned him a nomination for VMA Director of the Year, as well as for “She Bop” and “Hole in My Heart.”
Edd Griles’ Prolific Career Beyond Music Videos
In addition to music videos, Griles was the producer of the inaugural MTV Video Music Awards in 1984, and the first ESPY Awards in 1993. He also produced the Miss Universe, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA pageants from 1996 to 1999.
In 1985, he directed the “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” episode of Shelley Duvall‘s Tall Tales & Legends, featuring Ed Begley Jr., Charles Durning, and Beverly D’Angelo. He also produced Robert Altman’s 1988 CBS adaptation of Herman Wouk’s The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and developed and produced awards shows focused on automobiles and motorcycles.
Griles is survived by his wife, Danielle, their daughter Allyson, son-in-law David, and grandchildren Max and Carly.