You were a special, directorial force behind action and exploitation movies, the nephew of Van Heflin, son of composer Sol Kaplan and a compatriot of Roger Corman.
Your titles insinuate your irreverent and often no-nonsense brand of entertainment: Truck Turner, White Line Fever, Over the Edge, Unlawful Entry, 11th Victim, Brother's Shadow, The Gentleman Bandit 1981, Girls of the White Orchid (aka Death Ride to Osaka), Bad Girls, Reform School Girl 1994, The Student Teachers, Student Nurses, Night Call Nurses, In Cold Blood 1996, The Slams, Breakdown Palace, Mr. Billion, Immediate Family, Picture Windows, Heart Like a Wheel, Project X 1987, Love Field and what many consider your crowning achievement, The Accused.
You applied your directorial skills to television series, too, including ER, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Without a Trace, Brothers and Sisters, Crossing Jordan and Fallen Angels. To sweeten the aesthetic queue, you also directed several, nifty videos for John Cougar Mellencamp, Rod Stewart and Barbra Streisand.
On the whole, Mr. Kaplan, you were a sterling filmmaker, never afraid to push the provocative buttons or make one ruminate or even laugh. In truth, you were far superior to most who seize the filmmaking reins today, but then that's why your contributions (unlike theirs) will continue to be rekindled, respected and adored.
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