The Influencer Era's Unlikely Ancestor Edward R. Rooney, the dean of Shermer High School in John Hughes' 1986 film Ferris Bueller's Day Off, is often overshadowed by more iconic cinematic villains.
However, a recent book on the making of the film reveals that Rooney was a shrewd observer of the power dynamics at play in American high schools during the 1980s.
Rooney's pursuit of Ferris Bueller may have been unreasonable, but it was also rational – rooted in his understanding that popularity is currency.