Was there anyone cooler than Ferris Bueller was in 1986? Since this writer was only a year old (let’s face it – babies can only do so much), I’m gonna have to say no. Who else could convince a whole town that he was deathly ill so he could take a couple of friends on the joyride of a lifetime? What’s even better is that twenty-six years after its release (what a number), it’s still a teen classic that everyone can quote and every teenager wants to emulate. Let’s take out the 1961 Ferrari GT250 and see where some of our favorite cast members are now!

Matthew Broderick -

Obviously, as the star of the film, Matthew stole the show and out of the main characters of the film he’s done the best career-wise.  Since being in FBDO, he has worked consistently starring in films such as Glory (1989), The Cable Guy (1996) and Godzilla (1998). He’s also done a lot of voice over work for cartoons, most notably the Disney classic The Lion King (1995).  But perhaps what he is best known for these days is being Sarah Jessica Parker’s husband.  No, no, no – it’s his Broadway work!  He’s reinvented himself from a slick, teenage heartthrob to a well-respected stage actor in award-winning shows like The Producers and The Odd Couple. If you’re really interested in seeing him now, he’s starring in the musical Nice Work if You Can Get It starting its run at the end of April over at The Schubert (yeah, I’m a New Yorker.  I can call it The Schubert).

Alan Ruck -

Personally, I can easily say Cameron was my favorite character. There was something about those blue eyes and completely neurotic personality that completely did it for me. Since starring in FBDO, he has worked consistently in television starring in shows like Mad About You, Spin City and Greek. He’s also done TONS of guest spots on shows like Scrubs, CSI, Medium and The Ghost Whisperer and starred in a couple of big budget films like Cheaper By The Dozen (2003) and I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009). See?  Cameron did alright for himself. Isn’t that good to know?

Jennifer Grey -

At the time FBDO came out, Jennifer Grey was arguably the most famous person on this cast thanks to her role in the classic 1984 film Red Dawn. A year after making FBDO she starred the role she is still probably best known for today:  Dirty Dancing‘s Frances “Baby” Houseman (1987). Nobody puts baby in a corner…until she got a nose job and effectively derailed her burgeoning career completely.  Unlike her on-screen brother, Jennifer hasn’t done as well, starring in a string of forgettable TV pilots and straight-to-video movies, while seizing small guest spots on shows like Friends and The New Adventures of Old Christine. What is Jennifer best known for these days? Her mirror-ball win on the 2010 season of the ABC competition show Dancing With The Stars.

Mia Sara -

I would like to start this off by saying something nice about Miss Sara, because as Sloane she was adorable. She played Ferris’ girlfriend fantastically and fit into the dynamic of Ferris and Cameron perfectly, making the trio wonderfully complete. I wanted to start this off glowingly because, unfortunately, Mia’s career has not done too well since then. While she has worked consistently, the only other notable thing I can find worth mentioning is the 1994 Jean-Claude Van Damme stinker Timecop. Oh! And a guest spot on CSI: New York! I’m trying to find the positives here, people.

Jeffery Jones - 

Jeffery Jones is probably one of the best character actors of my generation. Don’t you dare scoff at that line right there. Don’t. You. Dare. Along with FBDO, I can think of TONS of other movies he’s been in: Sleepy Hollow (1999), Amadeus (1984), The Crucible (1996), The Devil’s Advocate (1997), Beetlejuice (1988), Ed Wood (1994)…I could go on and on. Literally. I could fill this entire article with the films Jeffery Jones has been in. ALSO, he had a starring role on the fantastic-yet-cancelled HBO drama Deadwood. Unfortunately for Mr. Jones (and for those of us who picture this mentally), he was arrested in 2003 for taking sexually explicit pictures of fourteen-year-old boys. Hrmm, yeah. Not a good time.

Edie McClurg -

After that…unpleasantness…let’s end this on a good note, right? Who doesn’t love Edie McClurg? I mean, really. She was the cooled-out ying to Mr. Rooney’s fried-out yang. She was funny without trying to be and was a gem in that movie. She’s another great character-actress who has pretty much been in everything! She’s done so much voice-over work for shows like Rocket Power, Clifford The Big Red Dog, Tiny Toons, and The Life and Times of Tim among so many others. She’s been in tons of films and on pretty much been on every TV show ever (including a guest spot on one of my favorite shows, Portlandia). She was also on an episode of a show called Homeboys In Outer-Space and she did voice work for a video game called Escape From Monkey Island. I’ve never had the luck to experience either of these things, but I can only imagine how epic they are.

This article was written by Maribeth Curley of T-Shirts.com, a company that sells awesome 80s t shirts.