His name is synonymous with that macabre piece of wonder and terror "The Evil Dead" (1982). More recently in 1998, he surprised many by directing the darkly different "A Simple Plan", after a seemingly long absence from the silver screen. Yet just like the creeping forest surrounding the shack in the woods of "The Evil Dead", Sam Raimi is a very busy man indeed.

Fans know all the highlights that range from his cult hit "The Evil Dead", the bigger budgeted "Evil Dead II", the exciting "Darkman", the hilarious "Army of Darkness" (aka "Evil Dead III"), and the uneven "The Quick and the Dead". During the sizeable gaps between these movies it turns out that he's almost constantly in our cinemas, videos, and TVs.

Raimi not only directs but also acts. He's never in big roles and often they're cameos such as a reporter in "Maniac Cop" or as a security guard in "Spies Like Us". And it's not just tack he appears in either. He pops up in two Coen Brothers films: "The Hudsucker Proxy" (which he also co-wrote) and "Miller's Crossing". Joel Coen, incidentally, was assistant editor on "The Evil Dead". Big budget films aren't safe either, with Raimi making an appearance in the 'rock-bluster' "The Flintstones".

He is unlikely to make it as a big-screen star despite his efforts but is busy creating success as a producer. He's been a driving force behind the popular "Hercules" and "Xena" TV shows. Raimi also produced two Jean-Claude Van Damme movies, the hit "Timecop" and John Woo's first American feature, "Hard Target".

But all this activity, with much of it mired in the production of fantasy and horror, will serve him well for his next job as the director of "Spider-Man". Despite the trouble bringing Spidey to the big screen, it's now in production with Tobey Maguire cast as Peter Parker. Fans of the legendary hero should be happy with the choice of Raimi as director as he made the wonderful comic-book-like "Darkman". In the meantime, you can content yourself with his latest supernatural tale, "The Gift".