The producer of a wildly successful monster movie that was part of a wave of teen-focused sci-fi films in the late 1950s has died. The AP reports that Jack Harris, who produced the 1958 hit “The Blob,” died today of natural causes at his home in Beverly Hills. He was 98.

“Born in Philadelphia and a vaudeville performer from a young age, Harris was a decorated WWII veteran before getting into the movie business. He worked in marketing, publicity, distribution and production across his long career,” the AP reports. “His first film, the B-movie ‘The Blob,’ starring Steve McQueen, became an enormous hit, grossing more than $3 million on a $110,000 budget and spawning a sequel and a remake.”

The movie had a lot going for it, including its star — a young McQueen in only his second credited film role — and its ultra-kitschy title tune by Burt Bacharach (listen to it in the clip below).

Harris also was a producer on “The Blob’s” 1988 remake and on the Faye Dunaway movie “Eyes of Laura Mars,” released in 1978, among other films. He had a hand in a few TV series, including “The Twilight Zone” and “It’s About Time.”

Here’s the catchy title sequence to “The Blob” — be sure to stick around for the vocals at the end …