I'll never forget the first time Brian Wilson made me see God. It was 1973, and I was sitting in the mostly empty balcony of a second-run movie theater finally watching “American Graffiti,” the movie everyone in my high school was talking about.

Brian Wilson, cofounder of The Beach Boys and the creative force behind the group’s surf sound, orchestral arrangements and perfect harmonies, has died, his family announced on Wednesday.

Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys has died at 82. One of the world’s most beloved and influential musicians, his family posted news of his death to his website Wednesday.