The Ray Harryhausen Film Festival begins tonight in Minneapolis, 7pm at the Trylon Theater, with JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS!
When I was a kid, the films of Ray Harryhausen held a special fascination for me. I was always prowling through the television schedule of our local newspapers, forever on the look-out for the next broadcast of 7th Voyage of Sinbad, The Mysterious Island, or One Million Years B.C. As was my ritual, in between seeing the movies, I wrote and drew my own comic book versions of the films to help keep me company.
These films continue to hold the same magic for me today, and have remained among my personal favorites of all time. It was Mr. Harryhausen's miraculous touch that inspired my own The Adventures of Hercules children's book, published a couple years ago, as well as the upcoming Sinbad the Voyager, which I wrote just recently. Without the slightest doubt, I know that Ray Harryhausen's classic productions will continue to fuel my imagination for many years to come. What would I have ever done without them?
And I'm far from the only one who feels this way. I remember some years ago when Ray Harryhausen won a special Academy Award, emotionally presented to him by his life-long friend, Ray Bradbury. During the ceremony actor Tom Hanks summed it all up the best, I think, when he said:
"Some say Casablanca, some say Citizen Kane...but for me, Jason and the Argonauts is the greatest movie ever made."
Bravo.
Tonight's event is only the beginning. Six more Harryhausen epics will follow in the weekends ahead.
Lisa and I will be there. Hope to see you, too!
http://take-up.org/
Yet another good reason to move to Minneapolis....wish I could go.
ReplyDeleteTom, if you actually lived here, we would either get tons more work done together--or nothing at all, as we used up all our time sharing all this stuff.
ReplyDeleteStill, I'd be willing to make the gamble. Would love to have you live much closer to us.
MP
These movies ARE my childhood. I just love them. Unfortunately I fear we may be the last generation that truly appreciates them. I watched Jason with my girlfriend's 17 year old son a couple of weeks ago, a kid raised on CGI and video game graphics. All he could talk about was how 'fake' everything looked. I explained the whole process of stop motion and how Harryhausen did all that with models moved by hand to match the live action, etc. He was pretty much unimpressed and just felt it inferior to Lord of the Rings and it's ilk.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, Lisa and I have friends who have raised their daughters (now ages 13 and 17) on MGM musicals and classic movies. They both love this stuff. Sometimes I feel like weeping for the future, but not when Libby or Molly visit us and beg to watch BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN or HORROR OF DRACULA again.
ReplyDeleteMP
Warms my heart! lol That IS the problem; if these kids were raised by me they would definitely have been exposed to a marathon of these films from the crib. As it is, they won't even LOOK at a B&W film.
ReplyDeleteIt does appear to be the nurturing of the parents that is responsible here. Very early on our friends looked at the video games, and trendy modern movies, and decided that they were junk and subscribed to a classic movies and book club instead, when their girls were still quite little. The results have been miraculous. For example, Molly, the 17 year old who's a bit of a Goth, despises the whole TWILIGHT fad currently going on, but loves THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, both the novel and the movies. I mean, how many teenagers out there even know the name of Lon Chaney? Last Christmas we took them to see WHITE CHRISTMAS at a historic theater in Minneapolis, and Molly and Libby were mesmerized by it. Although they'd grown up watching that holiday film, they'd never seen it on the big screen. That will always be one of my favorite Christmas memories.
ReplyDeleteHarryhausen on the big screen would be a treat indeed. Living in a metro area certainly has its perks. I love all those films. I think the first one I saw as a kid at the theater was Mysterious Island, it sure spurred my imagination and made me the SF/fantasy fan I am today.
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