A meeting with Medusa: here am I in
an almost too-close-for-comfort encounter with Greek mythology's most
(in)famous gorgon - notice how I am taking good care not to look her in the
eye...
This is Ray Harryhausen's original
model of Medusa, as featured in his star-studded fantasy movie Clash of the
Titans (1981) and currently on display at Valence House Museum's
'Dinosaurs, Harryhausen and Me' exhibition, organised by Alan Friswell, official
model restorer to the Ray & Diana Harryhausen Foundation (photo © Dr Karl
Shuker)
On 29 March 2018, I visited Valence House
Museum in Dagenham, Essex, just outside London, England, to see a wonderful
exhibition entitled 'Dinosaurs, Harryhausen and Me', which
featured a sizeable number of the iconic, world-famous dinosaur and monster
models created by the legendary special-effects genius Ray Harryhausen and appearing
in a number of his celebrated Stop-Motion science-fiction and fantasy movies,
including Jason and the Argonauts (hydra, two fighting skeletons), The
Valley of Gwangi (Gwangi, Styracosaurus, Eohippus, Ornithomimus,
Lope), Clash of the Titans (Pegasus, Medusa, Bubo the living mechanical
owl), Mysterious Island (giant ammonite/nautiloid mollusc), One
Million Years BC (Ceratosaurus), and First Men in the Moon (Grand/Prime
Lunar – the big-brained leader of the moon-ruling insectoid Selenites).
The 'Me' in the exhibition's title is none other
than a longstanding Facebook friend of mine, expert model maker Alan Friswell,
who was personally appointed by Ray to restore all of his priceless models, as
some had suffered damage and wear during the 40+ years since they had
originally been made. Alan also very kindly made for me a wonderful full-sized Feejee
mermaid that I greatly treasure – thanks Al!
(Left) Holding my spectacular Feejee mermaid
made for me by Alan Friswell; (Right) Alan himself with my mermaid on the day that
he presented it to me when we met at Dagenham in 2010 – thanks again, Al! (photos
© Dr Karl Shuker)
As Alan is local to Dagenham, the Museum was very keen
to stage the exhibition, which is proving extremely popular, and it was an
absolute delight for me to view at first hand so many of the awesome creations
that captivated me on screen when I first saw their films as a youth and which
still do when I rewatch them today. A selection of framed artworks produced by
Ray is also on display here, together with some of Alan's own stunning models. Alan is to be heartily congratulated upon
organising such a captivating and thoroughly unique exhibition in England, which lasts until 30 June 2018, and even has free entry, so do try and visit,
especially if, like me, you're a lifelong Harryhausen fan. Highly recommended!!
Moreover, as a fan, rather than simply sharing on
ShukerNature some of the photographs that I snapped of the amazing items
featured in this exhibition I thought that it would be interesting and
entertaining to annotate them with various fascinating facts and snippets of
pertinent information relating to each one that I've collected and conserved
down through the years, so here goes:
EL DIABLO
The original model of El Diablo, the diminutive
prehistoric dawn horse or Eohippus from The Valley of Gwangi
(photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
This is my all-time personal favourite of all of
Ray's many marvellous creations – El Diablo, the little prehistoric Eohippus
that features in Ray's spellbinding Western/sci-fi movie The Valley of
Gwangi (1969). The stupefied reaction of the movie's scientist character,
Prof. Bromley (played superbly by the highly-respected English character actor
Laurence Naismith) upon seeing El Diablo, and referring to him as the greatest
scientific discovery of the age, was a major cryptozoological incitement to me
at the tender age when I first viewed this fantastic movie. Click here
to view the classic footage that introduces El Diablo in it.
Incidentally, although when I was a child this
ancestral equid (from the early Eocene, c.50 million years ago) was indeed
referred to zoologically by the iconic name Eohippus ('dawn horse'), it
was subsequently renamed Hyracotherium (a much duller, far less
evocative monicker, in my opinion), due to the strict, inflexible rules of
nomenclatural precedence (it appeared that the latter name had been assigned to
it prior to Eohippus). Happily, however, it is now Eohippus once
more, because the genus Hyracotherium has lately been shown to be a
paraphyletic hotchpotch, an artificial assemblage of various unrelated forms.
So, welcome back, little dawn horse, you've been greatly missed!
GWANGI
Gwangi, the theropod dinosaur model
that thrilled and terrified movie-goers in equal measure when it starred in The
Valley of Gwangi (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
Although Gwangi was officially described as a
Jurassic Allosaurus, Ray Harryhausen freely confessed that he had also
been inspired by the latter dinosaur's Cretaceous descendant Tyrannosaurus
rex when designing its model, combining elements from both forms to create
a truly terrifying theropod that wreaked havoc and mayhem when hauled out of
its prehistoric valley enclave into the modern-day realm of humanity.
Ray was famed for the incredibly life-like,
realistic appearance of his creations when seen on screen, due in no small way
to the myriad of small but highly individualistic behavioural nuances with
which he imbued all of them. For me, this is epitomised by the scene from The
Valley of Gwangi in which a friendly performing circus elephant is suddenly
confronted, attacked, and mercilessly slaughtered by a rampaging, newly-escaped
Gwangi. Despite knowing full well that the elephant, just like Gwangi, was
actually a Stop-Motion model, not a real elephant, it was thanks to Ray's
genius in animating it so realistically that when I viewed this film for the
first time as a teenager I was thoroughly traumatised by its savage death at
the claws and teeth of Gwangi, and even today I always find that particular
scene difficult to watch. Testament, indeed, to Ray's astonishing cinematic
skills! If you care to watch it, click here
– but don’t expect me to!
ORNITHOMIMUS AND STYRACOSAURUS
Ray's Ornithomimus plus El Diablo (top) and Styracosaurus
(bottom) models from The Valley of Gwangi (photos © Dr Karl Shuker)
El Diablo and Gwangi are not the only prehistoric
creatures featuring in The Valley of Gwangi. In addition to a pterosaur
(almost obligatory in a movie of this nature), there are also an Ornithomimus
and a Styracosaurus. Relatively small and fast-running in bipedal mode,
the Ornithomimus ('bird-mimic') is being swiftly pursued by an
astonished trio of cowboys on horseback within the mysterious valley when abruptly
the hitherto-concealed Gwangi bursts into view, leans down, neatly snaps up the
hapless bird-mimic dinosaur in its great jaws, and begins feeding upon its
still-twitching body. Not surprisingly, the cowboys duly choose discretion as
the better part of valour, and ride away very swiftly in the opposite direction
– although one of them does turn around briefly and fires a couple of
ill-advised shots in the great reptile's direction, before racing off again
when a menacing, totally-uninjured Gwangi makes it abundantly clear that it does
not take kindly to its meal being disrupted in such an impolite manner! Click here
to view this tense, electrifying scene.
The Styracosaurus, conversely, is made of
sterner stuff, because when it is attacked by Gwangi a little later in the film,
it soon puts its long and very formidable sharply-pointed snout-horn to
effective use, fending off Gwangi with fierce thrusts to the latter's
underparts – until cruelly betrayed by a group of cowboys keeping watch from a
safe distance. Planning to capture Gwangi alive for exhibition purposes, they
treacherously collude in its attack upon the Styracosaurus, their leader
Carlos spearing the horned dinosaur in order to weaken it, thereby enabling
Gwangi to overcome its defensive manoeuvres and kill it. Click here
to watch this literally monstrous scene of treachery and tragedy!
GIANT AMMONITE/NAUTILOID
The formidable many-tentacled giant
ammonite/nautiloid mollusc from Mysterious Island (photo © Dr Karl
Shuker)
Loosely based upon the Jules Verne novel The
Mysterious Island (1874), this classic Ray Harryhausen movie from 1961 features
a host of giant mutated creatures as well as some prehistoric survivors. Most
famous of these latter is a terror bird Phorusrhacos (although many
film-goers mistakenly assumed that it was simply a giant chicken!), but also
present is this awesome giant ammonite (or nautiloid, according to some
sources). Another of my favourite if lesser-known Harryhausen creations, this
gargantuan marine mollusc appears near the end of the film and furiously battles
the heroes during their valiant attempt to escape the island by raising from
the deep a sunken but otherwise seaworthy pirate ship. Click here to view the dramatic underwater scene in which it appears.
At one time or another, virtually every major
taxonomic group of prehistoric animals has been cited as a possible identity
for some cryptid, but as far as I'm aware no such mystery beast has ever been
likened to a living ammonite or a living fossil-type nautiloid. Today, the
nautiloids are represented solely by the handful of pearly (chambered) nautilus
species. As for the ammonites: constituting a discrete subclass within the
molluscan class Cephalopoda (containing today's octopuses, true squids,
cuttlefishes, nautiluses, and vampire squid), the ammonites were once a
dominant group within the prevailing marine fauna, but their last
representatives died out during the mass extinction at the end of the
Cretaceous, c.66 million years ago…didn't they?
GRAND/PRIME LUNAR
Grand (aka Prime) Lunar, the
insectoid Selenites' big-brained leader, ensconced upon a crystal throne, from First
Men in the Moon (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
Based upon the eponymous sci-fi novel by H.G. Wells
from 1901, in
which some eccentric Victorian-era English scientists successfully travel to
the moon (i.e. many decades before America's real-life Apollo missions), this delightful
British movie from 1964 features some of Ray's most distinctive creations,
including giant caterpillar-like mooncalves, and the insectoid ruling lunar
race, the Selenites, whose leader is the grotesquely big-brained Grand (aka Prime)
Lunar. Click here to
view them in an original 1960s trailer for this film.
The concluding section of the movie shows the
purported first-ever manned landing on the moon, in 1964, by a team of UN
scientists, only for them to discover that the English scientists had long ago
beaten them to it, and had left their leader, Prof. Cavor, behind there at his
request. He now was dead, but so too was the entire Selenite civilisation,
victims of the common cold viruses that Cavor had inadvertently brought with
him from Earth. Needless to say, this closely echoes the famous denouement in
an earlier H.G. Wells novel, The War of the Worlds, in which the
seemingly unstoppable Martians invading Earth are ultimately overcome not by
the might of humanity, but rather by our planet's tiniest inhabitants, the
viruses, against which the Martians have no defence.
PEGASUS
Ray's beautiful model of the
legendary winged horse Pegasus that appears in Clash of the Titans (photo
© Dr Karl Shuker)
Ray's last but also his technically greatest film
was Clash of the Titans (1981), a breathtaking mythological melange of a
movie in which strands and characters from a number of different classical
legends are deftly woven together to create a thrilling storyline that loosely centres
upon the dramatic saga of the Greek hero Perseus and his daring rescue of the
princess Andromeda from a horrific sea monster. The winged horse Pegasus,
ridden here by Perseus during his ultimately successful bid to save Andromeda,
didn't actually feature in the original version of this particular legend –
instead, Perseus had been equipped with winged sandals presented to him by
Hermes, whereas Pegasus had borne an entirely different hero, Bellerophon,
during his battle with the monstrous Chimaera. Nevertheless, Pegasus's
inclusion provides a truly scintillating additional spark of movie magic to
what is already a spellbinding, highly suspenseful tale of monsters and
mystery, and which even incorporates a Nordic interloper in the shape of the
Kraken, no less – or at least its name, which is understandable, given that the
Greek sea monster's original name, Cetus (from which 'cetacean' is derived, the
formal zoological term for all whales, dolphins, and porpoises), would
certainly have been far less dramatic or memorable to movie-goers.
Ray was once asked where he had derived his
inspiration for choreographing and animating Pegasus in flight, as it seemed so
natural, so realistic. In reply, he revealed that he had consulted what he personally
considered to be the finest source in existence relating to such matters –
namely, the idyllic scene from Disney's immortal animated film Fantasia (1940)
that features a phalanx of winged horses flying through the sky before
spiralling downwards to land gracefully upon a pastel-hued lake like a flock of
equine swans (click here to
view this enchanting scene – one of my all-time favourite animated sequences,
set to the lyrical theme arising midway through the third movement of
Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony). Additionally, click here
to view a short documentary segment featuring Ray talking about how Pegasus was
designed for realistic flight, and also including some excerpts from Clash
of the Titans featuring the winged steed in action.
BUBO
Bubo, the living mechanical owl with
metallic plumage from Clash of the Titans (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
Also appearing in Clash of the Titans is
Bubo, a living mechanical owl created from brass and iron by the fire god
Hephaestus as a metallic replica of the real Bubo, the wise pet owl of Athena,
goddess of knowledge and wisdom. Its function, as dictated by Zeus, the supreme
Greek god and also father of Perseus, is to lead Perseus to the Graeae or Grey
Sisters (aka the Stygian Witches), who, albeit only with great reluctance, will
tell him how to defeat the Kraken. Click here
to view Bubo's somewhat less than dignified debut in the company of Perseus,
when he unwarily perches upon a dead branch and unceremoniously crashes to the
ground (Bubo, that is – not Perseus!).
Ray's Bubo model was intricately constructed by him
from golden and silver-coloured metal, and was radio-controlled when in the
presence of the movie's actors and actresses – a dazzling cast list of
thespians that include such celebrated stars of stage and screen as Sir
Laurence Olivier (Zeus), Claire Bloom (Hera), Maggie Smith (the sea goddess
Thetis), Ursula Andress (Aphrodite), Sian Phillips (Queen Cassiopeia), and the then
still-upcoming actor Harry Hamlin as Perseus.
MEDUSA
A petrifying (in every sense)
portrayal of Medusa the gorgon – Ray's terrifying model that features in Clash
of the Titans (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
The Stygian Witches inform Perseus that the Kraken
can only be killed with the head of the gorgon Medusa, whose dreadful eyes even
when dead would instantly turn to stone any living thing that gazed directly at
them. So it becomes Perseus's quest to seek out and slay Medusa, but it will be
no easy task, given that he can look at her only indirectly, via her mirrored
reflection on the surface of his highly-polished shield.
In the original Greek myth, Medusa was once an
inordinately beautiful maiden before being transformed into her now-monstrous
snake-haired, petrifying form by Athena after Medusa had been assaulted by
Poseidon in Athena's temple, an act that the goddess deemed to be a defilement
of her earthly abode (despite the fact that Medusa had been the innocent party!).
Nevertheless, Medusa retains her comely body and lissom legs. Ray, however,
considered that for her to be an effective on-screen monster, Medusa needed to
be much more frightening in form, and so in the extremely detailed bronze model
that he constructed he replaced her traditional human lower torso and legs with
the limbless body of a giant serpent, and even added at the tip of its tail a
large vibrating rattle as famously borne by rattlesnakes, as well as equipping
her with a bow and quiver of deadly arrows to shoot at anyone entering her
temple hideaway who was skilful enough to evade her lethal stare. Click here
to view the nightmarish battle between Perseus and Medusa staged within the
sinister torch-lit semi-darkness of the temple's silent, shadowy interior. And
click here
to read a ShukerNature article of mine concerning not only Medusa herself but
also a host of real-life gorgon-dubbed creatures from the past and the present.
HYDRA
Ray's spectacular seven-headed, twin-tailed
hydra model that is utilised in Jason and the Argonauts (photo © Dr Karl
Shuker)
Ray's ingenuity for improvisation and adaptation
was by no means limited to his vision of how Medusa should appear on screen.
Other notable examples include his two-headed roc in The 7th
Voyage of Sinbad (1958) and his giant horn-skulled troglodyte in Sinbad
and the Eye of the Tiger (1977). Moreover, in Jason and the Argonauts
(1963), one of the Greek hero Jason's many monstrous antagonists encountered
during his quest for the fabled Golden Fleece is the multi-headed hydra that in
classical Greek mythology was actually confronted by Heracles instead, its
eventual defeat being the second of his twelve great labours (click here
for further details). In that latter legend, the hydra was generally described
as nine-headed, but Ray considered that it would be too difficult to animate
effectively nine independent heads and necks via Stop-Motion techniques, so he
reduced its quota to seven. Possibly to compensate for this, however, he
provided it with a bifurcated tail.
In this movie, the hydra guards the tree upon which
the glittering Golden Fleece is suspended, whereas in the original Greek myth
it was guarded by a never-sleeping single-headed dragon as well as by a herd of
brass-hoofed bulls that breathed fire and whose teeth if planted in the ground
would transform into an army of soldiers. Ray skilfully utilised this latter
characteristic, with the teeth of the hydra if planted in the ground
transforming into an army of deathless fighting skeletons. Click here
to view Jason's epic battle with the multi-headed hydra. And don’t forget to
check out my Eclectarium blog article here
concerning the history of another iconic monster from this same movie – Talos,
the giant bronze statue that disconcertingly comes to life and relentlessly
pursues Jason and his fellow Argonauts as they desperately strive to escape his
lethal metallic clutches (click here to
view this decidedly eerie scene).
FIGHTING SKELETONS
Two fighting skeletons that appeared
in Jason and the Argonauts (photos © Dr Karl Shuker)
One of Ray's most celebrated accomplishments in
Stop-Motion animation was undoubtedly his bringing to the screen those spectacular
scenes featuring armies of fighting skeletons, raised up from the ground as
deathless warriors to strike terror – as well as any weapons that they are
brandishing! – into the hearts of their mortal opponents. They appear most
famously in Jason and the Argonauts (1963), when King Aeëtes sows into
the ground the teeth of the hydra newly slain by Jason; after Aeëtes then prays
to Hecate, goddess of witchcraft, a company of seven weapon-armed living
skeletons – 'the Children of Hydra's Teeth' – rises up out of the ground and
furiously attacks Jason and two companions. After a prolonged battle in which
both of his companions are killed by them, Jason successfully escapes their
clutches by leaping into the sea where he is rescued by the Argonauts aboard
their vessel.
In his fascinating book, Film Fantasy Scrapbook (1981),
in which he provided numerous behind-the-scenes recollections and inside
information for each of his movies, Ray Harryhausen made the following very
insightful comments concerning what he referred to as the Skeleton Sequence in Jason
and the Argonauts: "Technically, it was unprecedented in the sphere of
fantasy filming. When one pauses to contemplate that there were seven skeletons
fighting three men, with each skeleton having five appendages to move in each
frame of film, this means that an unprecedented 35 animated movements had to be
synchronized with three live actors' movements; so one can readily see why it
took four and a half months to record the sequence for the screen". Click here
to view the fruits of Ray's Herculean labours in creating this extraordinary
scene.
CERATOSAURUS
Ray's model of the horn-snouted Ceratosaurus
from One Million Years BC (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
In real life, Ceratosaurus was a theropod
dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Period, approximately 150 million years ago. In
Ray's British-made movie One Million Years BC, conversely, released in
1966, it co-exists with primitive cave-dwelling humans (including Loana, a very
voluptuous cave-woman played by none other than Raquel Welch), as do many other
officially long-vanished prehistoric beasts, such as pterosaurs, Brontosaurus,
Allosaurus, and the gargantuan sea turtle Archelon. Yet although
chronologically incongruous, as with all of Ray's movies the monsters are truly
marvellous, but perhaps the single most memorable scene is a lengthy set-piece
battle between a Ceratosaurus and a Triceratops, which the latter
eventually wins, leaving behind the severely stunned but still breathing Ceratosaurus
lying prone and gasping upon the ground. For increased dramatic effect, the Ceratosaurus
is about twice as big as it would have been in real life. Click here
to watch their gladiatorial conflict!
In another extremely memorable scene from this same
movie (click here to
view it), Loana is abducted by a very big pterosaur, specifically a Pteranodon,
carrying her aloft in its talons to its nest into which it is just about to
drop her in order for its hungry offspring to devour her when it is itself attacked
by another pterosaur, this time a giant Rhamphorhynchus. During the
resulting mid-air melée between these two mighty flying reptiles (click here
to view it), Loana is inadvertently dropped by her original abductor, falling
wounded but still alive into the sea as the pterosaurs fly away, still locked
together in mortal combat.
MODELS BY ALAN FRISWELL, AND ORIGINAL ARTWORKS
BY RAY
Two displayed models created by Alan
Friswell – a Rhamphorhynchus pterosaur and a Tenontosaurus dinosaur
(models © Alan Friswell; photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
In addition to those of Ray, some models produced by
Alan Friswell were also displayed in the exhibition. One of these was a Rhamphorhynchus
pterosaur, which, as I have learnt from Alan, was one of his earliest Stop-Motion
creations. Another, made by Alan about 15 years ago, was a very impressive Tenontosaurus
– a herbivorous ornithopod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous, related to (and also
morphologically reminiscent of) the more famous Iguanodon, and which
browsed upon ferns and shrubs. And a third model, one of Alan's specialities,
was a superb full-sized Feejee mermaid.
Also on display was a model of the boy Lope from The
Valley of Gwangi, and which is of especial significance, because this was
the model originally given by Ray to Alan to work upon as a test of his
restoration skills, which in turn so impressed him that he duly gave Alan the
position of official restorer of all of his models.
The model of Lope (photo © Dr Karl
Shuker)
Speaking of which: the very detailed, annulated
shell of the earlier-mentioned giant ammonite/nautiloid mollusc on display here
was actually made by Alan, upon Ray's request, because the original had been
lost many years previously.
So too had the Grand Lunar's crystal throne, and once
more upon Ray's request Alan had manufactured a replacement, as well as creating
a sturdier replica of Grand Lunar himself – and again it is actually Alan's
versions of these latter two models that are on display, because although the
original Grand Lunar still exists, it is far too fragile to be transported
anywhere.
Alan Friswell's self-made Feejee
mermaid on display (model © Alan Friswell; photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
Also present in the exhibition was a framed
selection of Ray's original artworks, produced by him as preparatory and guide
illustrations for various of his movies.
Four of my favourite examples, seen here, show a
cowboy chasing the Ornithomimus in The Valley of Gwangi; training
El Diablo the Eohippus to be a circus performer in the same movie; an
escaped Gwangi rampaging in the city; and Medusa confronting a couple of would-be
slayers inside her temple hideaway from Clash of the Titans.
Four original artworks by Ray
Harryhausen (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
AND FINALLY…
Many years ago, I was delighted to obtain Ray's
autograph framed alongside a photograph of him posing with his Medusa model
from Clash of the Titans. Never did I ever imagine that one day I too
would be photographed alongside it. Truly an example, albeit a highly
unexpected one for me, of the great Circle of Life?
If you too are a fan of Ray Harryhausen and his
exceptional contributions to the world of science fiction and fantasy cinema,
you really do need to visit this awesome exhibition and see for yourself, as I
did, some of his extraordinary creations that by virtue of his spellbinding
Stop-Motion skills he was able to conjure forth in the living state on screen –
a veritable magician of the movies, no less, infused with the power to
resurrect dinosaurs, reanimate skeletons, and breathe tangible vitality into an
entire menagerie of monsters that had never previously thrived outside the
confines of human imagination. Click here
to read coverage of this exhibition on the official website of The Ray & Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
The upper side (top) and under side
(bottom) of Valence House Museum's official flyer for this exhibition
(© Valence House Museum – reproduced here on a strictly educational,
non-commercial Fair Use basis, for review purposes only)
NB – Except for the Feejee mermaids and Alan Friswell's other models, all models and
artworks depicted above in my photographs for this ShukerNature review article
are © The Ray & Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
About 15 years ago, I was most surprised but also
very delighted to see – and purchase – at a movie memorabilia collector's fair held
in England a sizeable plastic replica of the savage cyclopoid centaur created
by Ray that battles Sinbad and also a griffin in the second of his three Sinbad-themed
fantasy movies, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973). Click here to watch this monumental battle.
My replica of the cyclopoid centaur
from The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
In addition, I've seen photographs of a splendid
large-scale model of the winged homunculus from The Golden Voyage of Sinbad,
as well as of an equally eye-catching one of the ymir, a giant reptilian
alien life-form from 20 Million Miles to Earth (1957). Unfortunately,
however, I've never seen any actual examples of either of these models anywhere.
Last but definitely not least in this Harryhausen
celebration: here is a photograph of my above-mentioned framed autograph of
Ray:
My framed autograph of the late,
truly great Ray Harryhausen (1920-2013), featuring alongside him in the
accompanying illustration Medusa in full model form and also as a larger-scale
head/shoulders model, as well as Bubo, Gwangi's Styracosaurus opponent, one
of Jason's living skeleton foes, and the evil, accursed half-man/half-beast
Prince Calibos from Clash of the Titans (photo © Dr Karl Shuker)
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