RIP - Ray Harryhausen

[Neroon]

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Today would be a good day for a Sinbad marathon, Jason and the Argonauts, even Monsters Inc. One of the greatest days in my life was when I got to spend a few minutes chatting with Mr. Harryhausen in the green room at a local convention.

Here's to all you did to help us escape the mundane!

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Rest in peace, Ray Harryhausen. Thanks for all your pioneering work in SF&F.

 

[Kai "the spy"]

Really sad news. He had a long (and assumingly happy) life, but he's still gonna be missed deeply.

 

[Gojira]

Very sad news!!! Thanks Ray for all your great work and inspiration. Many of us here wouldn't love what we love without you!!

 

[Klaus]

Dammit.

 

[auntiehill]

He was a giant in the industry, a true pioneer. RIP.

 

[Sindatur]

RIP Mr. Harryhausen, Thanks for all your great SF/F contributions

 

[Melakon]

Damn. I feared it might be soon when Ray Bradbury died, they were friends since their teens.

I saw Jason and the Argonauts when it opened in theaters in 1963 (at 12), and it was just astonishing. The scene where Talos turns to look at Hercules and Hylas was truly scarey.

During the 70s, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad was reissued and we went to see it. A father was there with his young son, maybe 8, and they were settling in before the show. The dad said there was still time to get popcorn if he wanted, and the kid said "All right. But if I miss any of it, I'll scream and scream."

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Harryhausen was one of my inspirations.

 

[Noname Given]

He was just shy of 93 years old; so at least he had a good, long life (doubt I'll get close to 90). It is a big loss to the film industry as he did inspire and had a lot of knowledge; but you certainly can't say he didn't have a great run.

 

[Cutter John]

Can't say I'm terribly surprised by this news. Still distressing though.

 

[Captaindemotion]

Sad news. I loved all his old films as a kid and I'll still watch a bit of them if channel surfing of an afternoon. RIP and thanks for the entertainment.

 

[RandyS]

This is a surprise. I thought he'd passed on at least twenty years ago.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

^ Same here, or at least "some time ago".

A cinematic genius way ahead of his time, not to mention way ahead of any other decent SFX concepts.

Don't forget to add the original Clash Of The Titans to your watch list and, at least as the tribute it's FX were to Ray, Army Of Darkness.

R.I.P.

 

[Silvercrest]

R. I. P.

It would be cool to see a stop-motion short of his creatures wailing and gnashing their teeth around his grave. I was going to suggest they should be carrying his coffin, but that would be a little too macabre.

 

[Psion]

A brilliant man and an inspiration to so many ... now lies still.

Unless someone moves him a little bit and takes a picture, then moves him a little bit more and takes another ....

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Definitely a legend, though I'm not sure how the younger generation views him. I'm sure they can appreciate his accomplishments but I don't know if they've been moved by them, hopefully so. I don't think I ever saw his films in the theater but they were TV staples when I was younger and I thrilled to them on weekends.

 

[The Wormhole]

We have lost a true pioneer of the special effects industry. RIP.

 

[RJDiogenes]

This is terribly sad. Few people in the history of the Arts can claim to be a pioneer at the level of Harryhausen. He was not only a superhuman special effects technician, but displayed a unique and engaging artistry-- something sadly missing from most of today's computer-generated effects. I wonder how many people appreciate the incredible computing power it takes to simulate what this guy did with his bare hands.

RIP and thank you, Ray.

A brilliant man and an inspiration to so many ... now lies still.

Unless someone moves him a little bit and takes a picture, then moves him a little bit more and takes another ....

That was horribly demented and probably would have made him chuckle.

 

[Redfern]

It’s a tad uncanny that the Sony Movie Channel just wrapped up a month long tribute to Harryhausen, airing a majority of his films as well as a 90 minute retrospective (made just last year, 2012) containing recent interviews with Ray (who still seemed sharp as ever) and several of the filmmakers he inspired like Spielberg, Cameron, Peter Jackson, and others.


At least he was recognized while he was still alive and coherent enough to appreciate the honors. Plus, people like director Peter Jackson (at personal expense, I believe) and others helped to preserve his legacy, his models, his test footage, molds, castings, etc. before they were lost, damaged or destroyed. Jackson even used the resources of WETA to have items like his rubber coated figures digitally scanned before they decompose. How many creative people have died in obscurity, forgotten? Or, if they are remembered, it’s years after they’ve passed when the acknowledgments do them little good. In that respect Harryhausen was very fortunate.


His films certainly influenced my childhood. And should senility ever strike me (Mogg forbid), I suspect my memories of his fabulous creatures will be some of the few I retain.


Sincerely,


Bill