The London Film Museum (formerly the Movieum) hosted a special 90th birthday celebration for Ray Harryhausen last week, with guests including Peter Jackson, Rick Baker, John Landis, Terry Gilliam, and Mr. Harryhausen himself. This occasion also marked the opening of a special exhibition about the life’s work of Mr. Harryhausen – “Myths and Legends” includes the display of original “Dynamation” creatures from the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.Below is an image provided to the Original Prop Blog by London Film Museum CEO Jonathan Sands:
From Left: Ken Ralston, Rick Baker (below), Karl Meyer, Jonathan Sands (CEO LFM), Phil Tippett (below), Tony Dalton (the Foundation), and Dennis Muren
Full details about event last week and the exhibition can be found at the official London Film Museum website.
Ray Harryhausen Honored:
Myths & Legends Exhibition:
The exhibition as described on the official site:
We are pleased to announce that the London Film Museum has opened its latest exhibition.
Entitled “Ray Harryhausen – Myths and Legends” – the exhibition focuses on the work of Ray Harryhausen and showcases the techniques he used to bring his Dynamation creatures to life.
The launch date was an extra special one as this was also Ray’s 90th Birthday.
Ray is the father of modern day special effects. Without his imagination and wonderful fantasy films made in the 1940s, 50s, 60s and 70s there would probably be no George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Nick Park or Peter Jackson. It was Ray who inspired these fantasy filmmakers and it is to him that each one credits Ray as their inspiration.
Ray began his art after seeing King Kong (1933) and following his first feature film Mighty Joe Young in 1949 went on to develop a technique known as Dynamation, which is a process that allows animated models to be integrated with live action. Other films followed, amongst which were The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (1952), 20 Million Miles to Earth (1957), The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), Jason and the Argonauts (1963), One Million Years BC (1966), The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973) and Clash of the Titans (1981).
These classic films ‘starred’ such creations at Cyclops, dragons, living skeleton warriors, a Medusa, a giant crab, scorpions and bees and of course dinosaurs.
The exhibition has been put together by the London Film Museum Advisory Panel including Leslie Hardcastle (founder of MOMI) and Jonathan Sands (Chief Executive of the museum), and with kind permission from The Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
The exhibition is housed in the rooms opposite the Charlie Chaplin – The Great Londoner Exhibition and be with us for 12 months.
Photos from the event can also be found at the official Prop Store Facebook page: LINK
Jason DeBord