WB announces new Ray Harryhausen classics! (1 Viewer)

[Patrick Mirza]

Warner Home Video will release a trio of monster films all making their DVD debuts.

Due on October 21st are two classics from Ray Harryhausen: The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (with a fullscreen transfer, DD Mono, "The Rhedosaurus and the Roller Coaster: Making the Beast" featurette) and The Valley of Gwangi (1.85:1 anamorphic transfer, DD Mono, featurette, easter eggs).

Also due is 1957's The Black Scorpion with a fullscreen transfer, DD Mono, a featurette, and test footage. Each disc also comes with a trailer and retails $19.98.

 

[Kevin M]

The Black Scorpion was Willis O'Brien's last film, correct?

 

[Peter M Fitzgerald]

Nope, THE GIANT BEHEMOTH (1959, Allied Artists --currently controlled by WB) was O'Brien's last. Actually, much of the animation in both THE BLACK SCORPION and THE GIANT BEHEMOTH was the work of O'Brien's latter-day assistant animator, Pete Petersen, who also helped O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen on MIGHTY JOE YOUNG (1949). O'Brien and Petersen also shot some animation test footage for several potential monster movie ideas they had thought up, between SCORPION and BEHEMOTH, but these other creature features never materialized.

Technically, I believe IT'S A MAD MAD MAD MAD WORLD (1963) had O'Brien's last actual career credit (involving the stop-motion bits used during the "fire escape/ladder" scene), though I recall reading that animator Jim Danforth did most/all of the actual animation for the scene.

 

[oscar_merkx]

this is getting better all the time