Willis O'Brien: Difference between revisions
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In his spare time, O'Brien enjoyed sculpting and illustrating which led to his being employed as a cartoonist. During this time he also worked a variety of other jobs including a professional boxer. A 1915 short film made with some of his sculptures called ''[[wikipedia:The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy|The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy]]'' greatly impressed innovator Thomas Edison, and he was subsequently hired by the Edison Company to produce more dinosaur films. Much later, after taking a job with [[RKO Pictures|RKO]], O'Brien began work on an eventually-scrapped film entitled ''Creation'' by studio head Merian C. Cooper, who instead offered to use his dinosaur models on his own project, ''[[King Kong (1933 film)|King Kong]]'', due to his being so impressed with his work. | In his spare time, O'Brien enjoyed sculpting and illustrating which led to his being employed as a cartoonist. During this time he also worked a variety of other jobs including a professional boxer. A 1915 short film made with some of his sculptures called ''[[wikipedia:The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy|The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy]]'' greatly impressed innovator Thomas Edison, and he was subsequently hired by the Edison Company to produce more dinosaur films. Much later, after taking a job with [[RKO Pictures|RKO]], O'Brien began work on an eventually-scrapped film entitled ''Creation'' by studio head Merian C. Cooper, who instead offered to use his dinosaur models on his own project, ''[[King Kong (1933 film)|King Kong]]'', due to his being so impressed with his work. | ||
However, he distanced himself from the film's sequel, ''[[Son of Kong]]'', which he allegedly felt to be "cheesy," and asked not to be credited in the film. O'Brien would later write a | However, he distanced himself from the film's sequel, ''[[Son of Kong]]'', which he allegedly felt to be "cheesy," and asked not to be credited in the film. O'Brien would later write a screenplay treatment and draw some concept art for a second sequel to ''King Kong'' pitting [[King Kong|Kong]] against a giant version of the [[Frankenstein|Frankenstein Monster]] in [[San Francisco]]. The treatment and artwork were sold to independent producer [[John Beck]], who hired screenwriter George Worthing Yates to flesh the treatment out into a full screenplay, under the title ''[[King Kong vs. Prometheus]]''. Beck pitched the script to [[Toho]], who instead purchased the rights to the Kong character from RKO and produced ''[[King Kong vs. Godzilla]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ryfle|first=Steve|authorlink=Steve Ryfle|title=[[Japan's Favorite Mon-Star: The Unauthorized Biography of "The Big G"]]|publisher=ECW Press|date=1 April 1998|pages=80-81|isbn=1550223488}}</ref> O'Brien passed away shortly after the film premiered in [[Japan]]. | ||
==Selected filmography== | ==Selected filmography== | ||
*''The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy'' (1915) - Director | *''The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy'' (1915) - Director |
Revision as of 20:30, 18 September 2022
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Willis Harold O'Brien was an American special effects pioneer who has been credited as the creator of stop-motion animation.
Biography
In his spare time, O'Brien enjoyed sculpting and illustrating which led to his being employed as a cartoonist. During this time he also worked a variety of other jobs including a professional boxer. A 1915 short film made with some of his sculptures called The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy greatly impressed innovator Thomas Edison, and he was subsequently hired by the Edison Company to produce more dinosaur films. Much later, after taking a job with RKO, O'Brien began work on an eventually-scrapped film entitled Creation by studio head Merian C. Cooper, who instead offered to use his dinosaur models on his own project, King Kong, due to his being so impressed with his work.
However, he distanced himself from the film's sequel, Son of Kong, which he allegedly felt to be "cheesy," and asked not to be credited in the film. O'Brien would later write a screenplay treatment and draw some concept art for a second sequel to King Kong pitting Kong against a giant version of the Frankenstein Monster in San Francisco. The treatment and artwork were sold to independent producer John Beck, who hired screenwriter George Worthing Yates to flesh the treatment out into a full screenplay, under the title King Kong vs. Prometheus. Beck pitched the script to Toho, who instead purchased the rights to the Kong character from RKO and produced King Kong vs. Godzilla.[2] O'Brien passed away shortly after the film premiered in Japan.
Selected filmography
- The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy (1915) - Director
- Prehistoric Poultry (1916) - Director
- R.F.D. 10, 000 B.C. (1917) - Director
- The Ghost of Slumber Mountain (1918) - Director / writer / cinematographer
- Along the Moonbeam Trail (1920) - Director
- The Lost World (1925) - Stop-motion animation
- Creation (unfinished, 1931) - Stop-motion animation
- King Kong (1933) - Stop-motion animation
- Son of Kong (1933) - Stop-motion animation [uncredited]
- Mighty Joe Young (1949) - Stop-motion supervisor [with Pete Peterson]
- The Black Scorpion (1957) - Stop-motion animation [with Pete Peterson]
- The Giant Behemoth (1959) - Stop-motion animation [with Pete Peterson]
Actor
- The Ghost of Slumber Mountain (1918) as Mad Dick
Gallery
References
This is a list of references for Willis O'Brien. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]
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