LEGACY: RAY HARRYHAUSEN

IN TWEET: RAY HARRYHAUSEN, ICONIC VISUAL EFFECTS PIONEER, HAS DIED. HE WAS 92. JOIN OUR TRIBUTE TO A LEGEND WITH A LOOK AT VIDEO AND IMAGES OF HIS FINEST WORK.

There are many well-known people who make movies. Then there are the legends; pioneering geniuses who shaped and forever changed the modern cinema experience. RAY HARRYHAUSEN was in that class. The iconic visual effects wizard died in London today at the age of 92.

You would be hard pressed to find a filmmaker in the sci-fi, fantasy or horror genres who doesn’t credit Harryhausen as one of their influences. From his work on classics like MIGHTY JOE YOUNG (1949) to lesser entries that were made infinitely more enjoyable because of his involvement (like the otherwise dreadful 1981 CLASH OF THE TITANS), Ray Harryhausen became a box office draw in his own right.

My father mentored me into the world of Harryhausen by taking me to matinee re-issues of JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963), THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1958) and THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973). The special effects in these films are among the most celebrated examples of Ray Harryhausen’s visual wizardry and with good reason: stop motion animation is a painstaking art that few ever truly master. Harryhausen worked with his hands; not on a keyboard or drawing tablet but, instead, on articulated models. He moved each of them in tiny, incremental steps that were shot frame by frame.

The best way to pay tribute to Ray Harryhausen is to enjoy images and video of his finest work. These are my personal favorites: full stop-motion animation effects sequences from JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (the amazing skeleton fight), CLASH OF THE TITANS (the famous encounter with Medusa) and THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (Kali dances, a scene that freaked me out as a kid).

JASON & THE ARGONAUTS (1963)

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CLASH OF THE TITANS (1981)

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THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973)

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Finally, check out this cool video compilation (in chronological order) that spans the entirety of the amazing career of Ray Harryhausen.

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