Visiting the Harryhausen Exhibit At Kalamazoo Valley Museum

I recently took a non-golf road trip to Kalamazoo to see an exhibit of artifacts from the movies of Ray Harryhausen at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum.

Ray Harryhausen (1920 – 2013) was an animator and director who was renowned for “Dynamation,” a stop motion model animation technique that allowed him to merge live actors with animated models.

Among Harryhausen’s most famous films are: Clash of the Titans, Jason and the Argonauts, The Seventh Voyage of Sindbad, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, One Million Years B.C. and Twenty Million Miles to Earth.

All of these featured battles between animated figures and live actors. When I saw these as a kid, they were magical; indeed the feeling of the magic of these films has never left me.

There is something about these films that seem to me much better than the CGI to which film makers have turned. Indeed, as far as I can tell, only Tim Burton is using stop motion animation in movies today.

Talos from Jason and the Argonauts, the Hydra from Jason and the Argonauts and Skeletons

Harryhausen made his own models, and did the animation himself, painstakingly moving each millimeters, photographing them, then moving them again.

The museum exhibit has dozens of his models, plus story boards, paintings and information on how he made the films. Harryhausen was an amazing artist in movies, sketches, sculpting and paint.

I am so happy that I took the time to take a day trip to Kalamazoo to see the exhibit, which will be there through the end of April.

Below is a list of Harryhausen movies that I have seen and loved. While Harryhausen is not credited as the director on most of them, they are unmistakably “Harryhausen movies.” A note at the museum said that he often worked as the writer, story board creator and director, but due to Hollywood rules, was not given credit.

Mighty Joe Young (1949) – Co-animated by Harryhausen.

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) – visual effects

It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955) – visual effects

Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) – visual effects

20 Million Miles to Earth (1957) – visual effects

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) – producer, visual effects

The Mysterious Island (1961) – visual effects

Jason and the Argonauts (1963) – producer, visual effects

First Men in the Moon (1964) – producer, visual effects

One Million Years B.C. (1966) – visual effects

The Valley of Gwangi (1969) – producer, visual effects

The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973) – producer, visual effects