PLANET OF DINOSAURS (1978) Behind-The-Scenes Effects Gallery

Animator Jim Aupperle

I'm very fond of the 1978 sci-fi film Planet Of Dinosaurs. Sure, it's cheap as hell and the script is banal and the performances by the subpar cast are marginal, at best. But it is one of the last, great stop-motion animation special effects movies, with tons of terrific FX sequences by Jim Aupperle, Doug Beswick and Stephen Czerkas (Aupperle & Czerkas had both worked on Flesh Gordon and would go directly from this production to create stop-motion sequences for Filmations' Jason Of Star Command, while Beswick went on to The Empire Strikes Back).

Space: 1970 is proud to share this gallery of behind-the-scenes shots, courtesy of Mark Wolf, with the Star Kids Alliance and other Old School effects fans. For my money, there's nothing like practical, handcrafted miniatures and animation models, brought to life by skillful artists and technicians "in camera."

I'm not going to go off on a long-winded rant about today's "soulless CGI"... but no matter how spectacular and entertaining much of it is, consider this: I can't name a single computer effects creator I admire, while I can name several dozen practical effects artists whose work I can recognize on sight and enjoy over and over again.

Countdown: this is Space: 1970 post #999...

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #53: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA

While Lieutenant Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) catches up on the day's news between takes, the talented (and extraordinarily patient) chimpanzee who portrayed the robot daggit, Muffy, gets some fresh air. I'll never understand how the producers ever found a  chimp who could stand working in that suit, especially since that head had so many little motors in it. Good thing he (or she) wasn't claustrophobic!

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #52: THE BLACK HOLE

When the inevitable robot rebellion comes... will it look like this?

Some of the cybernetic stars of Gary Nelson's 1979 sci-fi epic for Disney, The Black Hole, pose for a group portrait, presumably during a UK publicity tour. The 'bots are on the Gateshead side of the River Tyne with the Tyne Bridge in the background.

Thanks to Star Kid Jeremy Briggs, who identified the location of the photo over on the Space: 1970 Facebook page.

JASON OF STAR COMMAND (1978) Stop-Motion Monster

Stephen Czerkas with his monster.
Photo ©Mark Wolf. All rights Reserved. Used With Permission.

Back in 1978, producer and special effects artist Mark Wolf dropped by the studio where the team of Stephen Czerkas and Jim Aupperle - both veterans of Planet of Dinosaurs - were slaving away producing stop-motion animated sequences for Filmation's ambitious live-action Saturday morning space opera, Jason Of Star Command. During his visit, he snapped these exclusive, behind-the-scenes photos of the monster of the week - an insectoid alien with an electric tongue(!) featured in the first season episode, "Planet of the Lost!"

 The Jason monster designs and filming models were outstanding (as the photos show) and the animation always top-notch... even if the animators, due to the network's restrictions on violent action, found their work extra challenging at times.

According to Mark, "I recall Steve and his partner, DP/animator Jim Aupperle, both remarking about how the show went to extreme lengths not to do anything too violent, which put a crimp in delivering anything  too  dramatic for Saturday mornings.  I believe it was Jim who said, 'How are the humans supposed to fight-off the monsters?  Use harsh language?'"

Photo ©Mark Wolf. All rights Reserved. Used With Permission.

Photo ©Mark Wolf. All rights Reserved. Used With Permission.

Photo ©Mark Wolf. All rights Reserved. Used With Permission.

As fans of the series - which I'm guessing is pretty much every reader of this blog - knows, the effects work on Jason was truly exceptional, going far above and beyond anything else produced for Saturday morning kid shows of the time. Much of the work was of feature film quality. Even today, most of it still holds up, especially the imaginative (and plentiful) stop-motion alien monsters.

Special Star Kid thanks to Mark Wolf for sharing these photos with Space: 1970.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (1978) "Super Sets"

From the Miami Herald's TV section for the week of August 6-12, 1978, here's a fairly in-depth interview with the original Battlestar Galactica's art director Jack Chilberg, discussing the forthcoming space epic's impressive sets and production design. Hell, even today, the Galactica's bridge is still one of the most impressive sets from any science fiction series, with its vast, multi-leveled size and functioning details.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #51: STARCRASH

Star Caroline Munro and director Luigi Cozzi pose with the miniature of Count Zarth Arn's unique and menacing claw-shaped flagship during the shooting of the enjoyably goofy Starcrash in 1977-78.

SPACE: 1999 Raw Effects Footage

This is pretty cool: raw effects footage from Brian Johnson's Space: 1999 SFX team, of various Eagle transporter landings, on Moonbase Alpha pads and alien landscapes. I think it really demonstrates the care and precision that went into shooting the miniature effects in those pre-CGI days.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #50: PLANET OF THE APES

Who says apes and humans can't get along? Here are a couple of gorillas playing cards with their usual prey between takes on the set of 1968's seminal anthropoid epic, Planet Of The Apes.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #49: ALIEN

An effects technician (possibly Jon Sorensen) works on the otherworldly derelict miniature from Ridley Scott's classic 1979 space horror flick, Alien. As you may have noted by now, I'm a huge fan of practical effects work - especially miniatures - and I find these kinds of behind-the-scenes shots fascinating.

LOGAN'S RUN (1976) Studio Press Tour

Here's an interesting look behind the scenes at the making of Michael Anderson's Logan's Run feature, via a 1975 MGM press publicity tour. We get brief glimpses of Anderson, producer Saul David and costume designer Bill Thomas, who shows off a few of the film's costumes, including a rather different Sandman uniform than the one actually used in the final movie.

It also looks like it's David Hasselhoff (Starcrash) modelling the Sandman uniform, though I can't positively confirm it. If it isn't him, the resemblance is striking!

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #48: BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS

From the 1980 Roger Corman-produced Battle Beyond The Stars (probably my favorite of the Star Wars feature film rip-offs): the New World effects crew carefully sets up a shot featuring the intricately-detailed Hesphastus Station miniature.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #47: THE HUMANOID

An Italian effects crew sets up a miniature shot during production of 1979's The Humanoid, director Aldo Lado's answer to Star Wars, starring Richard Kiel and Barbara Bach. I finally got to see the film last year, and while it's not as much fun as Starcrash, it is enjoyably goofy.

I actually thought the spaceship miniatures were pretty decent (as evidenced above), even if the effects techniques themselves were primitive in comparison to their Hollywood competitors.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #46: KING KONG

Jessica Lange is in good hands in this rare behind-the-scenes shot of the full-scale animatronic gorilla arms built for Dino de Laurentiis' production of King Kong, on the blue-screen stage in 1975-76. Carlo Rambaldi's much-hyped, life-size robot Kong turned out to be an unconvincing dud, but these robot appendages were actually pretty remarkable feats of 70s engineering...

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #45: ARK II

Hollywood sci-fi legend Robby The Robot awaits his cue on location during filming of Filmation's 1976 post-Apocalyptic adventure series, Ark II. In the episode, Robby portrayed Alpha-One, a robot created by Ark II crewmember Samuel (José Flores), who nobly sacrifices himself to save his organic comrades. 

A much in-demand automaton, Robby guested on a number of Space: 1970 favorites, including Project U.F.O., Space Academy, Wonder Woman and Mork & Mindy.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #44: THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN

The bionic man himself (clad in iconic red track suit), Lee Majors, hangs with the original Dr. Rudy Wells, noted actor Martin Balsam, on location at Edwards Air Force Base during the shooting of the original Six Million Dollar Man television movie/series pilot in 1973.

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #43: LAND OF THE LOST

One of Gene Warren's animators brings stop-motion "life" to the Marshall family's pet brontosaurus, Dopey, for the 1974 Saturday morning science fiction series, Land Of The Lost. When I was a kid, I loved that baby dino....

STARCRASH (1978) Deleted Quicksand Scene

Watching Luigi Cozzi's deliriously over-the-top (and endlessly entertaining) 1978 space opera Starcrash, it's hard to imagine that anything was cut out. It is simply so jam-packed with action and low budget spectacle, the mind boggles when it's learned that a prominent setpiece was left on the cutting room floor.

In the finished film, immediately following the curvaceous Stella Star's (Caroline Munro) escape from the Imperial prison, she flees through a marsh-like area where she comes across a spaceship conveniently waiting for her. Originally, though, the scene was to play out with her being pursued by armored guards and falling into a deadly quicksand pit! Another close call for space smuggler Stella!

I can't imagine that poor Caroline was pleased to see the scene excised from the finished flick, especially since, from these rare stills, it looks like it was probably a pretty unpleasant couple of day's shooting for the scantily-clad sci-fi siren!

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #42: BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS

A young James Cameron works on a matte painting of the Akira village from Roger Corman's 1980 epic space opera, Battle Beyond The Stars. The multi-talented, future Academy Award-winning director Cameron handled a number of special effects and design duties on the film, including designing and building the main starship, Nell.

Behind-The Scenes Pix #41: STAR WARS

I missed it, but yesterday was George Lucas' 69th birthday. Like every first-generation Star Wars fan, I have my issues with Lucas' choices and handling of the franchise he's created over the years... but I cannot forget that it's ultimately his vision, and we're all just very lucky to have had a chance to share in it. Star Wars changed the world - and the lives of plenty of Star Kids - in a lot of ways, and it all started with Lucas.

Here's the man himself, directing Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford on the set, way back in 1976...

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #40: PLANET OF THE APES

Actor Maurice Evans, made up for his role as Dr. Zaius, enjoys a cigarette between takes on location during the filming of Franklin Schaffner's Planet Of The Apes in 1967.