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The Giant Behemoth
''The Giant Behemoth'' is a 1959 British-American science fiction giant monster film directed by Eugène Lourié, with special effects by Willis H. O'Brien, Pete Peterson, Irving Block, Jack Rabin, and Louis de Witt. The film stars Gene Evans and André Morell. The screenplay was written by blacklisted author Daniel Lewis James (under the name "Daniel Hyatt") with director Lourié. Originally a story about an amorphous blob of radiation, the script was changed at the distributor's insistence to a style similar to ''The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms'' (1953), though elements of the original concept remain in the early parts of the film and in the "nuclear-breathing" power of the titular monster. Plot Scientist Steve Karnes delivers a speech to a British scientific society, led by Professor James Bickford, about the dangers to marine life posed by nuclear testing. Before Karnes can return to the United States, a real-life example of his concern materialises when a fisherman in Looe, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eugène Lourié
Eugène Lourié (russian: Евгений Лурье; 8 April 1903 – 26 May 1991) was a French film director, art director, production designer, set designer and screenwriter who was known for his collaborations with Jean Renoir and for his 1950s science fiction movies. Allmovie contributor Sandra Brennan has written that he was "among the best art directors in French cinema." He was nominated for an Academy Award in 1969 for Best Visual Effects on the film ''Krakatoa, East of Java''. Early life Lourié was born in Kharkov, Russian Empire in 1903. His first experience with cinema was in 1911 when a movie theater opened in Kharkov. In 1919, he worked on an anti-communist film titled ''Black Crowes''. After he fled from the Soviet Union, he made his way to Istanbul. While there he made money for a fare to Paris, France by painting and drawing movie posters. He even slept in the theater on top of a piano to save money. Film career In the 1930s, he worked as a production designe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Greater London to the south and south-west. There are three cities in Essex: Southend, Colchester and Chelmsford, in order of population. For the purposes of government statistics, Essex is placed in the East of England region. There are four definitions of the extent of Essex, the widest being the ancient county. Next, the largest is the former postal county, followed by the ceremonial county, with the smallest being the administrative county—the area administered by the County Council, which excludes the two unitary authorities of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea. The ceremonial county occupies the eastern part of what was, during the Early Middle Ages, the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Essex. As well as rural areas and urban areas, it forms ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stop-motion Animation
Stop motion is an animated filmmaking technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exhibit independent motion or change when the series of frames is played back. Any kind of object can thus be animated, but puppets with movable joints (puppet animation) or plasticine figures (''clay animation'' or claymation) are most commonly used. Puppets, models or clay figures built around an armature are used in model animation. Stop motion with live actors is often referred to as pixilation. Stop motion of flat materials such as paper, fabrics or photographs is usually called cutout animation. Terminology The term "stop motion", relating to the animation technique, is often spelled with a hyphen as "stop-motion". Both orthographical variants, with and without the hyphen, are correct, but the hyphenated one has a second meaning that is unrelated to animation or cinema: "a device for automatical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julian Somers
John Julian Somers (12 November 1903 – 11 November 1976), known as Julian Somers, was a prolific English stage and screen actor. Career By 1934, Somers was appearing in rep at Croydon. In 1937, he was on stage in Jeffrey Dell's play '' Night Alone'' at the Embassy Theatre with Alexander Archdale. In 1944, he appeared as the White Rabbit in a stage production of ''Alice in Wonderland''. Early film roles came in ''The Peterville Diamond'' (1942) and '' Caravan'' (1946). Outside his developing screen career as a supporting actor, Somers continued to be heard in BBC radio productions and to appear in West End theatre plays and reviews. Private life In October 1939, Somers was living with his mother, Ethel M. Somers, at Wolnoth, Park Lane, Leatherhead, and was registered as an actor. In the summer of 1950, he married Betty Margaret Newcombe at Finsbury. They had three sons and a daughter. Death Somers died in London in 1976, aged 72. At the time of his death, he was living at 33 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leonard Sachs
Leonard Meyer Sachs (26 September 1909 – 15 June 1990) was a South African-born British actor. Life and career Sachs was born in the town of Roodepoort, in the then Transvaal Colony, present day South Africa. He was Jewish. He emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1929 and had many television and film roles from the 1930s to the 1980s, including Mowbray in the 1950 BBC Television version of '' Richard II'', John Wesley in the 1954 film of the same name and Lord Mount Severn in ''East Lynne'' from 1976. He founded an Old Time Music Hall, named the Players' Theatre, in Villiers Street, Charing Cross, London. He appeared as the Chairman of the Leeds City Varieties in the long-running BBC television series '' The Good Old Days'', which ran from 1953 to 1983, and became known for his elaborate, sesquipedalian introductions of the performers. Sachs was honoured in a 1977 episode of '' This Is Your Life''. Sachs appeared in ''Danger Man'' with Patrick McGoohan. He had two appea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maurice Kaufmann
Maurice Harington Kaufmann (29 June 1927 – 21 September 1997) was a British actor of stage, film and television, who specialised in whodunits and horror films, from 1954 to 1981, when he retired. Personal life He was married to Honor Blackman from 1961 to 1975; they appeared together in the film, '' Fright'' (1971). They adopted two children, daughter Lottie and son Barnaby, before divorcing in 1975. Death Maurice Kaufmann died in 1997 in London from cancer, aged 70. He was nursed, on his deathbed, by his ex-wife, Honor Blackman. Selected filmography * ''Appointment in London'' (1953) as Raf Officer (uncredited) * ''The Angel Who Pawned Her Harp'' (1954) as Reg * ''Beau Brummell'' (1954) as Lord Alvanley (uncredited) * ''To Dorothy a Son'' (1954) as Elmer the Pianist * ''Companions in Crime'' (1954) as Arnold Kendall * ''Three Cases of Murder'' (1955) as Pemberton (segment "You Killed Elizabeth") * ''The Love Match'' (1955) as Harry Longworth * ''The Quatermass Xperiment'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack MacGowran
John Joseph MacGowran (13 October 1918 – 30 January 1973) was an Irish actor, probably best known for his work with Samuel Beckett. Stage career MacGowran was born on 13 October 1918 in Dublin, and educated at Synge Street CBS. He established his professional reputation as a member of the Abbey Players in Dublin, while he achieved stage renown for his knowing interpretations of the works of Samuel Beckett. He appeared as Lucky in '' Waiting for Godot'' at the Royal Court Theatre, and with the Royal Shakespeare Company in ''Endgame'' at the Aldwych Theatre. He released an LP record titled ''MacGowran Speaking Beckett'' to coincide with Samuel Beckett's 60th birthday in 1966, and he won the 1970–71 Obie for Best Performance By an Actor in the off-Broadway play ''MacGowran in the Works of Beckett''. He also specialised in the work of Seán O'Casey, creating the role of Joxer in the Broadway musical ''Juno'' in 1959, based on ''Juno and the Paycock'', O'Casey's 1924 play abo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Turner (actor)
John Turner (born 7 July 1932) is a British television actor. Career One of Turner's most recognisable roles was that of Roderick Spode (6 episodes, 1991–1993) in the ITV television series ''Jeeves and Wooster'', based on the P. G. Wodehouse novels. He had performed the same role earlier in his career at Her Majesty's Theatre, London in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical flop ''Jeeves''. Turner made his television debut in 1957, playing a hillbilly in ''Operation Fracture''. In 1963 he appeared in 5/13 episodes of ''The Sentimental Agent'' as Bill Randall and in four episodes replaced the lead character played by Carlos Thompson. In a career that lasted more than 40 years, he also appeared in 36 episodes of ''Knight Errant Limited'' as Adam Knight (1959–1960), as well as in episodes of ''Z-Cars'' (1967), ''The Saint'' (1968), ''The Champions'' (1968), ''Fall of Eagles'' (1974), the TV mini series ''Lorna Doone'' (1976), '' Heartbeat'' (1992), ''The Adventures of Young India ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
X-class Submarine
The X class was a World War II midget submarine class built for the Royal Navy during 1943–44. It was substantially larger than the original Chariot manned torpedo. Known individually as X-Craft, the vessels were designed to be towed to their intended area of operations by a full-size "mother" submarine – usually one of the T class or S class – with a passage crew on board, the operational crew being transferred from the towing submarine to the X-Craft by dinghy when the operational area was reached, and the passage crew returning with the dinghy to the towing submarine. Once the attack was over, the X-Craft would rendezvous with the towing submarine and then be towed home. Range was limited primarily by the endurance and determination of their crews, but was thought to be up to 14 days in the craft or 1,200 miles (1931 km) distance after suitable training. Actual range of the X-Craft itself was surfaced and at submerged. Specification The craft was about long ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
London Bridge
Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It replaced a 19th-century stone-arched bridge, which in turn superseded a 600-year-old stone-built medieval structure. This was preceded by a succession of timber bridges, the first of which was built by the Roman founders of London. The current bridge stands at the western end of the Pool of London and is positioned upstream from previous alignments. The approaches to the medieval bridge were marked by the church of St Magnus-the-Martyr on the northern bank and by Southwark Cathedral on the southern shore. Until Putney Bridge opened in 1729, London Bridge was the only road crossing of the Thames downstream of Kingston upon Thames. London Bridge has been depicted in its several forms, in art, literature, and songs, including the nursery rh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Woolwich Ferry
The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of Transport for London (TfL). Around two million passengers use the ferry each year. A ferry has operated on the Thames at Woolwich since the 14th century, and commercial crossings operated intermittently until the mid-19th. The free service opened in 1889 after tolls were abolished on bridges to the west of London. Traffic increased in the 20th century because of the rise in motor vehicle traffic and it remained popular because of the lack of nearby bridges. Pedestrian use dropped after the construction of a parallel foot tunnel and the extension of the Docklands Light Railway to Woolwich Arsenal station. Alternatives such as the Thames Gateway Bridge and Gallions Reach Crossing have been proposed as replacements, but there are no plans to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is consequently known as the Senior Service. From the middle decades of the 17th century, and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century, it was the world's most powerful navy until the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing and defending the British Empire, and four Imperial fortress colonies and a string of imperial bases and coaling stations secured the Royal Navy's ability to assert naval superiority globally. Owing to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, to ref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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