''The Colossus of New York'' is a 1958

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstellar ...

from

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

, produced by

William Alland William Alland (March 4, 1916 – November 11, 1997) was an American actor, film producer and writer, mainly of Western and science-fiction/monster films, including ''This Island Earth'', ''It Came From Outer Space'', ''Tarantula!'', ''The Dead ...

, directed by

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 1 ...

, that stars

Ross Martin Ross or ROSS may refer to: People * Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan * Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning * Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland Places * RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...

Otto Kruger Otto Kruger (September 6, 1885 – September 6, 1974) was an American actor, originally a Broadway matinee idol, who established a niche as a charming villain in films, such as Hitchcock's ''Saboteur''. He also appeared in CBS's ''Perry Mason'' a ...

John Baragrey John Baragrey (April 15, 1918 – August 4, 1975) was an American film, television, and stage actor who appeared in virtually every dramatic television series of the 1950s and early 1960s. Early years Baragrey was born in Haleyville, Alabama ...

Mala Powers Mary Ellen "Mala" Powers (December 20, 1931 – June 11, 2007) was an American actress. Early life Powers was born in San Francisco, California, and raised in Los Angeles. Her father was a United Press International, United Press executive, whil ...

, Robert Hutton, and

Charles Herbert Charles Herbert Saperstein (December 23, 1948 – October 31, 2015), known as Charles Herbert, was an American child actor of the 1950s and 1960s. Before reaching his teens, Herbert was renowned by a generation of moviegoers for an on-screen ...

. The screenplay was written by Thelma Schnee, the maiden name of

Thelma Moss Thelma Moss (born Thelma Schnee, January 6, 1918 – February 1, 1997) was an American actress, and later a psychologist and parapsychologist, best known for her work on Kirlian photography and the human aura. Biography Born Thelma Schnee, ...

, who later became a famous parapsychologist. The film's storyline is credited to Willis Goldbeck, while John P. Fulton handled the special photographic effects, and

Wally Westmore Walter 'Wally' James Westmore (February 13, 1906 – July 3, 1973) was a make-up artist for Hollywood films. Westmore was one of six brothers; all became notable film make-up artists. They were Monte, Perc, Ern, Wally, Bud and Frank. Wall ...

handled the makeup.

theatrically released ''Colossus'' in June 1958 as a

double feature The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown. Opera use Opera ho ...

with ''

The Space Children ''The Space Children'' is a 1958 independently made American science-fiction film, produced by William Alland, directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Michel Ray, Jackie Coogan, Russell Johnson, Johnny Crawford, Johnny Washbrook and Richard Shann ...

''. (Note: Certainly not in Los Angeles, where this film opened on November 19, 1958, as the bottom half of a double bill - top half was ''

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' (french: De la Terre à la Lune, trajet direct en 97 heures 20 minutes) is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil W ...

''.) Following an accident, Jeremy Spensser's brain is transplanted by his scientist father into the huge body of an unattractive, frightening

cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.

, to save his brilliant son's mind so that it can continue to serve mankind. Soon, his son's brain becomes transformed by the experimental procedure, losing key attributes that make him human and define his personality.

Plot

Jeremy Spensser (Ross Martin), the brilliant young son of a New York family of scientists and humanitarians, is killed when hit by a truck as he chases his son's toy airplane. His death occurs on the eve of his winning the "International Peace Prize", and he leaves behind a wife (Mala Powers) and young son (Charles Herbert). Jeremy's father, noted

brain surgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the specialty (medicine), medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the Human ...

William Spensser (Otto Kruger), is distressed that his son's gifts will be denied to mankind. He devises a plan to give Jeremy's mind another chance to benefit humanity by transplanting the brain (which he has revived and kept on life support) into an artificial, robotic body. William convinces Jeremy's brother, Henry, an expert in automation, to assist with the process in secret. Because of its horrific appearance, the huge colossus (Ed Wolff) they've created is kept in seclusion for nearly a year, secretly continuing Jeremy's work on new food sources. Deprived of normal human contact and possibly of its "soul", Jeremy's mind slowly begins to lose its humanity. He kills his brother, who has fallen in love with Jeremy's wife, and then speaks to his father of the futility of providing food for "the slum people of the world", when it's "simpler and wiser to get rid of them". As Jeremy's mind loses control of his mechanical body, other unexplained powers suddenly emerge from the strictly mechanical body, including mind control of humans and a

death ray The death ray or death beam was a theoretical particle beam or electromagnetic weapon first theorized around the 1920s and 1930s. Around that time, notable inventors such as Guglielmo Marconi, Nikola Tesla, Harry Grindell Matthews, Edwin R. Scot ...

emanating from both its eyes. Finally, Jeremy's out-of-control body goes on a rampage in the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

building, killing several people. Only when Jeremy's young son confronts the

cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.

is Jeremy able to restore his self-control long enough to tell the boy how to switch off and destroy the body of the "colossus".

Cast

as Dr. Henry Spensser *

as Anne Spensser *

as Dr. William Spensser * Robert Hutton as Dr. John Robert Carrington *

as Dr. Jeremy 'Jerry' Spensser *

as Billy Spensser * Ed Wolff as The Colossus * Roy Engel * George Douglas * Dick Nelson

Release

Home media

Olive Films released ''Colossus of New York'' on Blu-ray June 19, 2012.Olive Films Brings the Original Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Colossus of New York, and The Boogens to Blu-ray this Summer
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Soundtrack

The film is noted for its haunting, minimalistic piano score composed by

Van Cleave Van Cleave (born Nathan Lang Van Cleave, May 8, 1910 – July 3, 1970) was a composer and orchestrator for film, television, and radio. Biography Born in Bayfield, Wisconsin, he played with big bands, including Doc Fenton and his Sooners ...

In other media

The film's

theatrical release poster A film poster is a poster used to promote and advertise a film primarily to persuade paying customers into a theater to see it. Studios often print several posters that vary in size and content for various domestic and international markets. The ...

appears in the 38th episode, titled "Sight", of the UK natural history TV series ''

Eyewitness Eyewitness or eye witness may refer to: Witness * Witness, someone who has knowledge acquired through first-hand experience ** Eyewitness memory ** Eyewitness testimony Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Eyewitness'' (1956 film), a Britis ...

'', when the narrator is discussing the concept of the

Evil Eye The Evil Eye ( grc, ὀφθαλμὸς βάσκανος; grc-koi, ὀφθαλμὸς πονηρός; el, (κακό) μάτι; he, עַיִן הָרָע, ; Romanian: ''Deochi''; it, malocchio; es, mal de ojo; pt, mau-olhado, olho gordo; ar ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Colossus of New York, The 1958 films 1950s science fiction films Cyborg films 1950s English-language films American black-and-white films Films directed by Eugène Lourié American science fiction films 1950s American films