"The Fog Horn" is a 1951

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

by American writer

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and r ...

, the first in his collection ''

The Golden Apples of the Sun ''The Golden Apples of the Sun'' is an anthology of 22 Short story, short stories by American writer Ray Bradbury. It was published by Doubleday & Company in 1953. The book's title is also the title of the final story in the collection. The w ...

''. The story was the basis for the 1953 film ''

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms ''The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms'' is a 1953 American science fiction monster film directed by Eugène Lourié, with special effects by Ray Harryhausen. The film stars Paul Christian, Paula Raymond, Cecil Kellaway, and Kenneth Tobey. The screenp ...

''.

Plot summary

The plot follows Johnny, the protagonist and narrator, and his boss, McDunn, who are putting in a night's work at a remote lighthouse in late November. The lighthouse's resonating

fog horn A foghorn or fog signal is a device that uses sound to warn vehicles of navigational hazards such as rocky coastlines, or boats of the presence of other vessels, in foggy conditions. The term is most often used in relation to marine transport. W ...

attracts a

sea monster Sea monsters are beings from folklore believed to dwell in the sea and often imagined to be of immense size. Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or tentacled beasts. They can be slimy and scaly and are ofte ...

. This is in fact the third time the monster has visited the lighthouse: he has been attracted by the same fog horn on the same night for the last two years. McDunn attributes the monster's actions to feelings of

unrequited love Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not be aware of the admirer's deep and pure affection, or may consciously reject it. The Merriam Webster Online Dic ...

for the lighthouse, whose fog horn sounds exactly like the wailings of the sea monster himself. The fog horn tricks the monster into thinking he has found another of his kind, one who acts as though the monster did not even exist. McDunn and Johnny turn off the fog horn, and in a rage, the monster destroys the lighthouse before retreating to the sea. The lighthouse is reconstructed with reinforced concrete and Johnny finds a new job away from the lighthouse. Years later, Johnny returns and asks McDunn if the monster ever returned; it never did. McDunn hypothesizes that the monster will continue to wait in the depths of the world.

Background

The original title of the story was "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms". It was published in ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...

''. Meanwhile, a film with a similar theme of prehistoric sea monster was being shot under the working title of ''Monster from Beneath the Sea''. Later the producers, who wished to capitalize on Bradbury's reputation and popularity, bought the rights to Bradbury's story and changed their film's title. Bradbury then changed the title of his story to "The Fog Horn". The monster of the film was based on the illustration of ''The Saturday Evening Post''. Bradbury says that the idea for the story came from seeing the ruins of a demolished roller coaster on a Los Angeles-area beach. The tracks suggested a dinosaur skeleton. He credits this story with earning him the attention of

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

, who engaged Bradbury to write the screenplay for the 1956 film version of ''Moby Dick''. The story was reprinted in various collections including the 1953 publication ''

'', the Japanese publications '' The Fog Horn & Other Stories'' in 1979 and '' The Fog Horn and Other Stories'' in 1981 (both editions were published in English also), and finally '' Dinosaur Tales'' in 1983.

Adaptations

The story was the basis for the 1953 film ''

''. A play based on the short story was included in Bradbury's ''

Pillar of Fire and Other Plays ''Pillar of Fire and Other Plays'' (1975) is a collection of three plays by Ray Bradbury: '' Pillar of Fire'', ''Kaleidoscope'', and '' The Foghorn''. All are adaptations of his short stories of the same names. The genre of these works is science ...

'' in 1975. The plot in the thirteenth episode of ''

Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...

'', "Mystery at the Lighthouse" (1997), is based on this short story.

Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, then ...

stated that this story was part of the inspiration behind the 1986 film '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home''. In 1953 in the comic book ''Tales of Horror'' #7 an uncredited version of this story is presented as "The Beast From The Deep", and has cover story art clearly derivative of the original story. An official comic adaptation was produced in 1993 in

Topps Comics Topps Comics was a division of Topps, Topps Company, Inc. that published comic books from 1993 to 1998, beginning its existence during a short comics-industry boom that attracted many investors and new companies. It was based in New York City, at ...

' Ray Bradbury Comics #3. The 2020 crowdfunded Japanese short film ''Howl from Beyond the Fog'' was inspired by the story, with director Daisuke Sato having previously adapted the story as a 20 minute short fan-film in 2007 as a technical exercise. The influence of the short story contributed to the creation of the ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...

'' franchise.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fog Horn, The 1951 short stories Short stories by Ray Bradbury Science fiction short stories Fantasy short stories Fiction about dinosaurs Loch Ness Monster in fiction Nautical short stories Works originally published in The Saturday Evening Post Short stories adapted into films