PICTURE OF THE DAY:  KING KONG (1933)

 

 

Wow!  What a bust!

 

Here’s a behind-the-scenes picture from the greatest monster movie ever made, the original KING KONG (1933). 

 

Several models were used for Kong in this 1933 classic.  The most famous were the 18 inch varieties used for the stop motion animation sequences filmed with precision by Willis O’Brien.  

 

But larger models were used as well.  A large model of Kong’s hand was built, for instance, which was used for close-ups with Fay Wray.  And as depicted in this photo, the enormous bust and head of Kong.  The full-sized head was used for shots of Kong’s face as he chewed on his victims.

 

I wish I had this in my backyard for Halloween.  Wouldn’t it be nice if these models survived the decades, surfaced, and were put on display in a museum? 

 

The amazing special effects still hold up today, so much so, that most of the action in KING KONG involving Kong and the various dinosaurs on Skull Island looks realistic.  No CGI back in the 1930s, and so it was all stop-motion animation by special effects genius Willis O’Brien.

 

This picture comes from a site called THE RED LIST, located at – http://theredlist.fr/wiki-2-20-777-779-view-1930-1940-profile-1933-bking-kong-b-eb-schoedsack-mc-cooper-c-clark-a-herman-t-little-r-moyer.html.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

—Michael