SFX master of stop motion animation whose dreams danced, the legendary RAY HARRYHAUSEN, is gone at 92.
The genius artist behind the one-man showmanship of such classics as Jason and the Argonauts, Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, First Men IN The Moon and Clash of The Titans has gone to the Land Beyond Beyond.
Harryhausen made his models by hand (often with help from his machinist dad) and painstakingly shot them frame by frame to create the illusion of three dimensional life.
His death in London was announced in a statement posted on Facebook by the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
"Harryhausen's genius was in being able to bring his models alive," it reads.
"Whether they were prehistoric dinosaurs or mythological creatures, in Ray's hands they were no longer puppets but became instead characters in their own right."
Born in Los Angeles in June 1920, Raymond Frederick Harryhausen had a passion for all things prehistoric.
Often citing King Kong (1933) as his major inspiration (the King of Kongs created by pioneering SFX genius Willis O’Brien), Harryhausen devoted himself to making the unbelievable real.
Mentored by O’Brien on “Mighty Joe Young” Ray went solo with “The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms” (based on a story penned by lifelong pal Ray Bradbury) and never looked back.
Harryhausen made legends and myths come alive sparking imaginations worldwide – as he breathed life into dinosaurs, rocs, genies, selenites, bronze giants, death dealing deities and his undeniable masterpiece — seven hell-bent skeleton warriors.
There isn’t a filmmaker or artist today who hasn’t been affected by Harryhausen’s wonder world.
Ray bypassed the real for ideal – dream stuff made alive before the flickering mind’s eye of imagination.
For which, WE are eternally grateful.
From the Land beyond Beyond… from the world past hope and fear…I bid you Genie, now appear.
