The great Ray Harryhausen passed away this week. He was a master of stop motion animation and his influence was enormous on the film industry.
While he was known for all the great monsters that he brought to life in such films as Jason and the Argonauts, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and Clash of the Titans when he was just starting out and in between jobs Harryhausen made five short animated films based on children’s fairy tales. The Storybook Review, The Story of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’, The Story of ‘Rapunzel’, The Story of ‘Hansel and Gretel’ and The Story of King Midas. A sixth one was started but never completed because Harryhausen moved on to a couple of Hollywood movies. The Story of ‘The Tortoise & the Hare’ was finally completed in 2002, almost fifty years later by a couple of fans with the help of Harryhausen, who still had most of the sets and miniatures in storage.
These shorts helped Ray Harryhausen polish his craft but they’re not as cool as his monsters. Still he will be missed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hO5bfdd6Has
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg1v5HkpdEA
