Mighty Joe Young
Encyclopedia
Mighty Joe Young is a 1949 RKO Radio Pictures film made by the same creative team responsible for King Kong
(1933).
Written and produced by Merian C. Cooper
(who provided the story) and
Ruth Rose
(screenplay), and directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack
, it tells the story of a young woman, 'Jill Young', played by Terry Moore
, living on her father's farm in Africa
, who ends up bringing the title character — a giant ape
— to Hollywood. The movie co-stars Ben Johnson
, as 'Gregg', in his first major role.
Willis O'Brien
, who created the animation for King Kong, was the supervisor of special effects on this film, although by some accounts the majority of the animation was performed by Ray Harryhausen
. The models (constructed by Kong's builder Marcel Delgado
) and animation are more sophisticated than King Kong, containing more subtle gestures and even some comedic elements, such as the chase scene where Joe is riding in the back of a speeding truck and spits at his pursuers. Despite this increased technical sophistication, this film, like Kong, features some serious scale issues, with Joe noticeably changing size between many shots. (The title character is not supposed to be as large as Kong - perhaps 10–12 feet tall.) Harryhausen has attributed these lapses to producer Cooper, who insisted Joe appear larger in some scenes for dramatic effect.
Buoyed by the enormous success of King Kong in 1933 and its profitable theatrical reissues in 1938, 1942, and 1946, RKO had great hopes for Mighty Joe Young. Upon its release in 1949, the film was honored with an Academy Award for Special Effects (a category that did not exist in 1933 for King Kong), however, it was unsuccessful at the box office and, as a result, plans to produce a sequel tentatively titled "Joe Meets Tarzan" were quickly dropped. The film has become a minor classic, and has an affectionate following. Special effects artists consider it highly influential, with the elaborate orphanage rescue sequence lauded as one of the great stop-motion sequences in film history. It was remade
in 1998 with Charlize Theron
playing Jill and Bill Paxton
as Gregg.
, whom he throws into the audience), but the novelty wears off and he is tired and homesick after seventeen weeks of performing. An ill-conceived skit with Jill as an organ-grinder leaves Joe (and Jill) storming off-stage, and, to make matters worse, three drunks sneak backstage and ply Joe with liquor. Intoxicated, he breaks out of his cage and into the club, his rampage turning lions loose and inflicting massive damage. A court orders him shot.
Jill, Gregg, and O'Hara cook up a plan to get Joe out of the country, but on the way to a ship, they stop to rescue children from a burning orphanage, and Joe redeems himself. The film ends with O'Hara receiving home movies from his friends in Africa, letting the audience know that Joe is going to be all right.
, the other nominee being the film Tulsa
.
King Kong (1933 film)
King Kong is a Pre-Code 1933 fantasy monster adventure film co-directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, and written by Ruth Rose and James Ashmore Creelman after a story by Cooper and Edgar Wallace. The film tells of a gigantic island-dwelling apeman creature called Kong who dies in...
(1933).
Written and produced by Merian C. Cooper
Merian C. Cooper
Merian Caldwell Cooper was an American aviator, United States Air Force and Polish Air Force officer, adventurer, screenwriter, and film director and producer. His most famous film was the 1933 movie King Kong.-Early life:...
(who provided the story) and
Ruth Rose
Ruth Rose
Ruth Rose was a writer who worked on several films in the 1930s and the 1940s, most famously the original 1933 classic King Kong.-Early life:...
(screenplay), and directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack
Ernest B. Schoedsack
Ernest Beaumont Schoedsack was an American motion picture cinematographer, director, and producer.Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Schoedsack is probably best remembered for being the co-director of the 1933 film, King Kong....
, it tells the story of a young woman, 'Jill Young', played by Terry Moore
Terry Moore (actress)
Helen Luella Koford , better known as Terry Moore, is an American actress. Terry Moore made her film debut at age 11 and grew up with all the icons of the Hollywood era that made Hollywood what it is today, also known as "The Golden Age of Hollywood". Moore is an Academy Award nominated actress...
, living on her father's farm in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, who ends up bringing the title character — a giant ape
Ape
Apes are Old World anthropoid mammals, more specifically a clade of tailless catarrhine primates, belonging to the biological superfamily Hominoidea. The apes are native to Africa and South-east Asia, although in relatively recent times humans have spread all over the world...
— to Hollywood. The movie co-stars Ben Johnson
Ben Johnson (actor)
Ben "Son" Johnson, Jr. was an American motion picture actor who was mainly cast in Westerns. He was also a rodeo cowboy, stuntman, and rancher.-Personal life:...
, as 'Gregg', in his first major role.
Willis O'Brien
Willis O'Brien
Willis Harold O'Brien was an Irish American pioneering motion picture special effects artist who perfected and specialized in stop-motion animation. He was affectionately known to his family and close friends as "Obie"....
, who created the animation for King Kong, was the supervisor of special effects on this film, although by some accounts the majority of the animation was performed by Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen
Ray Harryhausen is an American film producer and special effects creator...
. The models (constructed by Kong's builder Marcel Delgado
Marcel Delgado
Marcel Delgado was a sculptor and model-maker. His technique revolutionized the stop motion film industry. He is best known for his work on the 1933 film King Kong....
) and animation are more sophisticated than King Kong, containing more subtle gestures and even some comedic elements, such as the chase scene where Joe is riding in the back of a speeding truck and spits at his pursuers. Despite this increased technical sophistication, this film, like Kong, features some serious scale issues, with Joe noticeably changing size between many shots. (The title character is not supposed to be as large as Kong - perhaps 10–12 feet tall.) Harryhausen has attributed these lapses to producer Cooper, who insisted Joe appear larger in some scenes for dramatic effect.
Buoyed by the enormous success of King Kong in 1933 and its profitable theatrical reissues in 1938, 1942, and 1946, RKO had great hopes for Mighty Joe Young. Upon its release in 1949, the film was honored with an Academy Award for Special Effects (a category that did not exist in 1933 for King Kong), however, it was unsuccessful at the box office and, as a result, plans to produce a sequel tentatively titled "Joe Meets Tarzan" were quickly dropped. The film has become a minor classic, and has an affectionate following. Special effects artists consider it highly influential, with the elaborate orphanage rescue sequence lauded as one of the great stop-motion sequences in film history. It was remade
Mighty Joe Young (1998 film)
The Music was composed and conduced by James Horner. The Soundtrack was released on December of the year 1998.- Tracklist :...
in 1998 with Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
playing Jill and Bill Paxton
Bill Paxton
William "Bill" Paxton is an American actor and film director. He gained popularity after starring roles in the films Apollo 13, Twister, Aliens, True Lies, and Titanic...
as Gregg.
Plot
After being taken from his home in Africa, Joe is an instant hit in the Hollywood nightclub "The Golden Safari" (on opening night, he wins a tug-of-war with ten real-life strong men, including ex-boxer Primo CarneraPrimo Carnera
Primo Carnera was an Italian boxer, nicknamed the Ambling Alp, who became the world heavyweight champion.-Biography:...
, whom he throws into the audience), but the novelty wears off and he is tired and homesick after seventeen weeks of performing. An ill-conceived skit with Jill as an organ-grinder leaves Joe (and Jill) storming off-stage, and, to make matters worse, three drunks sneak backstage and ply Joe with liquor. Intoxicated, he breaks out of his cage and into the club, his rampage turning lions loose and inflicting massive damage. A court orders him shot.
Jill, Gregg, and O'Hara cook up a plan to get Joe out of the country, but on the way to a ship, they stop to rescue children from a burning orphanage, and Joe redeems himself. The film ends with O'Hara receiving home movies from his friends in Africa, letting the audience know that Joe is going to be all right.
Cast
- Terry MooreTerry Moore (actress)Helen Luella Koford , better known as Terry Moore, is an American actress. Terry Moore made her film debut at age 11 and grew up with all the icons of the Hollywood era that made Hollywood what it is today, also known as "The Golden Age of Hollywood". Moore is an Academy Award nominated actress...
as Jill Young - Ben JohnsonBen Johnson (actor)Ben "Son" Johnson, Jr. was an American motion picture actor who was mainly cast in Westerns. He was also a rodeo cowboy, stuntman, and rancher.-Personal life:...
as Gregg - Robert ArmstrongRobert Armstrong (actor)Robert Armstrong was an American film actor best remembered for his role as Carl Denham in the 1933 version of King Kong by RKO Pictures. He uttered the famous exit quote, "'Twas beauty killed the beast," at the film's end...
as Max O'Hara - Frank McHughFrank McHughFrancis Curray "Frank" McHugh was an American film and television actor.Born in Homestead, Pennsylvania, McHugh came from a theatrical family. His parents ran a stock theatre company and as a young child he performed on stage...
as Windy - Douglas FowleyDouglas FowleyDouglas Fowley was an American movie and television actor.Fowley was born Daniel Vincent Fowley in The Bronx, New York. The 5'11" actor is probably best remembered for his role as the movie director Roscoe Dexter in Singin' in the Rain . The actor appeared in over 240 films and later in dozens of...
as Jones - Denis Green as Crawford
- Paul GuilfoylePaul Guilfoyle (actor born in 1902)Paul Guilfoyle was an American stage, film, and television actor...
as Smith - Nestor PaivaNestor PaivaNestor Paiva was an American actor of Portuguese descent who portrayed the innkeeper on Walt Disney's live-action television series Zorro by ABC and its feature film The Sign of Zorro which was shot in Burbank's Walt Disney Studios.-Career:Nestor appeared in motion pictures and television shows...
as Brown - Regis ToomeyRegis ToomeyJohn Regis Toomey was an American film and television actor.-Early life:Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was one of four children of Francis X. and Mary Ellen Toomey and attended Peabody High School...
as John Young - Lora Lee Michel as Jill Young, as a girl
- Paul StaderPaul StaderPaul B. Stader, sometimes known as Manny Stader , was an American actor best known for having performed stunts for Johnny Weismuller, Lex Barker, Gregory Peck, and John Wayne. He was also the underwater director of the 1978 film The Return of Captain Nemo.-Working with Weismuller and Barker:Stader...
as Ben Johnson's double - Mahone T. Scott as Mighty Joe Young's double*
Awards
Mighty Joe Young won the Academy Award for Best Visual EffectsAcademy Award for Visual Effects
The Academy Award for Visual Effects is an Academy Award given for the best achievement in visual effects.-History of the award:The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first recognized the technical contributions of special effects to movies at its inaugural dinner in 1928, presenting a...
, the other nominee being the film Tulsa
Tulsa (film)
Tulsa is a 1949 Technicolor film that was directed by Stuart Heisler and starred Susan Hayward, Robert Preston, Lloyd Gough, Chill Wills , and featured Ed Begley in one of his earliest film roles, billed as Edward Begley....
.
See also
- List of American films of 1949
- Mighty Joe YoungMighty Joe Young (1998 film)The Music was composed and conduced by James Horner. The Soundtrack was released on December of the year 1998.- Tracklist :...
(the 1998 remake) - List of stop-motion films
- King KongKing KongKing Kong is a fictional character, a giant movie monster resembling a gorilla, that has appeared in several movies since 1933. These include the groundbreaking 1933 movie, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, as well as various sequels of the first two films...