Tom Graeff
Encyclopedia
Thomas Lockyear "Tom" Graeff (September 12, 1929 - December 19, 1970) was an American
screenwriter, director and actor. He is known for the 1959 b-movie
Teenagers from Outer Space
.
to an engineer father and homemaker mother. When he was a toddler the family relocated to Los Angeles
where a second son was born. As a teen, Graeff enrolled in the UCLA Theater Arts Program, where he studied film making and theater.
fraternity life entitled Toast to Our Brother, which starred Graeff, a Paramount ingenue named Judith Ames (later Rachel Ames
), and guest-starred comedian Joe E. Brown
(Some Like it Hot
), a UCLA alumni. The film premiered at the Fox Village Theater
in Westwood Village
during Graeff's senior year at college.
Graeff's next film was a 16-minute recruiting film for Orange Coast College
in Costa Mesa, California
. The Orange Coast College Story was narrated by Vincent Price
, who was a friend of the faculty adviser, and starred a young actor named Chuck Roberts (aka Charles Robert Kaltenthaler). It premiered on campus in spring of 1954.
Graeff began production on his first feature, The Noble Experiment in the summer of 1954. The comedy, shot in Orange County
, took a year to complete and premiered in Newport Beach, California
, in August, 1955. Graeff played the lead opposite a local beauty queen. The film was not well received by the audience and was only shown once more, years later. Around this time, Graeff also produced a short art film, Island Sunrise, starring Chuck Roberts.
After completing his most well known film, Teenagers from Outer Space
, Graeff's final credit was as an editor on David L. Hewitt's 1964 ultra low-budget film The Wizard of Mars
.
's assistant on Not of This Earth
. He also played a small role. When filming wrapped, Graeff decided to pen a science-fiction feature of his own and look for funding. Securing a modest budget from actor Gene Sterling, Graeff placed an ad in the Hollywood Reporter looking for more investors. The ad was answered by British actor Bryan Pearson, who put up $5000 in exchange for playing the villain, Thor, and casting his wife Ursula Pearson
in a small role.
Filmed entirely on location in Hollywood, California in the fall of 1956 and winter of 1957, the low-budget film went through several titles before it was released by Warner Brothers in June 1959. Though the film was profitable, Tom and his investors saw no money from the release. Bryan Pearson
eventually sued Graeff to get his original investment back.
Teenagers appeared as the lower part of a double bill alongside the second Godzilla
film, Gigantis the Fire Monster, and was shown almost exclusively at drive-in theater
s throughout the country. Critics were not kind to the film, though Graeff was applauded in some publications as a director with talent and a creative approach to a minimal budget.
proclaiming that he was to be called Jesus Christ II, and that God had shown him truth and love. A second ad appeared on Christmas Day and listed several sermon dates at local churches. That ad was quickly pulled from rotation. The next year, Graeff filed to have his name legally changed to Jesus Christ II. After opposition by the Christian Defense League, the petition was denied.
After this incident and a subsequent arrest, Graeff vanished from Hollywood, fleeing to the east coast. He returned to Los Angeles in 1964. In 1968, Graeff took out an ad in Variety, announcing that his screenplay, entitled Orf, was for sale for the unprecedented sum of $500,000. (A Hollywood record had recently been set when a script was sold for $400,000.) After the ad appeared, he was publicly lambasted by LA Times columnist Joyce Haber. When Graeff insinuated that a number of high profile people were attached to the project, (including Robert Wise
and Carl Reiner
), Haber outed him as "Jesus Christ II," putting the final nail in his career.
Unable to find work, Graeff moved to La Mesa, California
, near San Diego
. He committed suicide on December 19, 1970 at age 41.
) was published in a 1993 edition of Scarlet Street
magazine. The article featured interviews with Bryan and Ursula Pearson
, who revealed that Graeff and David Love/Chuck Roberts were romantically involved. For over 25 years, major publications, including Leonard Maltin
's movie guide, had erroneously written that Love and Graeff were the same person. Shortly after the article appeared, fans dubbed Graeff the gay Ed Wood.
The Graeff/Love confusion was the first of many Teenagers from Outer Space rumors that made their way onto the Internet. For example, sites like IMDB reported as late as 2006 that Dawn Bender
had died from alcohol poisoning, despite the fact that (as of 2010) she is alive and well.
In the early 1960s, Teenagers was sold to television, where it played frequently for the next thirty years, noted for its infamous ray gun that turned living things into instant skeletons, an original effect that showed up again in Tim Burton
's film Mars Attacks!
. It was featured in the movie-spoofing television series Mystery Science Theater 3000
(series 4, episode 4), and was included on their Volume 6 DVD box set. The movie was included as an extra on the 2005 PS2 video game Destroy All Humans!
.
Graeff is also the subject of several media projects, including a biography called Smacks of Brilliance, and a documentary entitled The Boy from Out of This World.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
screenwriter, director and actor. He is known for the 1959 b-movie
B-movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
Teenagers from Outer Space
Teenagers from Outer Space
Teenagers from Outer Space is a 1959 science-fiction film about an extraterrestrial space ship landing on Earth to use it as a farm for its food supply. The crew of the ship includes teenagers, two of whom oppose each other in their activities. The independent film was originally distributed by...
.
Early life
Graeff was born in Ray, ArizonaRay, Arizona
Ray is a ghost town in Pinal County, Arizona, United States. There is a huge copper mine there. The town of Kearny was founded by the Kennecott Mining Company in 1958 as a planned community to accommodate the populations of Ray, Barcelona and Sonora, which were about to be enveloped by Kennecott's...
to an engineer father and homemaker mother. When he was a toddler the family relocated to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
where a second son was born. As a teen, Graeff enrolled in the UCLA Theater Arts Program, where he studied film making and theater.
Film career
Graeff's first publicly-screened film was a 20-minute short about Delta ChiDelta Chi
Delta Chi or D-Chi is an international Greek letter college social fraternity formed on October 13, 1890,at Cornell University, initially as a professional fraternity for law students. On April 29, 1922, Delta Chi became a general membership social fraternity, eliminating the requirement for men...
fraternity life entitled Toast to Our Brother, which starred Graeff, a Paramount ingenue named Judith Ames (later Rachel Ames
Rachel Ames
Rachel Ames is an Emmy Award Winning American actress. She is the longest-running performer on ABC's longest-running daytime serial, General Hospital, playing Audrey Hardy, R.N. from 1964 to 2007. She also played Audrey Hardy on the General Hospital spin-off series Port Charles...
), and guest-starred comedian Joe E. Brown
Joe E. Brown (comedian)
Joseph Evans Brown was an American actor and comedian, remembered for his amiable screen persona, comic timing, and enormous smile. In 1902 at the age of nine, he joined a troupe of circus tumblers known as the Five Marvelous Ashtons which toured the country on both the circus and vaudeville...
(Some Like it Hot
Some Like It Hot
Some Like It Hot is an American comedy film, made in 1958 and released in 1959, which was directed by Billy Wilder and starred Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon and George Raft. The supporting cast includes Joe E. Brown, Pat O'Brien and Nehemiah Persoff. The film is a remake by Wilder and I....
), a UCLA alumni. The film premiered at the Fox Village Theater
Fox Theater, Westwood Village
The Fox Theater, Westwood Village, also known as the Fox Village Theater, is a historic, landmark cinema in Westwood Village, Los Angeles, California. It is currently operated by Regency Theaters under the name Regency Village Theater...
in Westwood Village
Westwood Village, Los Angeles, California
Westwood Village is the main shopping and commercial center of the Westwood district in the City of Los Angeles, California. It is located north of Wilshire Boulevard, east of Gayley Avenue, south of Le Conte Avenue, and west of Hilgard Avenue.-History:...
during Graeff's senior year at college.
Graeff's next film was a 16-minute recruiting film for Orange Coast College
Orange Coast College
Orange Coast College is a community college in Orange County, California. It was founded in 1947, with its first classes opening in the fall of 1948. It provides two-year associate of art and science degrees, certificates of achievement, and lower-division classes transferable to other colleges...
in Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 109,960 at the 2010 census. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a primarily suburban and "edge" city with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light...
. The Orange Coast College Story was narrated by Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
, who was a friend of the faculty adviser, and starred a young actor named Chuck Roberts (aka Charles Robert Kaltenthaler). It premiered on campus in spring of 1954.
Graeff began production on his first feature, The Noble Experiment in the summer of 1954. The comedy, shot in Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, took a year to complete and premiered in Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, south of downtown Santa Ana. The population was 85,186 at the 2010 census.The city's median family income and property values consistently place high in national rankings...
, in August, 1955. Graeff played the lead opposite a local beauty queen. The film was not well received by the audience and was only shown once more, years later. Around this time, Graeff also produced a short art film, Island Sunrise, starring Chuck Roberts.
After completing his most well known film, Teenagers from Outer Space
Teenagers from Outer Space
Teenagers from Outer Space is a 1959 science-fiction film about an extraterrestrial space ship landing on Earth to use it as a farm for its food supply. The crew of the ship includes teenagers, two of whom oppose each other in their activities. The independent film was originally distributed by...
, Graeff's final credit was as an editor on David L. Hewitt's 1964 ultra low-budget film The Wizard of Mars
The Wizard of Mars
The Wizard of Mars is a 1965 low budget science fiction film takeoff of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz co-written and directed by stage magician David L. Hewitt. The title character is portrayed by John Carradine, who gives a lengthy monologue as a projection near the end of the film...
.
Teenagers from Outer Space
In 1956, Tom was hired as Roger CormanRoger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
's assistant on Not of This Earth
Not of This Earth (1957 film)
Not of This Earth is a 67-minute, 1957 American black-and-white science fiction film written by Charles B. Griffith and Mark Hanna. It was produced and directed by Roger Corman for Los Altos Productions and distributed by Allied Artists Pictures Corporation....
. He also played a small role. When filming wrapped, Graeff decided to pen a science-fiction feature of his own and look for funding. Securing a modest budget from actor Gene Sterling, Graeff placed an ad in the Hollywood Reporter looking for more investors. The ad was answered by British actor Bryan Pearson, who put up $5000 in exchange for playing the villain, Thor, and casting his wife Ursula Pearson
Ursula Pearson
Ursula Pearson Bellah was a German-born, American actress, author, and businesswoman, most famous for her role of Hilda in Teenagers From Outer Space and her autobiographical perspective on Nazi Germany Surviving the Judas Factor: A Childhood Entombed in Nazi Germany.-Life in Nazi Germany:Born...
in a small role.
Filmed entirely on location in Hollywood, California in the fall of 1956 and winter of 1957, the low-budget film went through several titles before it was released by Warner Brothers in June 1959. Though the film was profitable, Tom and his investors saw no money from the release. Bryan Pearson
Bryan Pearson
Bryan Pearson is a former territorial level politician from Northwest Territories, Canada.Pearson was first elected to the Northwest Territories Legislature in the 1970 Northwest Territories general election. He won the electoral district of Eastern Arctic and held that district until it was...
eventually sued Graeff to get his original investment back.
Teenagers appeared as the lower part of a double bill alongside the second Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
film, Gigantis the Fire Monster, and was shown almost exclusively at drive-in theater
Drive-in theater
A drive-in theater is a form of cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor screen, a projection booth, a concession stand and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, customers can view movies from the privacy and comfort of their cars.The screen can be as simple as a...
s throughout the country. Critics were not kind to the film, though Graeff was applauded in some publications as a director with talent and a creative approach to a minimal budget.
Breakdown
In 1959, Graeff placed an ad in the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
proclaiming that he was to be called Jesus Christ II, and that God had shown him truth and love. A second ad appeared on Christmas Day and listed several sermon dates at local churches. That ad was quickly pulled from rotation. The next year, Graeff filed to have his name legally changed to Jesus Christ II. After opposition by the Christian Defense League, the petition was denied.
After this incident and a subsequent arrest, Graeff vanished from Hollywood, fleeing to the east coast. He returned to Los Angeles in 1964. In 1968, Graeff took out an ad in Variety, announcing that his screenplay, entitled Orf, was for sale for the unprecedented sum of $500,000. (A Hollywood record had recently been set when a script was sold for $400,000.) After the ad appeared, he was publicly lambasted by LA Times columnist Joyce Haber. When Graeff insinuated that a number of high profile people were attached to the project, (including Robert Wise
Robert Wise
Robert Earl Wise was an American sound effects editor, film editor, film producer and director...
and Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner is an American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian. He has won nine Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during this career...
), Haber outed him as "Jesus Christ II," putting the final nail in his career.
Unable to find work, Graeff moved to La Mesa, California
La Mesa, California
La Mesa is a city in San Diego County, California. The population was 57,065 at the 2010 census, up from 54,749 at the 2000 census. It was founded in 1869 and officially incorporated as a city on February 16, 1912. Its official flower is the bougainvillea....
, near San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. He committed suicide on December 19, 1970 at age 41.
Legacy
Graeff's name virtually vanished from popular culture until an article written by Richard Valley and Jessie Lilley (now editor of Famous Monsters of FilmlandFamous Monsters of Filmland
Famous Monsters of Filmland is a genre-specific film magazine started in 1958 by publisher James Warren and editor Forrest J Ackerman.-Magazine history :...
) was published in a 1993 edition of Scarlet Street
Scarlet Street (magazine)
Scarlet Street was an American film magazine that primarily specialized in the genres of horror, mystery and film noir. Its initial concentration was on Sherlock Holmes and related film and television productions, but later its subject matter expanded to include a variety of other genres.The title...
magazine. The article featured interviews with Bryan and Ursula Pearson
Ursula Pearson
Ursula Pearson Bellah was a German-born, American actress, author, and businesswoman, most famous for her role of Hilda in Teenagers From Outer Space and her autobiographical perspective on Nazi Germany Surviving the Judas Factor: A Childhood Entombed in Nazi Germany.-Life in Nazi Germany:Born...
, who revealed that Graeff and David Love/Chuck Roberts were romantically involved. For over 25 years, major publications, including Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
's movie guide, had erroneously written that Love and Graeff were the same person. Shortly after the article appeared, fans dubbed Graeff the gay Ed Wood.
The Graeff/Love confusion was the first of many Teenagers from Outer Space rumors that made their way onto the Internet. For example, sites like IMDB reported as late as 2006 that Dawn Bender
Dawn Bender
Dawn Bender is an American film, stage, and radio actress, most famous for the role of Margaret on the radio drama One Man's Family and Betty Morgan in Teenagers from Outer Space.-Early life and career:...
had died from alcohol poisoning, despite the fact that (as of 2010) she is alive and well.
In the early 1960s, Teenagers was sold to television, where it played frequently for the next thirty years, noted for its infamous ray gun that turned living things into instant skeletons, an original effect that showed up again in Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
's film Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks! is a 1996 American science fiction film directed by Tim Burton and based on the cult trading card series of the same name. The film uses elements of black comedy, surreal humour, and political satire, and claims to be also a parody of multiple science fiction B movies...
. It was featured in the movie-spoofing television series Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
(series 4, episode 4), and was included on their Volume 6 DVD box set. The movie was included as an extra on the 2005 PS2 video game Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans! is a video game developed by Pandemic Studios and published by THQ. It was released for the Xbox and PlayStation 2 on June 21, 2005. The game is set in the late 1950s in the U.S. and parodies the lifestyles, pop culture, and politics of this time period...
.
Graeff is also the subject of several media projects, including a biography called Smacks of Brilliance, and a documentary entitled The Boy from Out of This World.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Toast to Our Brother | Writer, Director, Producer | |
| 1954 | Orange Coast College Story | Director, Cinematographer, Editor | |
| 1954 | Island Sunrise | Writer, Director, Cinematographer, Editor | |
| 1955 | The Noble Experiment | Writer, Director, Editor | |
| 1956 | Not of This Earth Not of This Earth (1957 film) Not of This Earth is a 67-minute, 1957 American black-and-white science fiction film written by Charles B. Griffith and Mark Hanna. It was produced and directed by Roger Corman for Los Altos Productions and distributed by Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.... |
Car Park Attendant | Assistant to director |
| 1959 | Teenagers from Outer Space Teenagers from Outer Space Teenagers from Outer Space is a 1959 science-fiction film about an extraterrestrial space ship landing on Earth to use it as a farm for its food supply. The crew of the ship includes teenagers, two of whom oppose each other in their activities. The independent film was originally distributed by... |
Joe Rogers | Writer, Director, Cinematographer, Editor |
| 1964 | The Wizard of Mars The Wizard of Mars The Wizard of Mars is a 1965 low budget science fiction film takeoff of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz co-written and directed by stage magician David L. Hewitt. The title character is portrayed by John Carradine, who gives a lengthy monologue as a projection near the end of the film... |
Editor | |
Further reading
- Johnson, John. Cheap Tricks and Class Acts (McFarland & CompanyMcFarland & CompanyMcFarland & Company, Inc. is a book publisher of primarily academic and adult nonfiction based in Jefferson, North Carolina. Its president and editor-in-chief is Robert Franklin, who began the enterprise in 1979...
, 1996) (ISBN 0786400935); Part VI, Chapter 26 - Lilley, Jessie and Valley, Richard. Scarlet Street MagazineScarlet Street (magazine)Scarlet Street was an American film magazine that primarily specialized in the genres of horror, mystery and film noir. Its initial concentration was on Sherlock Holmes and related film and television productions, but later its subject matter expanded to include a variety of other genres.The title...
, Issue #11, Summer 1993