Props lost or destroyed

[greatwazoo42]

The Galileo 7. It wound up sitting in a vacant lot to rot away.

That may not be accurate. There was recently a woman claiming to be the long time owner who has hired multiple people to restore it without success and moved it from the outdoor lot to indoor storage. It may be a false claim but it does inspire some hope that the old girl isn't gone.

Why no one's built a 1:1 replica yet is beyond me.

 

[Straker]

Space station from "2001."

For a long time, I'd heard about how Kubrick ordered all of the props from 2001 ASO to be destroyed. Everything. The reason floating around was that he didn't want anyone to use them in any junk sci-fi movies that might follow... tarnishing the elegant imagery of 2001.

I can't recall exactly where I read this, but the poster had quoted some more recently published source that Kubrick didn't initially intend to destroy the props. The studio wouldn't let him keep any of them, unless he paid them. In disgust with this, given all the work he'd done on the film, he decided to just lay waste to everything. Has anyone else here heard of this?

I watched the making of 2010 where it was told that Kubrick did destroy many of the props, most notably the Discovery and all her blueprints were destroyed by Kubrick necessitating the construction of a whole new Discovery prop being made for 2010.

The original Fred Krueger glove from the original "A nightmare on Elm street". was stolen from the set.

No it wasn't. That was a rumor. The original glove was sold at auction and was acquired by a guy named Mike Becker who recently had Robert Englund autograph the inside of the glove. The glove was point for point matched to screen stills and promotional images and proven to be 1000% the real deal. Mark Petri of Knifegloves and even Mike Becker himself are using the glove as reference material to make even more accurate replicas.



I know it was mentioned by Jack T Chance but the original Sonic Screwdriver prop being lost is a huge loss.

 

[KingNothing]

I had an original costume worn by Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan. I sold it to a memorabilia store in Florida. They then decided to chop the jacket up (which was also an original WW2 jacket) and sell the pieces on eBay. With MY companies COA accompanying it.

Boo-urns.

 

[Krel]

I watched the making of 2010 where it was told that Kubrick did destroy many of the props, most notably the Discovery and all her blueprints were destroyed by Kubrick necessitating the construction of a whole new Discovery prop being made for 2010.

Kubrick couldn't order any of it destroyed because he didn't own it, MGM did. What happened was that after 2001 was finished filming MGM's UK studios were closing, some claim it was because of 2001. Most of the studio props and costumes were warehoused, including the 2001 properties. The properties were kept in storage for a few years, but the studio got tired of paying for the storage costs, and had everything trashed without looking at any of it.

David.

 

[Straker]

Kubrick couldn't order any of it destroyed because he didn't own it, MGM did. What happened was that after 2001 was finished filming MGM's UK studios were closing, some claim it was because of 2001. Most of the studio props and costumes were warehoused, including the 2001 properties. The properties were kept in storage for a few years, but the studio got tired of paying for the storage costs, and had everything trashed without looking at any of it.

David.

So you're saying those around Kubrick and the studio execs were lying or just plain wrong? I have a hard time believing that.

 

[greatwazoo42]

Studio Execs lie? Never! C'mon Straker; these are human beings here. Anything is possible. Someone might have been pestered on the wrong day and without thinking about what he or she was giving permission to do just said "dump it and leave me alone" or it could have been something like a Michael Grade (also known as "Grade F") thought process of "well, I think it's rubbish therefore it is rubbish no matter what anyone else tells me so I am ordering you to destroy it." It could even have been the typical "cog in the corporate machine" mentality that leads to a lot of this stuff which is just seeing things as a line item on a long sheet and not wanting to put in the effort so just marking a big X down it and going for another cup of coffee.

I've been working in the Corporate World for nearly 20 years and the number of attrocities caused by people not thinking things through or only caring about what to do with the next paycheck is insane.

 

[Straker]

Studio Execs lie? Never! C'mon Straker; these are human beings here. Anything is possible. Someone might have been pestered on the wrong day and without thinking about what he or she was giving permission to do just said "dump it and leave me alone" or it could have been something like a Michael Grade (also known as "Grade F") thought process of "well, I think it's rubbish therefore it is rubbish no matter what anyone else tells me so I am ordering you to destroy it." It could even have been the typical "cog in the corporate machine" mentality that leads to a lot of this stuff which is just seeing things as a line item on a long sheet and not wanting to put in the effort so just marking a big X down it and going for another cup of coffee.

I've been working in the Corporate World for nearly 20 years and the number of attrocities caused by people not thinking things through or only caring about what to do with the next paycheck is insane.

It wasn't just studio execs here, it was members of the production team and model builders not some guy in an office and the documentary on the film wasn't done recently, it was done during the production of 2010 while Kubrick was still alive and I do believe his wife even backed these claims. This is the reason why there is no footage of outtakes or deleted scenes. Unlike Lucas he wanted his films to stand on their own with no way for a studio add to his films. Kubrick was well known for destroying that sort of footage and considering how long back it's been told that he ordered the sets, models and building prints be destroyed and how it's backed up by multiple sources from people around him...I kinda have to take that at face value a bit more so unless you have more evidence showing otherwise...and don't get me wrong, I know just was well as you the atrocities a studio exec can commit without thinking, I mean after all, look at how many episodes from the classic Doctor Who are gone forever due to such carelessness. That still doesn't mean that Kubrick didn't order them destroyed nor that he didn't have the power at his disposal to do so either.

 

[greatwazoo42]

It also means we're debating in a vaccum unless we get some "official word" on it from multiple unlinked sources and then we can debate the validity of that.

I do certainly see your points though.

...and I'm still hating on the jerk(s) that caused those episodes of Who to be lost. I wonder if Michael Grade had something to do with that too? There's a conspiracy in there somewhere. I'm sure.

 

[Straker]

It also means we're debating in a vaccum unless we get some "official word" on it from multiple unlinked sources and then we can debate the validity of that.

I do certainly see your points though.

...and I'm still hating on the jerk(s) that caused those episodes of Who to be lost. I wonder if Michael Grade had something to do with that too? There's a conspiracy in there somewhere. I'm sure.

That is very, very true. Unfortunately without some sort of verifiable evidence it's really hard to prove or disprove hearsay like this though the thing is, in the end we lost the original Discovery...though I have to say that the 2010 model was stunning....even if there are people that don't appreciate the movie XD

It was a general practice of the time to reuse tape or to destroy film in order to save space. I lament so many films that were hacked up and footage was lost. Metropolis (though a lot of that was restored) Cleopatra, Doctor Who, GAWD so many of them. It's terrible but those days they just didn't think it would be worth anything. XP

 

[greatwazoo42]

I couldn't agree with you more, Straker. Good thing they all know better now though.

 

[Mike J.]

Yeah, I heard about those lost Doctor Who eps. Taped over, right? All we have are fan-made audio tapes of them.

We were super lucky to get that South American print of Metropolis. The quality is a shame, but it's almost all there now. I was gonna go see it in a local theater when it was released, but at starting time the line at the box office was still around the block. I kid you not. There is a good documentary about the finding of the South American print, though. Caught it on TV.

I suppose we should be grateful for what we can get / see now. The Maltese Falcon that was sold, the Blade Runner gun on display after, what 20 years? The Blade Runner cop ID. The recovery of the Death Star. Restoration of the Nostromo. The actions of enthusiastic men like Forrest Ackerman, Bob Burns and Paul Allen. HD screen captures. Pictures & communication via the internet.

There is a lot of stuff that has literally come out of the closet, now, and the studios do seem to respect the 'artifacts' more so than in the past, if only to try to make a quick buck. That attitude does make more items available to more people.


-Mike J.

 

[handler]

Can someone please shed some light on where that big comb from Spaceballs went?

 

[Krel]

Please understand that I am talking about the plans, props and costumes. Not just from 2001, but from all of the films that were filmed at the UK MGM studio. 2001 took so long to film, and took up all of the MGM space, that they lost revenue from other productions for two years. This put a drain on the studio that it never recovered from. Not long after 2001 ceased production, the studio put everything into storage. When they got tired of paying for storage, they just trashed everything from all of their past productions. It is tragic, the history that was lost.

The models probably were destroyed, not because of Kubrick's orders (although that may have been a factor), but because they were so large, and so specialized that storage costs were prohibitive. It isn't like they were a ship, plane, or building model that could be reused in other productions.

But some things did get reused. The space maneuvering packs appeared in a couple, maybe more, "Doctor Who" episodes, and perhaps other shows. One of the Moonbus seats was used as the pilot seat for SkyDiver submarine on "UFO". And Dr. Floyd's Clavius Base ID was suppose to have also been used in an episode of "UFO".

David.

 

[Mike J.]

Doctor Floyd's Clavius Base ID.

My screencap from HD, IIRC.

It would be funny to see that pop-up somewhere else.

I think bits of the Blade Runner cop ID art was reused on a card-shaped prop in V.


-MJ

 

[Rotwang]

There was one once upon a time. It was called Musée du Cinema in Paris, France. It was created by Henri Langlois, who was co-founder of the Cinémathèque Française. Mr. Langlois was a cinemaphile, a pioneer in film preservation and film history. Many people know of the Cinémathèque Française, as it started the French New Wave.

From what I remember of the documentary, Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinémathèque, a lot of filmmakers sent items to Mr. Langlois, resulting in a collection of more than 5,000 movie-related objects.

Unfortunately, the museum burnt down in July 22, 1997 (while it was locked in the middle of a court case between the Government and the Cinémathèque Française). I don't know if any or if all of those items were destroyed by the fire or survived.

But to make a long story short, there was a place once upon a time. Now, there's more of smaller dedicated places that are more themed, like the Judy Garland Museum or the motion picture corner of the Smithsonian's Museum of History and Technology.

One cannot laud Langlois enough for being one of the first people to become preoccupied with film preservation. But the man had serious issues. The musee du cinema was needed to generate cash to keep the cinematheque going, but Langlois despised the general public on an almost pathological level.

As for the fire it didn't do that much damage IIRC. Some items had water and smoke damage, but much of the collection had already been moved out because of the repairs going on at the time.

 

[sprprops]

The Windtalkers stunt air-cannon 1943 USMC Jeep, it was on display for the last 10 years outside at a car museum rotting away and constantly getting beat up by the museum when moving it. It is now in my collection and will receive a restoration.

 

[Alnitak]

Unfortunately...most large scale items never make it...(set decoration pieces, especially SCIFI), which are also the prettiest of all, unfortunately.

 

[greatwazoo42]

Unfortunately...most large scale items never make it...(set decoration pieces, especially SCIFI), which are also the prettiest of all, unfortunately.

Thankfully the 1996 Doctor Who movie console is not only alive and will in the hands of a collector but is being restored, refurbished and loved.

 

[Alnitak]

That was a lucky one!

 

[TheMechanic]

Anyone ever seen any of the costumes from John Carpenter's 'The Thing'? Are they warehoused somewhere? I've never seen any of them surface.