Welcome fans and devotees of old school mattes, models and clever trick photography. It’s time once again for another giant of a blog post, and I do emphasize, giant! I never do these things by half-measures and always try to cover all possible bases when examining and illustrating these amazing hand rendered moments of movie magic.
I have a vast collection of shots here, from a very broad cross section of movies. As usual there are some very rare mattes that nobody has ever seen which should utterly delight the aficionados among you (you know who you are!). There are a few well known films – at least to those of us of a certain age – and some long forgotten celluloid entertainments, the titles of which are largely lost to the mists of time, which isn’t to say they shouldn’t be celebrated. There’s some great work to be seen here even from quite minor and obscure pictures folks that I bet 99% of you have never heard of. Also, for those who thrive on close up details, I’ve got some sensational hi-rez detail images from some very rare old time mattes that I just know certain matte friends out there will love.
So, we’ve got a never before seen Albert Whitlock matte that’s simply glorious; several very rare pieces from the family of Matthew Yuricich; a quanity of miniature and detailed matte fx shot breakdowns from an Emmy Award winning tv miniseries; several amazing before and after scenes from the celebrated Larry Butler & Donald Glouner; a truckload of mattes from a big Warners costume epic; a neglected RKO desert island classic …. and more!!!
So, with that rambling intro out of the way, let us set forth on a journey of sheer wonder and amazement…
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A Tribute to Golden Era Special FX
This blog is intended primarily as a tribute to the inventiveness and ingenuity of the craft of the matte painter during Hollywoods’ Golden Era. Some of the shots will amaze in their grandeur and epic quality while others will surprise in their ‘invisibility’ to even the sophisticated viewer. I hope this collection will serve as an appreciation of the artform and both casual visitors and those with a specialist interest may benefit, enjoy and be amazed at skills largely unknown today.