ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

A movie too bad to be genuinely liked, but too incredible not to enjoy!

This is Hollywood's colossal joke on science fiction fans in general and poor Jeff Morrow in particular.

Yes, the stellar cast includes Jeff Morrow (star of This Island Earth and Kronos), luscious Mara Corday (the heroine of both Tarantula and The Black Scorpion, as well as being Playboy's Miss October 1958), and Morris Ankrum — star of more sci-fi movies in the 1950s than any other actor!

With a cast like that, what could possibly go wrong?

The plot involves a giant bird from outer space surrounded by an invisible force field. No kidding. The bird attacks New York, defeats the entire Air Force, and lays house-sized eggs that will eventually hatch into a squadron of winged monsters.

With a story like that, what could possibly go wrong?

The answer is provided by these pictures — each one worth a thousand words, a monster that proves the old saying, "The best laid eggs of mice and men, oft go a fowl!" — pun intended, of course.





As anyone who isn't legally blind can see, the bird is a ridiculous puppet with a hysterically cartoonish head — in fact, it's so funny it must have been intentional on the part of the designers.





The bird makes ridiculous squawking noises while flying after toy airplanes with its crooked beak yawning open, its talons flexing, its eyebrows wiggling, and its beak/lips sneering. Check out those dagger-like dentures. A giant, flesh-ripping beak wasn't enough for this monster bird — they gave him teeth as well!









Memorable scenes include the big bird snatching up a train and flying off with it, while the train dangles like a juicy worm from its claws.





According to IMDB, Jeff Morrow attended the premiere of the movie in his home town, but when the audience first saw the bird — which was also the first time poor Jeff saw it as well — the audience burst into laughter, and Jeff snuck out of the theater before anybody recognized him!





(Yes, the Giant Claw is eating the United Nations building in this scene)

Producer Sam Katzman arranged for a model-maker in Mexico City to construct the high-flying space monster, and all the special effects were added without anybody in the cast knowing how the creature looked until after the film's release.





The Giant Turkey would be a much more appropriate title, because it describes both the monster and the movie. An incredible disappointment from Columbia pictures, released the same year as 20 Million Miles to Earth and The 27th Day, and directed by the man responsible for Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (Fred F. Sears).





PS: Wayne, could you use your god-like Photoshop abilities to modify the picture above and rearrange the claws a little so that as the bird sinks into the water it uses the middle talon to shoot a — well, you get the idea!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

[Bud Brewster]

Why, no, I never even thought of that, Wayne! Wow, that's brilliant!
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

Never let it be said that we're not into wish fulfillment here at The New All Sci-Fi.



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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

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A big bird . . . shooting a big bird . . . after the big bird was shot down.

Amazing . . .
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Eadie]

It'll be one HUGE Thanksgiving dinner for Bruce the Shark (Jaws) and his friends!

[Doctor Kaiju]

Love this monster! I've read that the bird was made by Mexican puppeteers for next to nothing, but I don't know if that's official or not.

Thank you for the pictures, some I haven't seen anywhere else (like the UN building attack).
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The Giant Giant Monster Movie List

[Bud Brewster]

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Faster than a speeding bullet!





More powerful than a locomotive (which he finds quite tasty . . . )





Able to leap onto tall buildings in a single bound!





Look! Up in the sky!

It's bird!

It's plane!

No, by God! It's both!





Yes, it's Superbird, fowl creature from another planet who came to Earth and pitted its strange powers against mortal man! And even though it was defeated . . . it was defiant to the very end!





* Thanks to Wayne for his great picture. I couldn't resist using it again here.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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IMDB says this about the Jeff Morrow's feelings about the famous monster in this movie.

In an interview, star Jeff Morrow said that neither he nor anyone on the film saw the title "monster" until they went to the film's premiere in Morrow's home town.

It turned out that producer Sam Katzman had contracted with a low-budget model-maker in Mexico City to construct the "Giant Claw" and no one in the cast or crew had any idea it would come out looking as bizarre and, frankly, laughable as it did.

Morrow said that the audience roared with laughter every time the "monster" made an appearance, and he wound up slinking in embarrassment out of the theater before the film was over so that no one who knew him would recognize him.
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___________________ The Giant Claw - trailer


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

GETTING TO KNOW OUR FAVORITE MONSTERS!
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We all love the giant monsters from our favorite sci-fi films, but just how much science and how much fiction is involved in these movies?

I went looking for videos about vultures that might relate to this beloved (and amusing) monster, but they all showed gross scenes of vultures ripping up dead animals. Not pleasant.

However the video below shows an eagle grabbing a poisonous snake out of the water, and it reminded me of The Giant Claw's monster bird plucking that train right off the tracks!

Enjoy!
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] ______ Eagle vs. Toxic Snake | World's Deadliest


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

I don't think that even FX legends Willis 'Obie' O'Brien & Ray Harryhausen could have saved this move with their amazing stop-motion abilities.

[Bud Brewster]

[Robert (Butch) Day]

Over on the Greenbriar Picture Shows site http://greenbriarpictureshows.blogspot.com/ for today (Thursday June 27, 2019) they posted this:



Not very challenging, eh?
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Common Sense ISN'T Common

[Gord Green]

Great picture Butch!

Now where did I put my crayons?
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There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child.

[Bud Brewster]

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Here's the best YouTube video of this movie I've found so far. This version is noticeably sharper than the others I checked.

The on-screen title is in German — angriff der Riesenkralle — which translates to "attack of the giant claw". But the rest of the credits and all the dialog is in English.

__________ The Giant Claw 1957 1080p BluRay


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Trekriffic and I are watching this movie on Wednesday 12/30, and I found two funny videos which poke fun at The Atomic Turkey!

Enjoy!_

_________ The Giant Claw (1957) Movie review


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___ Brandon's Cult Movie Reviews: The Giant Claw


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)