20000 Leagues : Rare pictures of the Giant Squid scene

After the LIFE Magazine underwater pictures posted last week, we'll go today over the water for rare and beautiful B&W pictures of the giant squid attack in Disney's 20000 Leagues under the sea.

As you probably know, a big part of 20000 Leagues under the sea was shot in a huge studio filled with water, as you can see on the picture below.



Then arrived the moment to film the giant squid scene. I mean, that squid:



In the movie, the giant squid attack sequence happen during a storm and generally the color images that we have in mind looks like this one...



But the pictures that you will see below are rare and beautiful B&W pics with, on most of them, James Mason as Captain Nemo fighting the squid.





The above and below pictures were shot during the first shooting with a sunset sky. But Walt Disney and Richard Fleischer thought that it was not good enough, that the cables which animated the giant squid tentacles were too visible, and decided to re-shoot the whole scene with a night sky and a storm effect to hide the cables. If you look well at some the pictures you will see the cables.







A last B&W picture, not from the same series - but coming from a theatre still.



All pictures: copyright Disney

Filming 20000 Leagues under the Sea - A 1954 LIFE Magazine Special Report - Part Three : the Color Shots

In this LIFE Magazine 20000 Leagues under the Sea special report article series i've kept the best for the end with these 1954 color pictures! Yes, 1954 underwater color pictures! Isn't it great? If you missed the two first parts, you will find the part one HERE and the part two HERE.

Just like with the black and white pictures, LIFE photographer shot Captain Nemo and the Nautilus crewmen during the filming at Bahamas islands. On the top and below, Captain Nemo.



A series of others pictures showing the Nautilus crewmen.



























Some pictures showing the film propmen bringing fish for one of the movie's sequence.









A last underwater picture, showing one of the LIFE photographers?



Hope you enjoyed these rare pictures of the underwater filming of 20000 Leagues, soon we'll be back "over water" with others great pics of 20000 Leagues, but this time, not from LIFE magazine!

All pictures: copyright TIME-LIFE Magazine

Filming 20000 Leagues under the Sea - A 1954 LIFE Magazine Special Report - Part Two

It is Jules Verne's birthday this week as Honor Hunter of Blue Sky Disney reminded us two days ago and the birth date anniversary of legendary author of 20000 Leagues under the sea fits perfectly with this part two of the LIFE magazine special report that i'm putting online today.

Last November i've posted rare LIFE Magazine pictures from a 1954 report on Richard Fleisher's filming of 20000 Leagues under the sea. I thought these were the only one existing, but no, there is many more! So here is the part two of this great LIFE magazine photographic report with fantastic pictures mostly shot underwater at the Bahamas.

There we go. The two first pictures above and below shows one of the Nautilus crewmen in his diving suits - and not Director Richard Fleischer as i written in previously.



Let's dive know, and the four first underwater pictures below show Captain Nemo (recognizable to his helmet with a lamp on the top, different than the one of Nautilus crewmen)

















A great series of pictures, now, showing the filming of the famous underwater burial scene.











Some other pictures are showing the film propmen bringing fish for one of the movie's sequence.





An interesting picture showing the different signals for helmet divers during the underwater filming...



More pictures of Nautilus crewmen...







We will end this part two with these pictures of a handsome diver playing one of the Nautilus crewmen.





Hope you enjoyed these rare 20000 Leagues under the Sea filming pictures, and come back soon for the third part as the best is yet to come! If you liked this article, you will love the Tom Scherman web site. Have a look HERE.

Pictures: copyright LIFE Magazine