May 1, 2024
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Fifty years after its release, the original Planet of the Apes film remains a landmark achievement in moviemaking - due in no small part to its jaw-droppingly realistic depiction of an intelligent ape society. On this episode, we go behind the scenes...
Fifty years after its release, the original Planet of the Apes film remains a landmark achievement in moviemaking - due in no small part to its jaw-droppingly realistic depiction of an intelligent ape society. On this episode, we go behind the scenes with the unsung makeup and costume artists who created the iconic simian looks that shocked 1968 audiences.
We'll explore the incredible artistry and pioneering techniques used to construct the ape appliance masks and fur-covered bodysuits. Makeup wizard John Chambers and costume designer Elizabeth Ingle painstakingly brought these primate protagonists to life in ways never before seen on the big screen.
WEBVTT
1
00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:13.279
Calarogus Shark Media. Welcome back to
TV in the Basement, the podcast where
2
00:00:13.279 --> 00:00:17.920
we dig up classic movies and TV
shows from yesteryear. I'm your host Journey
3
00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:22.480
Joe Mitchell, and today we're going
ape for the groundbreaking nineteen sixty eight sci
4
00:00:22.480 --> 00:00:26.640
fi film Planet of the Apes.
Planet of the Apes is a landmark science
5
00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:31.519
fiction movie that spawned a massive franchise
including four sequels, a remake, a
6
00:00:31.600 --> 00:00:36.759
reboot series, TV shows, novels, comics, and endless merchandise. But
7
00:00:36.880 --> 00:00:42.200
it all started with this provocative original
film that blew audience's minds with its closing
8
00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:48.359
twist ending. The movie stars Charlton
Heston as astronaut George Taylor, who crash
9
00:00:48.520 --> 00:00:52.920
lands on a strange planet over two
thousand years in the future along with his
10
00:00:53.079 --> 00:00:58.000
crew. They soon discover that on
this world, intelligent apes are the dominant
11
00:00:58.000 --> 00:01:00.880
species, while primitive mute humans are
hunted, enslaved, and experimented on.
12
00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:07.840
Taylor is captured and studied by chimpanzee
scientists Zira and Cornelius, played by Kim
13
00:01:07.920 --> 00:01:11.560
Hunter and Roddy McDowell. He convinces
them of his intelligence and forms an alliance
14
00:01:11.599 --> 00:01:17.319
while fending off the hostility of the
guerrilla military led by Doctor zaias played by
15
00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:22.560
Maurice Evans, but trying to prove
Man's former superiority leads to a series of
16
00:01:22.640 --> 00:01:27.760
dark revelations about the planet's history.
The climactic twist where Taylor discovers the ruins
17
00:01:27.760 --> 00:01:32.400
of the Statue of Liberty and realizes
he was on Earth all along, is
18
00:01:32.439 --> 00:01:37.480
one of the most famous endings in
movie history. It's a powerful commentary on
19
00:01:37.560 --> 00:01:42.760
mankind's destructive potential, leaving audiences stunned. The cast is excellent, with Charlton
20
00:01:42.799 --> 00:01:49.400
Heston perfectly embodying the brash all American
hero who finds his worldview shattered. Roddy
21
00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:53.680
McDowell brings empathy and wisdom to Cornelius, kicking off a long association with the
22
00:01:53.719 --> 00:02:00.439
Apes franchise, and Maurice Evans is
commandingly imperious as doctor zais veen of the
23
00:02:00.480 --> 00:02:05.079
Ape's status quo. The Ape makeups
by John Chambers were groundbreaking at the time,
24
00:02:05.439 --> 00:02:08.719
allowing the actors to emote through the
prosthetics. The ape makeup and costumes
25
00:02:08.719 --> 00:02:14.159
in Planet of the Apes were truly
groundbreaking achievements that played a pivotal role in
26
00:02:14.199 --> 00:02:20.280
bringing the film's Simian society convincingly to
life. The Ape makeup was the brainchild
27
00:02:20.280 --> 00:02:25.000
of Chambers, who began experimenting with
pioneering foam latex pieces years before production began.
28
00:02:25.719 --> 00:02:31.120
He designed unique appliance masks that covered
the entire face and sculpted highly detailed,
29
00:02:31.159 --> 00:02:36.879
photorealistic ape features over top the actors. This was a major innovation compared
30
00:02:36.919 --> 00:02:42.199
to the simple plastic noses and mouthpieces
used for EPE makeups previously. Each mask
31
00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:46.719
was an extraordinarily intricate work of art, with hand laid hair meticulously applied strand
32
00:02:46.719 --> 00:02:53.599
by strand to create a naturalistic fur
texture. The masks were then individually hand
33
00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:58.960
painted with specialized techniques to achieve the
varied skin tones and distinctive facial expressions of
34
00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:04.039
the different Ape character. Equally crucial
were the Ape body suits designed by Elizabeth
35
00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:07.960
Ingele to complete the illusion. Made
from dyed wool cotton and alpaca hair,
36
00:03:08.280 --> 00:03:15.639
they had individual muscle striations sculpted in
to give a naturalistic ape like physique.
37
00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:20.680
Every suit was custom tailored to each
actor's proportions, with hooded cowls to allow
38
00:03:20.719 --> 00:03:24.919
a seamless blend with the mask appliances
between the masks and costumes. Each main
39
00:03:25.039 --> 00:03:29.560
Ape character took up to four hours
per day just to get into their full
40
00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:35.680
prosthetic makeup and bodysuits. All this
painstaking effort paid off by creating shockingly lifelike
41
00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:40.120
depictions of talking, intelligent apes that
were utterly convincing throughout the film. The
42
00:03:40.360 --> 00:03:46.080
ingenuity of Planet of the Ape's makeup
and costuming cannot be overstated. It raised
43
00:03:46.080 --> 00:03:50.120
the bar exponentially for what was thought
possible with screen prosthetics at the time.
44
00:03:50.800 --> 00:03:55.960
Those arresting visual accomplishments ensured this Semian
civilization would be unforgettably etched into the minds
45
00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:00.439
of audiences forever. Planet of the
Apes works as both thought provoking science fiction
46
00:04:00.520 --> 00:04:05.960
and entertaining adventure. Director Franklin J. Shaffner keeps the pacing brisk and exciting.
47
00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:11.360
The action scenes are visceral, like
the terrifying hunt of the humans and
48
00:04:11.400 --> 00:04:16.560
Tailor's attempted escape, and the Orwellian
parallels of the ape's cast system offer intriguing
49
00:04:16.639 --> 00:04:21.959
social commentary. By upending our assumptions
about man's role in nature, the film
50
00:04:23.079 --> 00:04:30.560
forces us to question our own society. Some fun facts about Planet of the
51
00:04:30.600 --> 00:04:33.920
Apes. The famous ending wasn't in
the original book or script, but came
52
00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:40.480
from a suggestion by co star Charlton
Heston. Roddy McDowell had such difficulty eating
53
00:04:40.519 --> 00:04:44.639
with his ape makeup on that he
started losing unhealthy amounts of weight during the
54
00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:49.240
shoot and had to drink meal replacement
shakes. The film's now dated score was
55
00:04:49.279 --> 00:04:55.240
actually quite innovative for the time,
an unsettling avant garde mix of ape noises
56
00:04:55.319 --> 00:04:59.639
and tribal percussion. The crash of
the astronaut's ship into a lake was the
57
00:04:59.680 --> 00:05:04.160
most expensive single special effects shot ever
at the time. A scene was written
58
00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:09.519
but cut explaining the ape society arose
after a plague wiped out the dogs and
59
00:05:09.600 --> 00:05:14.560
cats, letting apes become pets and
then servants and finally masters. To create
60
00:05:14.600 --> 00:05:18.800
the apocalyptic look of the Forbidden Zone, filmmakers shot among the striking rock formations
61
00:05:18.800 --> 00:05:25.199
in Utah's Glen Canyon. Planet of
the Apes was hugely successful, holding the
62
00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:29.680
box office record for over a month. It tapped into the social upheaval and
63
00:05:29.800 --> 00:05:33.959
racial tensions of the nineteen sixties,
serving as a potent allegory. Some saw
64
00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:39.560
the apes treatment of humans as a
parallel for racism and segregation. Others viewed
65
00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:44.959
it as a Vietnam War commentary on
the danger of underestimating a technologically inferior enemy,
66
00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:48.879
but some critics felt it played on
white paranoia of a black uprising overthrowing
67
00:05:48.920 --> 00:05:54.480
society. Planet of the Apes went
on to receive two prestigious honors that year.
68
00:05:54.959 --> 00:05:59.519
First, it was nominated for the
Outstanding Dramatic Motion Picture by the Writer's
69
00:05:59.560 --> 00:06:03.839
Guild of a America, recognizing the
excellent screenplay adapted from the novel by Pierre
70
00:06:03.920 --> 00:06:08.480
Boule. While it didn't win that
award, the film did take home an
71
00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:14.319
Oscar for Best Costume Design at the
nineteen sixty nine Academy Awards ceremony. Costume
72
00:06:14.360 --> 00:06:18.240
designers John Chambers and Elizabeth Ingle were
lauded for their ingenious ape mask designs that
73
00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:24.720
brought this simian society chillingly to life
on the big screen. The incredible artistry
74
00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:29.079
and thought provoking narrative of Planet of
the Apes left an indelible mark on cinema
75
00:06:29.160 --> 00:06:34.839
history. Those landmark costume designs became
iconic images that still resonate with fans today
76
00:06:35.079 --> 00:06:41.120
over fifty years later. While modestly
awarded at the time, this daring and
77
00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:46.560
innovative film certainly earned its place as
a celebrated science fiction masterpiece. The film's
78
00:06:46.560 --> 00:06:50.399
themes remained socially relevant, and it
still widely analyzed today. Even the most
79
00:06:50.439 --> 00:06:55.879
outlandish sci fi can serve as a
mirror on our own world. Planet of
80
00:06:55.920 --> 00:07:00.240
the Apes uses a fantastical premise to
deliver hard truths and warnings about his human
81
00:07:00.319 --> 00:07:03.759
nature, and that's the mark of
truly visionary science fiction. It's a film
82
00:07:03.800 --> 00:07:09.000
that still has the power to provoke
and unsettle over fifty years later, and
83
00:07:09.120 --> 00:07:14.920
cements its status as a stone cold
classic. What's your take on Planet of
84
00:07:14.959 --> 00:07:17.800
the Apes? Does the ending still
pack a punch? Can it be viewed
85
00:07:17.800 --> 00:07:21.959
as an allegory for modern day issues? Until next time? Stay tuned and
86
00:07:23.040 --> 00:07:25.959
I'm Journey Joe Mitchell and this is
TV in the Basement.
1
00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:13.279
Calarogus Shark Media. Welcome back to
TV in the Basement, the podcast where
2
00:00:13.279 --> 00:00:17.920
we dig up classic movies and TV
shows from yesteryear. I'm your host Journey
3
00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:22.480
Joe Mitchell, and today we're going
ape for the groundbreaking nineteen sixty eight sci
4
00:00:22.480 --> 00:00:26.640
fi film Planet of the Apes.
Planet of the Apes is a landmark science
5
00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:31.519
fiction movie that spawned a massive franchise
including four sequels, a remake, a
6
00:00:31.600 --> 00:00:36.759
reboot series, TV shows, novels, comics, and endless merchandise. But
7
00:00:36.880 --> 00:00:42.200
it all started with this provocative original
film that blew audience's minds with its closing
8
00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:48.359
twist ending. The movie stars Charlton
Heston as astronaut George Taylor, who crash
9
00:00:48.520 --> 00:00:52.920
lands on a strange planet over two
thousand years in the future along with his
10
00:00:53.079 --> 00:00:58.000
crew. They soon discover that on
this world, intelligent apes are the dominant
11
00:00:58.000 --> 00:01:00.880
species, while primitive mute humans are
hunted, enslaved, and experimented on.
12
00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:07.840
Taylor is captured and studied by chimpanzee
scientists Zira and Cornelius, played by Kim
13
00:01:07.920 --> 00:01:11.560
Hunter and Roddy McDowell. He convinces
them of his intelligence and forms an alliance
14
00:01:11.599 --> 00:01:17.319
while fending off the hostility of the
guerrilla military led by Doctor zaias played by
15
00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:22.560
Maurice Evans, but trying to prove
Man's former superiority leads to a series of
16
00:01:22.640 --> 00:01:27.760
dark revelations about the planet's history.
The climactic twist where Taylor discovers the ruins
17
00:01:27.760 --> 00:01:32.400
of the Statue of Liberty and realizes
he was on Earth all along, is
18
00:01:32.439 --> 00:01:37.480
one of the most famous endings in
movie history. It's a powerful commentary on
19
00:01:37.560 --> 00:01:42.760
mankind's destructive potential, leaving audiences stunned. The cast is excellent, with Charlton
20
00:01:42.799 --> 00:01:49.400
Heston perfectly embodying the brash all American
hero who finds his worldview shattered. Roddy
21
00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:53.680
McDowell brings empathy and wisdom to Cornelius, kicking off a long association with the
22
00:01:53.719 --> 00:02:00.439
Apes franchise, and Maurice Evans is
commandingly imperious as doctor zais veen of the
23
00:02:00.480 --> 00:02:05.079
Ape's status quo. The Ape makeups
by John Chambers were groundbreaking at the time,
24
00:02:05.439 --> 00:02:08.719
allowing the actors to emote through the
prosthetics. The ape makeup and costumes
25
00:02:08.719 --> 00:02:14.159
in Planet of the Apes were truly
groundbreaking achievements that played a pivotal role in
26
00:02:14.199 --> 00:02:20.280
bringing the film's Simian society convincingly to
life. The Ape makeup was the brainchild
27
00:02:20.280 --> 00:02:25.000
of Chambers, who began experimenting with
pioneering foam latex pieces years before production began.
28
00:02:25.719 --> 00:02:31.120
He designed unique appliance masks that covered
the entire face and sculpted highly detailed,
29
00:02:31.159 --> 00:02:36.879
photorealistic ape features over top the actors. This was a major innovation compared
30
00:02:36.919 --> 00:02:42.199
to the simple plastic noses and mouthpieces
used for EPE makeups previously. Each mask
31
00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:46.719
was an extraordinarily intricate work of art, with hand laid hair meticulously applied strand
32
00:02:46.719 --> 00:02:53.599
by strand to create a naturalistic fur
texture. The masks were then individually hand
33
00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:58.960
painted with specialized techniques to achieve the
varied skin tones and distinctive facial expressions of
34
00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:04.039
the different Ape character. Equally crucial
were the Ape body suits designed by Elizabeth
35
00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:07.960
Ingele to complete the illusion. Made
from dyed wool cotton and alpaca hair,
36
00:03:08.280 --> 00:03:15.639
they had individual muscle striations sculpted in
to give a naturalistic ape like physique.
37
00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:20.680
Every suit was custom tailored to each
actor's proportions, with hooded cowls to allow
38
00:03:20.719 --> 00:03:24.919
a seamless blend with the mask appliances
between the masks and costumes. Each main
39
00:03:25.039 --> 00:03:29.560
Ape character took up to four hours
per day just to get into their full
40
00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:35.680
prosthetic makeup and bodysuits. All this
painstaking effort paid off by creating shockingly lifelike
41
00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:40.120
depictions of talking, intelligent apes that
were utterly convincing throughout the film. The
42
00:03:40.360 --> 00:03:46.080
ingenuity of Planet of the Ape's makeup
and costuming cannot be overstated. It raised
43
00:03:46.080 --> 00:03:50.120
the bar exponentially for what was thought
possible with screen prosthetics at the time.
44
00:03:50.800 --> 00:03:55.960
Those arresting visual accomplishments ensured this Semian
civilization would be unforgettably etched into the minds
45
00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:00.439
of audiences forever. Planet of the
Apes works as both thought provoking science fiction
46
00:04:00.520 --> 00:04:05.960
and entertaining adventure. Director Franklin J. Shaffner keeps the pacing brisk and exciting.
47
00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:11.360
The action scenes are visceral, like
the terrifying hunt of the humans and
48
00:04:11.400 --> 00:04:16.560
Tailor's attempted escape, and the Orwellian
parallels of the ape's cast system offer intriguing
49
00:04:16.639 --> 00:04:21.959
social commentary. By upending our assumptions
about man's role in nature, the film
50
00:04:23.079 --> 00:04:30.560
forces us to question our own society. Some fun facts about Planet of the
51
00:04:30.600 --> 00:04:33.920
Apes. The famous ending wasn't in
the original book or script, but came
52
00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:40.480
from a suggestion by co star Charlton
Heston. Roddy McDowell had such difficulty eating
53
00:04:40.519 --> 00:04:44.639
with his ape makeup on that he
started losing unhealthy amounts of weight during the
54
00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:49.240
shoot and had to drink meal replacement
shakes. The film's now dated score was
55
00:04:49.279 --> 00:04:55.240
actually quite innovative for the time,
an unsettling avant garde mix of ape noises
56
00:04:55.319 --> 00:04:59.639
and tribal percussion. The crash of
the astronaut's ship into a lake was the
57
00:04:59.680 --> 00:05:04.160
most expensive single special effects shot ever
at the time. A scene was written
58
00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:09.519
but cut explaining the ape society arose
after a plague wiped out the dogs and
59
00:05:09.600 --> 00:05:14.560
cats, letting apes become pets and
then servants and finally masters. To create
60
00:05:14.600 --> 00:05:18.800
the apocalyptic look of the Forbidden Zone, filmmakers shot among the striking rock formations
61
00:05:18.800 --> 00:05:25.199
in Utah's Glen Canyon. Planet of
the Apes was hugely successful, holding the
62
00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:29.680
box office record for over a month. It tapped into the social upheaval and
63
00:05:29.800 --> 00:05:33.959
racial tensions of the nineteen sixties,
serving as a potent allegory. Some saw
64
00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:39.560
the apes treatment of humans as a
parallel for racism and segregation. Others viewed
65
00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:44.959
it as a Vietnam War commentary on
the danger of underestimating a technologically inferior enemy,
66
00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:48.879
but some critics felt it played on
white paranoia of a black uprising overthrowing
67
00:05:48.920 --> 00:05:54.480
society. Planet of the Apes went
on to receive two prestigious honors that year.
68
00:05:54.959 --> 00:05:59.519
First, it was nominated for the
Outstanding Dramatic Motion Picture by the Writer's
69
00:05:59.560 --> 00:06:03.839
Guild of a America, recognizing the
excellent screenplay adapted from the novel by Pierre
70
00:06:03.920 --> 00:06:08.480
Boule. While it didn't win that
award, the film did take home an
71
00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:14.319
Oscar for Best Costume Design at the
nineteen sixty nine Academy Awards ceremony. Costume
72
00:06:14.360 --> 00:06:18.240
designers John Chambers and Elizabeth Ingle were
lauded for their ingenious ape mask designs that
73
00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:24.720
brought this simian society chillingly to life
on the big screen. The incredible artistry
74
00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:29.079
and thought provoking narrative of Planet of
the Apes left an indelible mark on cinema
75
00:06:29.160 --> 00:06:34.839
history. Those landmark costume designs became
iconic images that still resonate with fans today
76
00:06:35.079 --> 00:06:41.120
over fifty years later. While modestly
awarded at the time, this daring and
77
00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:46.560
innovative film certainly earned its place as
a celebrated science fiction masterpiece. The film's
78
00:06:46.560 --> 00:06:50.399
themes remained socially relevant, and it
still widely analyzed today. Even the most
79
00:06:50.439 --> 00:06:55.879
outlandish sci fi can serve as a
mirror on our own world. Planet of
80
00:06:55.920 --> 00:07:00.240
the Apes uses a fantastical premise to
deliver hard truths and warnings about his human
81
00:07:00.319 --> 00:07:03.759
nature, and that's the mark of
truly visionary science fiction. It's a film
82
00:07:03.800 --> 00:07:09.000
that still has the power to provoke
and unsettle over fifty years later, and
83
00:07:09.120 --> 00:07:14.920
cements its status as a stone cold
classic. What's your take on Planet of
84
00:07:14.959 --> 00:07:17.800
the Apes? Does the ending still
pack a punch? Can it be viewed
85
00:07:17.800 --> 00:07:21.959
as an allegory for modern day issues? Until next time? Stay tuned and
86
00:07:23.040 --> 00:07:25.959
I'm Journey Joe Mitchell and this is
TV in the Basement.