Destination Moonsuits: A Project for Someday

[beamjockey]

It would be kind of interesting to compile a list of all the films and TV episodes in which actors wore the space suits created for Destination Moon-- or suits much like them.

Apparently, after the 1950 release of DM, the suits became available for use by other productions-- and Hollywood's interest in spaceflight was just beginning.


Photo by Allan Grant, copyright 1950 Time, Inc.
In addition to the costumes used in the movie itself, many similar suits were produced for promotions at theaters, and some of those probably found their way into the warehouses of costume-rental firms.

DM-like suits turned up in Cat Women of the Moon, the Three Stooges' Have Rocket, Will Travel, Abbott and Costello Go to Mars, and episodes of The Twilight Zone and The Time Tunnel. And, I'm sure, many more.

Do you know of any other examples?

Comments

[stevegreen.livejournal.com]

The costumes from Forbidden Planet were similarly reused in Fire Maidens From Outer Space, as I recall.

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

Um, Queen of Outer Space, perhaps? I get all those Fire Maidens, Cat Women, and Space Queens mixed up myself.

[stevegreen.livejournal.com]

Quite right. Fire Maidens was a British movie of the same period.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

They were also used in the Twilight Zone.

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

Here's another one: Flight to Mars, 1951.

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

The cover of Les Baxter's 1958 album Space Escapades features a couple of DM-style suits.


Also spotted: It: The Terror from Beyond Space.

[kip-w.livejournal.com]

I was going to say, talk to Bud Webster and see how many LPs used it. He used to give his "Hi-fi Sci-fi" slide show (with music) at conventions, and one of his particular delights was in showing how many different albums by different groups used the same piece of scenery or the same backdrop.

His LJ isn't actually dead, but he hasn't contributed to it in many, many moons now. Not sure where he hangs out.

[cobrabay.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure Project Moonbase used the same suits, but with different helmets. Also a brief appearance of one of them in the Radar Men from the Moon serial

[jeffreyab.livejournal.com]

Have you volunteered to do any science, media and fandom panels at Immortal ConFusion yet?

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

Not to be coy, but I haven't been asked.

I have a Curiosity slideset now. Would love to see james_nicoll and autopope again. The other guests are all people I would enjoy meeting.

[jeffreyab.livejournal.com]

This would be a good year to fire off an email to the programming people, which do not include me, volunteering your services.

[marsgov.livejournal.com]

I believe the spacesuits from 2001 were used in Babylon 5. Or copies thereof.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure it was just a (deliberately) similar-looking suit; most of the props from 2001 were destroyed specifically to prevent this sort of thing.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

...though lookalikes of those suits had to be constructed for the movie of 2010, since they appear in the pod-bay set.

[(Anonymous)]

The alien slavemasters in ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS had DM-like suits.

-- Mark Leeper

[stickmaker.livejournal.com]

That's the one I was trying to think of...

[derekl1963.livejournal.com]

Idea recycling is pretty common in Hollyweird.

Prop recycling doubly so... how many films/shows did Robby appear in? And those recycled SAGE panels still show up now and again even today.

[ex-frankwu.livejournal.com]

There was an article in Starlog magazine circa 1978 or 1979 that catalogued all the shows that Robbie appeared in, including Columbo, a couple episodes of Twilight Zone, and, my favorite, Ark II.

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

TV's Space Patrol (1950-1955) also recycled DM suits.