Big boys toys... Howard and Theodore Lydecker's miniature wonderland

 Howard and Theodore Lydecker are two names that have always been synonymous within the special effects community and among fans of forties action  cinema. Recognised as the specialists, bar none, in mobile miniature action - be it aerial dogfights, car collisions, train wrecks or battles at sea, the Lydecker brothers achieved it all with customary  high calibre miniature action set pieces and cinematography. Normally associated with the films and large roster of weekly serials produced at Mascot Pictures and later Republic Pictures - there true home base for hundreds of movies over the years.  I wish as an enthusiast, I could access more of their films and serials, but these are extremely difficult to find, so I've had to make do with a sort of mini tribute, based in large part upon the Dydecker's Oscar nominated work for the John Wayne aerial combat picture FLYING TIGERS.  I've also added a few shots from some of their other shows including some breathtaking full scale (I think) pyrotechnics from the terrific firey climax of another Duke Wayne show THE FIGHTING SEABEES and a few frames from their astonishing maritime special effects showcase SINK THE BISMARK.

Largely seen in action packed war films, the Lydecker boys highly regarded technical polish and realism would be often imitated by later legions of special effects chiefs - namely L.B Abbott at Fox who worked with Howard Lydecker on some of the Irwin Allen tv shows of the sixties such as LOST IN SPACE.  Miniatures exponents such as Gregory Jein would work with Abbott in utilising exclusively the Lydecker rigs and gags for the huge Steven Spielberg effects show 1941. 

Even more recent effects heavy shows such as the Oscar winner INDEPENDENCE DAY where effects supervisor Volker Engel preferred to utilise the in camera Lydecker flying rigs for a number of scenes for a far greater degree of fluidity and physical presence of the aircraft trajectory than was achievable at the time with computer simulation or possibly even motion control.

There is a really good look at the world of the Lydecker Brothers on the net at  http://www.vttbots.com/page20.html which is part of an extensive look at the making of the television series VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA.  I've used 3 or 4 photos (above and below of the Lydecker effects unit) from that essay as I've had difficulty finding such good inside views of their studio and props.  Some of the other behind the scenes pictures I've put here of the special effects rigging on the set of FLYING TIGERS I've taken from very old magazine articles on WWII flying action, I forget the name.  I've mentioned a couple of other key effects figures from Republic here as well  - Ellis 'Bud' Thackeray who was a widely experienced effects cinematographer, and Lewis W.Physioc, a veteran matte painter and matte cameraman who was associated with this studio for a time.

Made in 1942, the story of non-combatant fliers based in China as observers during the lead up to WWII, the highly regarded effects work is the realisation that all the aircraft sequences are miniatures, as with the eventual confrontational action sequences - and it all looks terrific.

Not only are the miniatures themselves flawless, but kudos must go to the boys for the exemplary cinematography of the model action.  They were firm believers in employing big models, shot out doors in natural light.

One of Duke Wayne's flyboys is shot down and survives a forced crash landing - all in miniature.

Ellis 'Bud' Thackery was effects cinematographer on this and many other Republic shows.

I believe that the Lydeckers were the envy of the other major studios for the degree of authenticity.

A large scale eight foot high model bridge and moving train - just superb!

The bombing run - perfect miniature pyro work and always invisible wire rigs.

It gets sticky... Japanese spot the US plane and take action.  Amazingly real fluidity in plane movement.

Smart aleck flyboy John Carroll confronts the armaments train and dies a hero..oh, and 'spoiler alert'!.

The success lies in the large scale of the sets and vehicles with grand pay off on screen.

An old film magazine beautifully demonstrates the Lydecker method for FLYING TIGERS

Again, an ancient article spells out the brothers passion and achievements.

At left we can see the extensive control tower rig for cable driven airplane to slide down on the carefully predetermined trajectory into the pre-rigged miniature train and bridge.  Note the motor and pulley set up which pulls the train along the tracks.  Some key modern era effects Oscar winners such as Dennis Muren at ILM are huge devotees of the Lydecker school of miniature manipulation, and used it whenever possible, in the pre CG days on shows such as INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM in 1984

With a small outfit like Republic, it really was all up there on the screen.

Another great little Republic show with some miniatures, a matte painted Washington Monument, possibly painted by Lewis Physioc, an industry effects veteran who was associated with the studio in a matte art capacity for some time.  On this show Theodore was special effects supervisor, with brother Howard acting as 2nd Unit Director.

Part of the huge finale where the Navy Engineers (the Seabees) blow up giant fuel tanks thus setting the enmey soldiers alight in a truly awe inspiring stunt-physical effects showcase. 

The excellent British made, Lewis Gilbert directed  film SINK THE BISMARK

Outstanding miniature sea battlers and pyro work, all expertly photographed in what is possibly some of the most convincing model ship footage of it's type.

Having seen so many similar sequences in war movies over the years SINK THE BISMARK really stands apart in a class of it's own, both in model set ups and also the superb cinematography.  Note the perfectly scaled ocean breakers and wake, no doubt helped considerably by the overcast sky and being in black and white.  I read I think in the L.B Abbott book (he was consultant on this film) that the miniatures were all shot using spherical lenses to allow excellent depth of field not possible with CinemaScope lenses, with the negative being squeezed later to anamorphic 2.35.

More Lydecker magic from SINK THE BISMARK

I can't figure this shot out - pilot viewpoint approaching miniature Bismark??

Blake Edwards' THE GREAT RACE - a big, bold and brassy live action cartoon

One of Warner Bros studios big budget shows of the sixties, THE GREAT RACE (1965) was a particularly loud though undeniably fun film with alot going for it.  Star Jack Lemmon, whom I'm very fond of, (especially in THE ODD COUPLE) was really allowed to cut loose hare and personify a hosh-posh of elements from every cartoon villain you've ever seen.

Tony Curtis was his usual dull and utterly forgettable self, with Peter Falk and Natalie Wood shining here.  Blake Edwards knows his stuff when it comes to slapstick comedy and in fact made a couple of the funniest films ever, THE PARTY and RETURN OF THE PINK PANTHER  - both with Peter Sellers.

Henry Mancini contributed a sensational comic score that works perfectly, with the wonderful centrepiece musical number by Dorothy Provine being one of those numbers you just can't get out of your mind for days afterwards - in fact I'm playing it right now as I type this ("He shouldn't a had, ought-to-have had a swang on me").

An aspect I liked about THE GREAT RACE was that it won the Oscar for best sound effects editing - by one of the greats of sound effect creation, the legendary Treg Brown.  Now if anyone out there is anything like me, a fan of Chuck Jones Looney Tunes cartoons of the fifties, you'd know that Brown was Warners' chief sound cutter to all of those hundreds of six minute marvels - sound effects that were unlike ANY other animation studio in their sheer lunacy and incongruent hilarity.  Chuck Jones himself credited Brown as one of the great unsung heroes of the Warner Bros cartoon division for 30 years.

Anyway, on with the special photographic effects from THE GREAT RACE.  They are great!  The picture is loaded with matte shots painted by Cliff Silsby, Howard Fisher and Albert Maxwell Simpson, blue screen shots by Linwood Dunn and miniatures photographed by James B.Gordon - not to mention some amazing full scale mechanical effects by Lee Zavitz. The show looks and sounds great, even today.

So, on with the show...........

Special Photographic Effects - Linwood G.Dunn - Film Effects of Hollywood

Special Effects Cinematographer - James B.Gordon

Optical Cinematographer - Don Weed

Matte Painters - Cliff Silsby, Albert Maxwell Simpson, Leon Harris and Howard Fisher.

 Mechanical Special Effects - Lee Zavitz

Sound Effects Editor - Tregoweth Brown

A great title sequence done as a series of old lantern slides, complete with several projectionist jarring gags.

One of the 25 matte shots (I've never been able to spot that many).

The race begins - NYC painted cityscape. One of the key matte painters on this show, and many more for Linwood Dunn was Albert Maxwell Simpson - an artist who's career harked way back to the silent era and who had among thousands of films painted on THE PRISONER OF ZENDA, GONE WITH THE WIND and other Selznick pictures as well as the original KING KONG and many, many more mostly for RKO over the decades.  Simpson had a long association with Linwood Dunn right from the KONG days and they continued a working relationship up until the late sixties.

Another angle with matte painted NYC buildings added to Warners backlot street.

Painted western lanscape with simulated explosion and fire element on horizon.

A large miniature of Lemmon and Falk's evil lair - with typically cartoonish outcome.

The ole' west - probably a backlot set with painted in Arizona scenery.

Alaska - partial soundstage set with substantial matte painted snowy landscape.

Small set with actors matted into ocean plate.

A dazzling Cliff Silsby matte painted newpaper office - with flawless attention to detail and superb compositing.  Silsby was one of Hollywoods old hands at matte art, having worked over the decades for Twentieth Century Fox and Warners.

A beautiful soft blended matte shot as the adventurers reach land at last.  I suspect that possibly former Paramount matte artist Jan Domela may also have been involved with the show as he did do several contract matte jobs for Linwood Dunn around that year.  He did paint on HAWAII at Film Effects of Hollywood the following year.

A very rare original matte painting that still exists from the scene shown below.  The painting is 5 feet wide and is on thin hardboard.  The artist would either be Al Simpson or Cliff Silsby.      *Picture courtesy of Jim Aupperle.

A detailed photograph from the above original matte painting.

One of the mattes that was up for auction many years ago, and was credited to Leon Harris as matte painter.  The 1990 Disney movie DICK TRACY had Harris on the matte team along with six other artists, primarily as draghtsman for laying out the many complex architectural requirements on glass for the other artists to work from.

Another flawless painted matte, and like the others seen in this film very cleanly composited.

Paris!!!  A Linwood Dunn miniature Eiffel Tower perfectly lit and lined up into actual location plate.

The spectacular finale - the Eiffel Tower comes crashing down.  The story behind this wonderful sequence is fascinating.  In an interview effects supervisor Dunn was faced with the prospect of investing considerable sums in contstructing a large sixteen foot miniature, yet came across the notion of employing nothing mre than an over the counter seven dollar plastic model Eiffel Tower, from which an amazingly convincing scene of destruction was achieved which to all concerned was perfectly acceptable.(from an interview with Dunn in the book Special Effects in the Movies by David Everitt)