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Reviews and commentary by Tony Isabella
"America's Most Beloved Comic-Book Writer & Columnist"
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TONY'S ONLINE TIPS
for Tuesday, January 4, 2005
When it comes to eBay, I'm almost completely an impulse buyer. I check out a different category every day - usually just the first three or so pages of items "closing soonest" - and bid on a couple things each week. It's more fun than buying lottery tickets and I always get something for the money I spend.
I scored nostalgic gold a few weeks back when I won an auction for the "Dell Movie Classic" adaptation of DINOSAURUS! I first saw this 1960 movie in the basement of Sts. Philip and James elementary school. I was probably 11 or 12 years old.
As memory serves, the P.T.U. (Parent-Teacher Union) sponsored Sunday afternoon movies as both as fundraiser and as a way to give parents a respite from weekend child-rearing. Much to the dismay of some parents, it was the monster and sci-fi flicks which always filled the seats and sold the candy and popcorn. It was there that I got my first look at such films as GORGO, WAR OF THE WORLDS, and INVADERS FROM MARS...and also held a girl's hand for the first time since discovering my maturing classmates of the opposite sex were intriguing and moderately forbidden.
Online critics are not generally kind to DINOSAURUS, pointing out its low-budget and scientific flaws. I loved it from the first time I saw it and, despite having watched it at least a dozen more times in the intervening years and gotten terribly ancient in the process, love it still. I just ordered it on DVD and I'm looking forward to watching it again soon.
Here's a quick plot summary of the movie:
An American construction crew, building a harbor on an island in the Caribbean, dredges up the frozen bodies of two dinosaurs - a Brontosaurus and a Tyrannosaurus - and a caveman. The nasty-ass boss of the island schemes to profit from these discoveries, only to be thwarted by a lightning strike that shuts down the island's power and revives the prehistoric critters. Things get scary - but not *too* scary - after that. After all, this B-movie was clearly intended for kids.
Working from a screenplay by producer Jack H. Harris (who came up with the idea), Dan E. Weisburd, and Jean Yeaworth, director Irwin S. Yeaworth, Jr. packed a whole lot of action into the film's 88 minutes. One of the things I like best about this movie is that no one wastes any time going "That's impossible!" When hot redhead Betty Piper [played by Kristina Hanson] spots the frozen dinosaurs underwater, handsome hero Bart Thompson [Ward Ramsey] has his crew fetch them. When the dinosaurs go missing from the beach after the lightning storm, the heroes start hustling the islanders to an old fortress. Had this been Amity Island, they would have ended up as the T-Rex's lunch.
DINOSAURUS has lots of great kid elements. Young Julio [Alan Roberts] plays with the same hard rubber dinosaurs we played with, befriends the caveman, and gets to ride the brontosaurus. Hacker [Fred Engleberg], Julio's guardian and boss of the island, was the bad parent of our nightmares. The film has moments of humor - the caveman meets the modern world - sadness - the brontosaurus doesn't fare so well - and a climatic battle between the hungry T-Rex and a steam shovel. Kids love steam shovels!
The comic book is pretty darn spiffy, too. I don't know who adapted it, but he or she was very faithful to the original movie. One of the only major changes is in a tavern confrontation between Bart and Hacker. In the film, it's more of a fight and ends with Hacker breaking a bottle for a weapon, only to cut his own hand in the process. That was likely considered too graphic for the "clean and wholesome entertainment" which Dell promised parents in every issue of its comic books.
Another change for the comic was the unfortunate condensing of the film's most exciting action scenes. With 32 pages available to the adaptors, there should've been space for more than three panels of the battle between the T-Rex and the steam shovel. They didn't even include the classic shot of Bart's second-in-command ringing the fortress bell and yelling "DI-NO-SAURUS!"
Besides not knowing who wrote this movie adaptation, I don't know who drew it. That's been driving me nuts ever since I got the comic because the artist's identity is right on the tip of my mind. Within hours of this column posting, someone is going to e-mail me with the information and I'm going to feel like a complete fool for not knowing/remembering it. Sigh.
For what it's worth, I like the art. It has a "rough" quality that suits the material and the settling well, and the storytelling is rock-solid from start to finish. If the dinosaurs are somewhat scarier in the movie, the comic-book Hacker is every bit as mean as his cinema counterpart. It's a good job all around; I'm delighted to have this comic book in my collection.
Some additional comments, data, and trivia:
This DINOSAURUS adaptation is Dell's FOUR COLOR #1120 (second series). The inside front cover features five movie stills in what is essentially an ad for the film. The inside back cover and back cover present dinosaur facts in comics format. With a cover price of "still 10¢," this comic was definitely a good deal.
The 34th edition of THE OFFICIAL OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE says a near-mint condition copy of this comic book would command a price of $110. THE STANDARD CATALOG OF COMIC BOOKS pegs it at $75. I got my *extremely* nice very good/fine copy for a mere $15 plus $2.95 shipping charges.
The auctions will have ended before this column posts, but, as I write this, there are two copies of DINOSAURUS being offered on eBay. An allegedly very good copy - it doesn't look it to me - has a starting bid of $13.99 and a good copy has a starting bid of $20. No takers for either at this time.
Getting back to my own gorgeous copy of DINOSAURUS, I now sing the praises of the gentlemen who sold it to me. His eBay handle is "rgipson05" and I was so pleased with the quality of the comic, the great communication, and the swift shipping I asked him to keep me informed of his future auctions. Since then, I've already bought another comic book from him, an issue of a title I'd never heard of previously. The item has already arrived - same terrific condition and service as before - and awaits my reading and doubtless writing about it. Hello, legitimate tax deduction!
In researching DINOSAURUS online, I came across an incredibly informative review/commentary here:
www.geocities.com/jrgdawg/breviews/dinosaurus.html
It's got the scoop on the characters, the plot, trivia about the movie involving Steve McQueen and THE TWILIGHT ZONE, memorable lines, and things to watch for. Check it out.
That's all for now. As always, thanks for spending a part of your day with me. I'll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 01/03/2005 | 01/04/2005 | 01/05/2005 >>
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THE "TONY" SCALE
ZERO: Burn your money before buying any comic receiving this rating. It doesn't *necessarily* mean there's absolutely nothing of value here - though it *could* - but whatever value it might possess shrinks into insignificance before its overall awfulness.
ONE: Buy something else. Maybe I found something which wasn't completely dreadful in the item, but not enough for me to recommend it when there are better comics available. I only want what's best for you, my children.
TWO: Basic judgment call. I found some value, but not enough to recommend it. My review should give you enough info to decide if you want to take a chance on it. Are you feeling lucky today, punk? Well, are you?
THREE: This denotes something I find perfectly respectable. There are better books out there, but I wouldn't regret buying this item. Based on my review, you should be able to determine if it's of interest to you. Let the Force guide you.
FOUR: I recommend anything earning this rating. Unless you don't like the genre, subject matter, or past work of the creators, I believe you'll enjoy this item. Isn't it uncanny how I can look right into your soul that way?
FIVE: Anything getting this rating is among the best comicdom has to offer. You should buy/read this, even if the genre/subject matter doesn't appeal to you. It's for your own good. Me, I live for comics and books this good...but not in a pathetic "Comic-Book Guy" sort of way.
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