Stopmotion pleasures aside, jason and the argonauts is something of an oddity in that the films lead actors, todd armstrong and nancy kovak as jason and medea happen to be the least interesting performers in an otherwise extraordinary ensemble. Jason and the argonauts 1963 jason and the argonauts. See more ideas about jason and the argonauts, mythology and greek and roman mythology. Filmed on sunny italian locations with production values that local sword n sandal pix could only dream of, jason is harryhausens baby from one end to the other. Stolid todd armstrong stars as the intrepid leader of greeces greatest heroes whose quest for the legendary golden fleece offers up terrific action.
Jun 29, 2014 explore yinamias board jason and the argonauts. A romantic and spirited retelling of jasons journey to the farawa. He was an actor, known for jason and the argonauts. To play jason and medea, columbia assigned two minor stars in their firmament, todd armstrong and nancy kovack. It was distributed by columbia pictures shot in eastman color, the film was made in. Jason and the argonauts trailer turner classic movies. Jason and the argonauts is a 1963 columbia pictures fantasy greek mythology feature film starring todd armstrong as the greek hero in a story about his quest for the golden fleece. Todd armstrong was born on july 25, 1937 in missouri, usa as john harris armstrong. I found an archived version of an article about the making of jason and the argonauts. He selects a crew and with the help of hera, queen of the gods, sets sail in search of the fleece. Jason and the argonauts is a 1963 angloamerican independently made adventure mythological fantasy film produced by charles h. Jason and the argonauts contends with the 7th voyage of sinbad as the most popular ray harryhausen epic, and its also his own personal favorite. With todd armstrong, nancy kovack, gary raymond, laurence naismith.
Its his son, john harris armstrong, who has landed the starring role in the new fantasy film jason and the argonauts. But, in a move intended to foil jasons plans and seize the. Its the story of jason todd armstrong, a fearless sailor and explorer, who returns to the kingdom of thessaly after a 20year voyage to make his rightful claim to. Read the illustrated kids version of jason and the argonauts authors note. The argonauts raised their sails and sang songs to artemis, savior of ships. But to do so, jason must first find the magical golden fleece. Qualifizierte bestellungen werden kostenlos geliefert. This would be his only major leading role, appearing in supporting roles afterwards on multiple tv series. The story of jason, the argonauts, and the golden fleece is told in two modern movies. His last acting job was in 1982 and todd killed himself at the age of 55 in 1992. Former classmate of dustin hoffman and gene hackman. Jason and the argonauts widescreenfull screen bilingual. This classic myth chronicles jasons quest for the golden fleece and the restoration of his familys throne.
View the tcmdb entry for jason and the argonauts 1963. Jason and the golden fleece is a 1963 angloamerican independently made adventure mythological fantasy film produced by charles h. Jason and the argonauts todd armstrong nancy kovack gary raymond 1963 the greek hero todd armstrong sails through harpies and clashing rocks to the golden fleece, guarded by the hydra. The fiveissue comic book miniseries jason and the argonauts. He was the son of aeson, the rightful king of iolcos. Todd armstrong, nancy kovack, gary raymond, laurence naismith, niall macginnis, michael gwynn, douglas wilmer, jack gwillim. Stately hieroglyphicstyle credits and decadent pelias douglas wilmer having his fortune told, the opening to the ray harryhausen greekmyth specialeffects landmark jason and the argonauts, 1963, starring todd armstrong. The director don chaffey really hated todd armstrong who seems to have been difficult on set. Starring todd armstrong, nancy kovack, nigel green, honor blackman and gary raymond. Classic ray harryhausen special effects bring to life the epic mythology behind jasons journey in the search for the golden fleece.
Jason was the captain of the ship called the argos. Fantasy film based on the greek myth, using live action and animation. Arguably the most intelligently written film to feature the masterful stopmotion animation of ray harryhausen, jason and the argonauts is a colorful adventure that takes full advantage of harryhausens dynarama process. He was also the greatgrandson of the messenger god hermes. Jason and the golden fleece is a 1963 angloamerican independently made mythological fantasy film produced by charles h. Nov, 2014 released in 1963 by columbia pictures, jason and the argonauts is based on greek mythology. Using stop motion effects to create the movement of mythical and frightening creatures and statues, we follow the story of jason played by todd armstrong and his mission to reclaim the kingdom rightfully his which was taken from his father by pelias. The myth may reflect historical expeditions made by the mycenaeans in the th century bce as they explored lands to the east of.
See more ideas about jason and the argonauts, sci fi movies and fantasy films. Hercules starring steve reeves, and jason and the argonauts starring todd armstrong. A stiff wind arose and pushed the argo through the dashing seas. One shot called for todd armstrong jason to piece a skeletons ribcage with his sword. His first starring role was the title character in jason and the argonauts 1963, 3 a mortal who betrays the god of zeus in search of the golden fleece, but his voice was dubbed by british actor tim turner, since a majority of the cast were british. Along the way are monsters, princesses, monsters, storms and monsters. Special effects master ray harryhausen considered jason and the argonauts 1963 his best film. Jason and the argonauts recounts the greek myth of jason todd armstrong, who is aided in his quest for the golden fleece by the goddess hera honor blackman. Jason must overcome several obstacles before reaching his goal. Overview greek mythology is done up brown by the specialeffects expertise of ray harryhausen in jason and the argonauts.
The film stars todd armstrong as jason, along with nancy kovack, honor. Ive enjoyed the dvd version, and now have the bluray version. Jason and the argonauts by don chaffey don chaffey, todd. Released in 1963 by columbia pictures, jason and the argonauts is based on greek mythology. Some of his comments about him border on homophobic. Jason simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Consulting hera, the queen of gods, jason recruits the brave argonauts to crew his ship, and they embark on their eventful journey. Louis modernist architects, has a new masterpiece to be proud of. Along the way they encounter a variety of mythic creatures, including the 100foot bronze god talos, the batlike harpies, the sevenheaded reptilian hydra, and an army of skeletons wielding sword and shield. While its original theatrical release was met with indifference, the film grew in stature over time as the baby boom generation embraced it after repeated television showings. The film stars todd armstrong as jason, along with nancy kovack, honor blackman, and gary raymond. Additionally, the original prerelease prints carried the films original title card, jason and the golden fleece which can be seen on the 1992 laserdisc release by criterion, before deciding on the films eventual title, jason and the argonauts, on march 1, three months prior to. Inspired by the greek myth, the story begins when the fearless explorer jason todd armstrong returns to the kingdom of thessaly to make his rightful claim to the throne, but the gods proclaim that he must first find the magical golden fleece. Considering when jason and the argonauts was made, it truly was a technical marvel in its time.
The legendary greek hero leads a team of intrepid adventurers in a perilous quest for the legendary golden fleece. What also makes the movie memorable is the good cast of actors. Jason and the argonauts 1963 film wikimili, the best. After the argo was supplied with everything needed to sail the sea, and jason had spoken encouraging words to the throngs of people, without further ado, the argonauts, their mighty strength combined, dragged the argo from its moorings, down to the sea. The first great quest in greek mythology 2016 is a picture book written and illustrated by robert byrd. Jason then married the princess of corinth so they could stay.
Jason and the argonauts vhs todd armstrong nancy kovack ray harryhausen 1963. The panhellenic mythological hero jason was famed for his expedition with the argonauts as the sailors on their ship the argo were known in search of the golden fleece in kolchis on the black sea, one of the most popular and enduring legends of greek mythology. Jason and the argonauts is a 1963 independently made americanbritish fantasy film, produced by charles h. The high definition remastering and bluray transfer appear to be first rate as though filmed in highdefinition as befits this fine film. Todd armstrong july 25, 1937 november 17, 1992 was an american actor in ten films and several television series. Don chaffeys jason and the argonauts is an outlandish, transportive piece of. While its original theatrical release was met with indifference, the film grew in stature over time as the baby boom generation embraced it. This archetypal adventure sets the example for the plot of almost all modern adventures, and it may even model what it means to be human. Todd armstrong, nancy kovack, gary raymond, laurence naismith, niall macginnis, michael gwynn, douglas wilmer. This isnt quite the way ancient greeks told the story, but hey, theyre all dead now. Their ship is called argo, hence the sailors are argonauts. Jason todd armstrong, rightful heir to the throne of thessaly, is spared from death through the intervention of the goddess hera honor blackman. Don chaffey gb 1963 103 mins u todd armstrong, honor blackman, niall macginnis, nigel green, laurence naismith, gary raymond, john cairney.
Todd armstrong, nancy kovack, gary raymond, laurence naismith, niall macginnis, don chaffey. Yet, in order to do so, he must first find the golden fleece. The story revolves around the hero jason todd armstrong, rightful heir to the throne of thessaly, whose throne was usurped from his father by evil uncle. Jason colavito biography media inquiries contact jason. All the wonderful goingson in jason and the argonauts are the result of ray harryhausens famous stopmotion animation. Jason and the argonauts stems from the greek mythological legend of jason and his voyage at the helm of the argo in search of the golden fleece. Stopmotion animation by ray harryhausen, who considered this his best work. While jason is a pretty good leading man, the supporting cast zeus, hera, pelias, aeetes, to name a few are excellent and very memorable. Jason is sent to seek the golden fleece to regain the kingdom of thessaly. Don chaffey, wilkie cooper, ray harryhausen, bernard herrman, todd armstrong, honor blackman, nigel green hercules, nancy kovack, laurence naismith, gary raymond. Todd armstrong is known for his role as jason in ray harryhausens jason and the argonauts.
Jun 19, 2016 this fight sequence is all about putting the actors and models together, interacting seamlessly. Jason and the argonauts is an important work of cinematography, one of harryhausens materpieces. So he builds a ship, the argo, and selects a crew before sailing to faroff colchis in search of the prize. Buy jason and the argonauts dvd 1963 from amazons movies store. He is probably best known for playing the titular role of jason in the film jason and the argonauts 1963. Usurped of his rightful title, greek mythological hero jason braves the seas in a quest for the golden fleece, which possesses magical powers that would prove useful in reclaiming the kingdom of thessaly. The story is a heavily summarized version of argonautica, a greek epic poem about the myth and voyage of jason and the argonauts. Twenty years after pelios murdered king aristo for the throne of thessaly, jason todd armstrong returns home to claim the kingdom that is, by all rights, his. It is famous for its stop motion sequences created by ray harryhausen who also produced the film. The men who helped to sail the boat were called the argonauts.
Todd drops his sword at a given point and the animated skeletons body hides this so that ray was able to have an animated sword remain stuck in the wounded skeleton. Its the story of jason todd armstrong, a fearless sailor and explorer, who returns to the kingdom of thessaly after a 20year voyage to make his rightful claim to the throne. Greek mythology is done up brown by the specialeffects expertise of ray harryhausen in jason and the argonauts. If you havent seen this one since you were a kid, you wont recall todd armstrongs jason, or that the goddess hera was played by honor blackman, who. Mar 23, 2020 jason and the argonauts working title. Its his son, john harris armstrong, who has landed the. Its string of bravura animation setpieces are buffered. He had also starred, during 1961, in the later segments of the syndicated crime drama manhunt. In 1962, armstrong made his film debut with a small role in director edward dmytryks drama walk on the wild side, in which he was billed as todd anderson.
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