- Bert I. Gordon
Bert I. Gordon (born Bert Ira Gordon,
September 24 ,1922 inKenosha, WI ) is an Americanfilm director most famous for suchsci-fi and horrorB-movie s as "The Amazing Colossal Man " and "Village of the Giants ".Most of Gordon's work is in the idiom of giant monster films, for which he used rear-projection to create the special effects. His nickname "Mister B.I.G." is a reference both to his initials and to his preferred technique for making super-sized creatures.
Gordon began his career directing television commercials before moving to film in 1954 to produce "Serpent Island". In 1957 he began his prolific association with
American International Pictures .In 1960, he wrote, produced and directed "
The Boy and the Pirates ", starring active and popular child star of the timeCharles Herbert and Gordon's own daughter, Susan. The three of them recently appeared together in the celebrity lineup at the 2006 Monster Bash, held June 23-25 at the Pittsburgh (PA) Airport Four Points.Walt Disney Company 's theatrical release ofJohnny Depp 's , on July 7, 2006, spiked interest in previous "pirate" films. To that end Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, released a "Midnite Movies" doubleDVD set with the rarely seen "The Boy and the Pirates", and the more recent "Crystalstone" (1988), on June 27, 2006.His 1977 "Empire of the Ants" featured a pre-"Dynasty"
Joan Collins , who later said of the film it was her worst ever acting experience, but by then the loosely-based modernizedH. G. Wells tale had been elevated tocult film status.None of his films has received significant critical attention, but his work has attained popularity in some circles. The cult TV show "
Mystery Science Theater 3000 " ("MST3K") has featured several of his movies, listed below.Gordon holds a degree from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison .Filmography
Of these titles, "King Dinosaur", "The Amazing Colossal Man", "Earth Vs. The Spider", "War of the Colossal Beast", "The Magic Sword", "Tormented", "Beginning of the End" and "Village of the Giants" were featured on "MST3K".
References
* [http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2007/07/a-tale-of-two-g.html Bert I. Gordon vs. Bert Gordon @WFMU]
* [http://www.sfsite.com/gary/gord01.htm Bert I. Gordon] from Gary Westfahl Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Films
* [http://scifipedia.scifi.com/index.php/Bert_I._Gordon Bert I. Gordon] from Scifi.com SCIFIPEDIA
* " [http://www.kiddiematinee.com/b-boypirates.html kiddiematinee.com / The Boy and the Pirates] "External links
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