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ORIGINAL SEAVIEW & FLYING SUB MINIATURES |
Updated: June 04, 2004
Yes! These are the original miniature props used on "Voyage to the
Bottom of the Sea" TV series from 1964-1968! No! I don't own them
either, but boy I wish I did. I guess I can't have it all right? I
recently met a gentleman on eBay named, Bill Cotter of Mission Hills
California. Bill and friend (Mike Clark Producer of Bob May Robot
Video's) had a press meeting at Irwin Allen's office at Warner Bros.
in 1979.
It was there that Bill saw these original minature props of
Mr. Allen's loved TV show. He asked if he could take photos of his
props. Irwin replied, "Sure, but please take them out of the office
for I am going to have several meetings in here shortly!" Bill &
Mike quickly took the props out of the office into a sound stage to
take some photos of these neat props. They also had the pleasure to
go into Greg Jeins wherehouse, where additional props such as the
larger Flying Sub was present. For those that don't know, Greg Jein
is a prop builder and owns the original Jupiter-2 on the launch site
(Pilot Episode) and restoried the original B-9 Robot for Kevin
Burns. Greg also owns the stunt B-9 Robot from LIS. After several
e-mails to Bill, he was very kind to send me a CD of never seen
photos of these rare props. This may be the very first look at these
props in nearly fourty years!
Bill is also looking for additional photos for me to post on our
website for the fans enjoyment. After people have seen our website,
more people are coming out of closet cleaning & sharing there photos, collections, etc. here on our website. It is unknown where these props
are today?
Note that the larger Flying Sub photos were taken at the 20th Century Fox
back lot, years later when Irwin Allen left the studio. The Seaview
measures 4 feet long, and notice the early design of the front viewport
windows. The Flying Sub measures about 20" across. It is a shame that these props are not shared with the fans of the world.
This is one thing I believe in very strongly. Private collectors should also share the enjoyment of these props with others. I guess some collectors get
fed up with the e-mails and phone call about these props. But owning such
props also comes responsibilty of having such items. Anything that I own or purchase in the near future will always be shared on this website.
Again, many thanks to Bill Cotter & Mike Clark for these great photos!
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea photos of Production Miniatures:
By Bill Cotter:
Back in 1979 I proposed an article on Irwin Allen's series
"Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" to STARLOG magazine. Happily
they agreed and my partner, Mike Clark, and I went off on a
search for the people behind the film and the TV series. Along
the way we discovered that an executive at 20th Century Fox
had two of the original miniatures from the show on display in
his office. These were two of the smaller models, the
four-foot Seaview and one of the Flying Subs. Both were
mounted on wooden bases and sitting on a shelf in the office.
We asked if we could photograph the miniatures and were told
yes, but not in the office as it was too crowded. Instead, we
were offered the use of a soundstage as long as we didn't get
in anyone's way. I still remember the thrill of walking across
the Fox lot carrying the Seaview in front of me. I can also
remember a mad desire to jump in the car and never head back!
Mike and I photographed the miniatures from a variety of
angles and under some very hectic conditions. The stage was
being prepped for the studio's Christmas party and there were
ladders and workmen everywhere. The people working on the
stage weren't thrilled about us being in the middle of it all,
so we were only able to get one quick roll of photos.
Evidently these miniatures have long since gone missing, so
this is a chance to see the only photos of them that I know of?
In addition, there are pictures of Irwin Allen in his office
at Warner Bros. during our interview for the article, as well
as shots of a large-size Flying Sub for sale at an auction,
others in storage and finally scenes of me successfully
fitting my newly purchased FS-1 into the back of a Porsche!
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