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| Ray Harryhausen, visual effects master, dies aged 92 | Ray Harryhausen, visual effects master, dies aged 92 |
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| Visual effects master Ray Harryhausen, whose stop-motion wizardry graced such films as Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans, has died aged 92. | Visual effects master Ray Harryhausen, whose stop-motion wizardry graced such films as Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans, has died aged 92. |
| The American made his models by hand and painstakingly shot them frame by frame to create some of the best-known animated sequences in cinema. | The American made his models by hand and painstakingly shot them frame by frame to create some of the best-known animated sequences in cinema. |
| His death in London was confirmed to the BBC by a family representative. | His death in London was confirmed to the BBC by a family representative. |
| "Harryhausen's genius was in being able to bring his models alive," said an official statement from his foundation. | "Harryhausen's genius was in being able to bring his models alive," said an official statement from his foundation. |
| "Whether they were prehistoric dinosaurs or mythological creatures, in Ray's hands they were no longer puppets but became instead characters in their own right." | "Whether they were prehistoric dinosaurs or mythological creatures, in Ray's hands they were no longer puppets but became instead characters in their own right." |
| Born in Los Angeles in June 1920, Raymond Frederick Harryhausen had a passion for dinosaurs as a child that led him to make his own versions of prehistoric creatures. | Born in Los Angeles in June 1920, Raymond Frederick Harryhausen had a passion for dinosaurs as a child that led him to make his own versions of prehistoric creatures. |
| Films like 1925's The Lost World and the 1933 version of King Kong stoked that passion and prompted him to seek out a meeting with Willis O'Brien, a pioneer in the field of model animation. | Films like 1925's The Lost World and the 1933 version of King Kong stoked that passion and prompted him to seek out a meeting with Willis O'Brien, a pioneer in the field of model animation. |
| During World War II Harryhausen joined director Frank Capra's film unit, which made the Why We Fight series to back the US war effort. | During World War II Harryhausen joined director Frank Capra's film unit, which made the Why We Fight series to back the US war effort. |
| After the war, he made stop-motion versions of fairy tales that prompted his idol, O'Brien, to hire him to help create the ape in Mighty Joe Young - an achievement that won an Academy Award. | After the war, he made stop-motion versions of fairy tales that prompted his idol, O'Brien, to hire him to help create the ape in Mighty Joe Young - an achievement that won an Academy Award. |
| Harryhausen went on to make some of the fantasy genre's best-known movies, among them One Million Years B.C. and a series of films based on the adventures of Sinbad the sailor. | Harryhausen went on to make some of the fantasy genre's best-known movies, among them One Million Years B.C. and a series of films based on the adventures of Sinbad the sailor. |
| He is perhaps best remembered for animating the seven skeletons who come to life in Jason and the Argonauts, a sequence which took him three months to film, and for the Medusa who turned men to stone in Titans. | He is perhaps best remembered for animating the seven skeletons who come to life in Jason and the Argonauts, a sequence which took him three months to film, and for the Medusa who turned men to stone in Titans. |
| Harryhausen inspired a generation of film directors, from Steven Spielberg and James Cameron to Peter Jackson of the Lord of the Rings fame. | Harryhausen inspired a generation of film directors, from Steven Spielberg and James Cameron to Peter Jackson of the Lord of the Rings fame. |
| Spielberg said Harryhausen's "inspiration goes with us forever" while Cameron said Hollywood science fiction film-makers had been "standing on the shoulders of a giant". | Spielberg said Harryhausen's "inspiration goes with us forever" while Cameron said Hollywood science fiction film-makers had been "standing on the shoulders of a giant". |
| Meanwhile, Star Wars creator George Lucas, paid tribute by saying: "The art of his earlier films, which most of us grew up on, inspired us so much." | Meanwhile, Star Wars creator George Lucas, paid tribute by saying: "The art of his earlier films, which most of us grew up on, inspired us so much." |
| Peter Lord of Aardman Animations was quick to pay tribute, describing Harryhausen as "a one-man industry and a one-man genre" on Twitter. | |
| And Nick Park, Aardman's Oscar-winning creator of Wallace and Gromit, told the BBC: "I've followed the work of Ray Harryhausen all my life. | |
| "He is one of the true greats, if not the true great of stop motion animation. A unique craftsman... He has been my mentor and inspiration since my earliest childhood memories." | |
| "I loved every single frame of Ray Harryhausen's work," tweeted Shaun of the Dead director Edgar Wright. "He was the man who made me believe in monsters." | |
| In 1992 Harryhausen was given a special Oscar to honour his work with special effects in the days before computer-generated imagery. | In 1992 Harryhausen was given a special Oscar to honour his work with special effects in the days before computer-generated imagery. |
| Harryhausen lived in the UK for several decades with his wife Diana and often appeared at fantasy conventions. | Harryhausen lived in the UK for several decades with his wife Diana and often appeared at fantasy conventions. |
| The veteran animator donated his complete collection - about 20,000 objects - to the National Media Museum in Bradford in 2010. | The veteran animator donated his complete collection - about 20,000 objects - to the National Media Museum in Bradford in 2010. |
| He died at London's Hammersmith Hospital, having received treatment for about a week. | He died at London's Hammersmith Hospital, having received treatment for about a week. |