The Pterodactyl

Creator: Ray Harryhausen

Film: The Valley of Gwangi 1969

Pterodactly Video Clip

 

An extinct flying reptile of the order Pterosauria, common in the late Triassic and Cretaceous periods, from approximately 228 to 65 million years ago. At least 60 genera of pterosaurs have been found, sizes ranging from that of a sparrow to that of the huge Quetzalcoatlus, the largest fossils of which have a wingspread of more than 40 ft (12 m).

The Pterodactyl attacks our cowboys here as they first enter the forbidden valley. Prof. Horace Bromley tries to fend off the creature with his cane but in the commotion Lope gets captured by the winged Dinosaur and is taken away by him in its claws. The creature takes Lope with his giant claws with hunger in his mind. The men chase the Pterodactyl across the sky until the creature lands back on the ground, as the weight of Lope was too much for the Dino to handle. The creature begins to slam his giant wings at Lope, but Jorge comes around to rescue the young man. When Jorge arrives he begins to fight with the Dinosaur punching him and hitting him until he manages to break its neck. Soon the almighty Gwangi appears out of nowhere and comes to finish off the Pterodactyl eating him as he lies dead on the ground.

 

 

 

 

Pterodactyl Facts

 

• The Pterodactyl was about 8 inches high and about 18 inches high.

 

• For the extreme close shots of the Pterodactyl Ray used a full-sized version of the creature built by the prop department in Spain.

 

• During the live-action photography, the boy was hoisted into the air by means of a crane placed just outside the camera rage. The Pterodactyl was then animated to correspond with the boy's struggling actions on the rear projection screen.

 

Credit: An Animated Life

By Tony Dalton