Meanwhile, Fox has 2 big Best Picture contenders: "The Shape of Water" and the Woody Harrelson starrer "War 4 the POTA", er, I mean "13 Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri".

Oscar noms Tuesday. "War" is assured another FX nomination at least. : (

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Mr. Dillman died of pneumonia at 87. I got to meet him and his daughter at a signing for his book on acting. Nice guy. He will live on as Lewis in "Escape" and his many other roles.

deadline.com/2018/01/bradford-dillman-dies-star-of-broadway-film-and-tv-was-87-1202248487/

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Roddy literally replaced Dean Stockwell in the 5/20/92 episode of "Quantum Leap" ("A Leap For Lisa").

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Make it happen, Academy!

https://twitter.com/AmiahMiller/status/955231849923600384

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Once again POTA just got an FX nomination. That's OK, it's more than enough (*sniff!*). : (

"War" shares the category with "Blade Runner 2049", "Guardians of the Galaxy 2", "Kong: Skull Island" and "Star Wars: The Last Jedi". Will Kong and Apes cancel each other out?

Meanwhile, Fox did well with "The Shape of Water" (the most nominations) and "3 Billboards". Even the X-Men film "Logan" got a screenplay nom.

Apes actors Gary Oldman and Woody Harrelson got acting noms. Even "The Square", which has Terry Notary playing an ape actor, got a Best Foreign Language Film nod.

Andy Serkis announced the nominees this morning (with Tiffany Haddish) so an Apes surprise would have been cool. But this is why we can't have nice things.

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I think many people still groan at the title "Planet of the Apes". They'll never take it seriously. The Oscars still go for the cheap indies. Rare to have an expensive franchise picture in the top awards.

"Get Out" was released last February and it did well today. Sometimes they have a long memory.

Still, if "War" had slipped in with Best Director or Best Picture or (heaven forbid) Best Actor it would've been neat with Andy doing the announcing.

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Daily Dead, not Dread. Dead! Dread sounds better.

https://dailydead.com/20th-century-fox-announces-50-years-of-planet-of-the-apes-celebration-at-usc-including-screenings-of-all-9-movies/

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USC (Arthur Jacobs' alma mater) and 20^th Century Fox are celebrating the 50^th anniversary of the original "Planet of the Apes" in February with screenings of all 9 POTA movies (bite your lip, POTA2001 is part of the family). There will also be displays of props and stuff, special guests and so forth.

https://dailydread.com/20th-century-fox-announces-50-years-of-planet-of-the-apes-celebration-at-usc-including-screenings-of-all-9-movies/

The Fox press release calls it "the still expanding series" so take that as you will. Fox's POTA website has more details. But no matter where you are, it's time to Go Ape in February!

www.planetoftheapes.com/anniversary

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POTA2001 killed off POTA for a decade. It wasn't hip to be square.

The Jaffas revived it with their serious "Rise" take.

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This might be the last year of 20^th Century Fox's existence. : (

Meanwhile it looks like they are going to use it celebrating their longest running franchise.

Besides the USC events the official POTA website is a madhouse, a MADHOUSE!

Sign up below if latest upapedates.

Thank you Fox for 50 years of POTA. Mickey Mouse, you're up next.

www.planetoftheapes.com/register

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The 50^th anniversary of the original POTA movie is being celebrated more than I expected (though certainly not here; is this on?). The latest is Boom Comics' adaptation of Rod Serling's POTA script (not to be confused with the script that hit movie theaters). We know Rod Serling, right? (Is this on?) I'll wait until I get a reaction. I guess not.

Anyway, if there is someone still alive out there, click the link. Does anybody read me?

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/rod-serlings-planet-apes-script-inspires-graphic-novel-1080728

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Congrats to WETA and "War 4 the POTA" for winning two Annie awards (the awards for the animation field).

WETA won for Best Character Animation in a Live-Action Film and Best Live-Action Animated FX. That's two awards.

As for animated features "Coco" won a lot and is looking to be the one to beat at the Oscars in a month.

deadline.com/2018/02/annie-awards-winners-list-2018-live-blog-1202277765/

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Thanks. Some must sacrifice so that others will be saved.

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"You who are reading me now are a different breed. I hope a better one. I leave the 20^th Century with no regrets".

Happy 50^th anniversary to the original "Planet of the Apes" movie. It wouldn't have been the same without you!

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Thanx. Supposedly Fox (not "Fox") will keep the backlot.

We might have been better off with Disney. There might have been a way for them to do tours of the backlot.

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Here's some nice pics of the upcoming "War 4 the POTA" miniatures board game.

www.planetoftheapes-boardgame.com/blog/50-years-planet-apes

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Good hearing from you again, James! J

Fox is sponsoring the POTA 50^th celebration at USC but their archives don't have much tangible stuff left (except for POTA2001) so it was up to collectors to save the day.

www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-planet-of-the-apes-50-story.html"

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If this is a hit, maybe they will.

What am I saying? A hit POTA merchandise?

Do you realize what a distinction that would be, huh? Why, it'd be like being the first fish to be born on dry land. It'd be like being the first bird to be born without an egg! It'd be like being the first baby to be born on the moon! It'd be like being the… heh, heh, heh.

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Went to the big event at USC last night. Screening of the original POTA on it's 50 anniversary + one day.

Looked like it was the blu-ray. Too clean. The usual, a lot of laughter. Some people just can't take POTA seriously. But also a lot of applause.

Then the panel. It started with a video intro of Andy Serkis saying hi, sorry he couldn't make it but he's promoting "Black Panther". They are hopeful Serkis can be in one of the upcoming panels. Linda Harrison couldn't make it, she'll be at the POTA2001 panel in March instead. But makeup artist Dan Streipeke and production designer William Creber played for the 1968 home team.

Also there was the newbies: directors Rupert Wyatt and Matt Reeves, producer Dylan Clark, writer Rick Jaffa (co-writer Amanda Silver couldn't make it), and FX maestro Joe Letteri (a late addition).

https://www.instagram.com/p/BfAVit8FE7j/

At first it seemed kind of weird to have the new folks outnumber those representing the original but in the end it was a great way to show the connective tissue of 50 years. Both the original and the new ones were in the same boat: risky experiments to bring the apes to life, whether makeup or CG. In both cases they wondered if they could get away with using stuntmen but realized they needed good actors to make it work. Though some complained that the new trilogy didn't use makeup, I've always maintained that CG allowed Apes to be a groundbreaker again.

So I'll just remember what I can. Most of it was stuff Ape fans know well. Moderator Alessandro Ago, who is really the backbone of bringing this all together over the next few months, was pretty democratic in going down the line so everyone could speak.

Streipeke said he and John Chambers knew each other since "The Pinky Lee Show". Even though the Edward G. Robinson makeup test sold the movie, he wasn't a fan of it. He confirmed how Hollywood was bereft of makeup artists while the movie was being made.

William Creber talked about the same stuff he did in the "Behind the POTA"; creating Ape City, shooting the Statue of Liberty scene. It was his idea to show only parts of the statue at first because Schaffner didn't want an abrupt reveal. As is well known, Creber sketched the sequence out on a napkin. In the past he said he still had the napkin but says now he's lost it. Another interesting thing is, as we know, Arthur Jacobs wanted Creber to get the makeup artists a live ape to study. What Creber revealed is the one he got was Debbie the chimp from "Lost In Space". Another thing Creber kept emphasizing is Jacobs wanted the audience to not know it was Earth at all costs. So, to him, that's the reason for Lake Powell, that's the reason for the weird buildings. So it looked like an alien planet.

For me the main theme of the panel was how the more things change, the more they stay the same and how the process of the original and the new ones were so similar. That was also obvious when the moderator went from asking Creber about designing Ape City to asking Matt Reeves about designing the village for "Dawn". Both were about designing something that apes would build, as removed from human buildings as possible. Matt also talked about his love of POTA as a kid before he also became a big "Star Wars" fan. Apes was his "Star Wars". He mention he filmed an Apes/ Star Wars mashup on 8 mm with his friends called "Galactic Battles".

www.slashfilm.com/matt-reeves-star-wars/

A lot of attention was paid to "Rise" and what a game changer it was. Matt Reeves talked about how in awe he was of Rupert Wyatt. When Reeves started on "Dawn" he was lost about whether it would work but at least he had "Rise" as an example that it COULD work. Wyatt had nothing but to just jump off the cliff. They shot the Golden Gate Bridge action scene with just stunt men and realized, no, they needed actors to make it work. Joe Letteri was a big booster on that score: Get Andy Serkis (Letteri had worked with Serkis on "Lord of the Rings" and "King Kong", and later "The Hobbit").

Rick Jaffa talked about how "Rise" just came out of the blue. He and his wife Amanda were looking for a story for a script. They had newspaper clippings of genetic experiments and clippings of people who kept chimps as pets. Those two piles of clippings just hit him like a lightning bolt: This is POTA! The panel was also clear that Fox deserves praise for taking a chance on POTA, not just the original but also "Rise".

My favorite part of the panel was when they were asked about balancing bleak storylines with expensive popular entertainment. Both original and new talent talked about how important these stories are. Maybe Joe Letteri said it best; he wanted to do "Rise" because it was a movie he wanted to see.

Then surprise guest Dana Gould (in full Zaius makeup and costume) hit the stage. The comedian brought down the house. Jokes I can remember:

The original POTA shows don't trust an orange politician (Hi Trump!)

Nova actress Linda Harrison also happened to be the girlfriend of the head of the studio, Richard Zanuck. "What are the odds of that?"

Heston's original final line was: "They have a Statue of Liberty too!"

Gould is not only funny but he's a huge POTA fan and very knowledgeable about it. He added a lot to the conversation.

Then the audience got to ask some questions. One of them had flown in from Toronto just for the event. Most of the questions wound up going to Matt Reeves. I don't remember them right now but the last questioner was none other than Bobby ("Battle" Cornelius) Porter who praised all on the panel.

After it was over I zeroed in on producer Dylan Clark, the only one I'd never met before. He now has his own production company that has a deal with Universal. I assumed that meant his Ape days were over but he told me he would gladly be there if there are more Ape movies (and he thinks there should be). Right now he's producing Matt Reeves' Batman for Warner Bros. so he seems free to go wherever he wants. He's also doing a movie version of "Battlestar Galactica" for Universal. As I've said here before the newer BSG series is one of my favorites, up there with Apes itself (and indeed has many Ape references). So I asked him how that was going. He is so passionate about the script they have and after producing "Rise", "Dawn" and "War" I'm ready to give him the benefit of the doubt.

He is equally passionate about continuing the "Ape" movies. I asked him about the Fox/Disney deal and he's not sure what that will mean. When I suggested they could start a new Apes now and get it too far along for Disney to stop it, he said they probably wouldn't do that. So it looks like they will wait for the dust to settle before they contemplate the next Apes. It'll be in Disney's hands..

But there no doubt they are all still passionate about it, despite the box office hiccup. Even Matt Reeves, who acts like it's his to continue even though he might be doing Batman the next decade.

And of course there's also the exhibit (1/26 – 5/13/18) which is awesome. Rare photos and props from all the movies, merchandise. It's a madhouse!

2/20/18 – screening of "Beneath" (with Apemania) and "Escape"

2/28/18 – screening of "Conquest" (with Don Murray) and "Battle" (with Bobby Porter)

3/28/18 – screening of POTA2001 with Designer panel (+ Linda Harrison)

4/11/18 – screening of "Rise" with Business panel (offshoots like comics, merchandise)

4/15/18 – double feature of "Dawn" and "War" with panel about the new trilogy (don't count out Andy Serkis)

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Can someone tell me what this image is supposed to be? It looks like Planet of the Mice with a Burton helmet on.

https://twitter.com/Pulpcurry/status/963190453666430976

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Tonight wuz the Visual Effects Society's annual shindig and "War 4 the POTA" took home the big prize: Best FX for a Live-Action Feature. In the last 15 years the winner went on to win the FX Oscar 10 times (though one of the exceptions was "Dawn of the POTA"). Generally I keep hearing that "War" is expected to finally give Apes a much deserved Oscar but at this point I'll believe it when I see it.

"War" was the big winner for live-action feature this year, receiving 4 awards (Best FX Simulation, Best Compositing, Best Character Animation – Caesar, and the top prize). Also receiving 4 was the big animated feature "Coco" (expected to get the Animated Feature Oscar too). War's main competish for the Oscar, "Blade Runner 2" won 2 awards, and "Dunkirk" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" each won 1.

WETA's Joe Letteri received the George Melies Award for his career, a crowning achievement for an FX guy and well deserved. The Apes films are just the tip of the iceberg for him (but no, he didn't work on "Titanic").

www.vfxvoice.com/master-creature-creator-joe-letteri-2018-ves-george-melies-award-winner/

Over their 50 years, the apes have been blessed to be brough to life by some of the best creature creators ever. From John Chambers to Rick Baker to WETA/Joe Letteri they've spanned many FX eras and hopefully will for many years to come, maybe in a new technique that isn't even a gleam in some genius' eye yet.

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Unfortunately, they're the same characters we've got over and over (though the mutants and ape-o-naut are semi-new). No line lasts long enough to dive deep.

Sorry. The demise of the NECA line is still a raw wound. Ouch! It hurts!

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The Medicoms WERE masterpieces, sir. Second only to NECA.

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Here's the full "Legacy of the POTA" panel at USC (Striepeke, Creber, Jaffa, Reeves, Clark, Wyatt and Letteri and Dana Gould as Dr. Zaius, Dr. Zaius, oooh Dr. Zaius). Also Andy Serkis' video welcome.

www.planetoftheapes.com/anniversary/article-legacy-panel-usc

Also check out what else the official website has cooking, including Gould's makeup process.

www.planetoftheapes.com/anniversary

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Sideshows are great but they aren't screen spot on like the Medicoms and NECA.

Also honorable mention to Medicom's small POTA sets.. Or as Donald Trump would call them, "Little Planet of the Apes. That would be a great place for Little Marco to live".

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Pssst! Can we talk about Matt Reeves for a moment? Sunday we find out if his latest Apes movie wins an Oscar. Meanwhile, is it possible he will be the next Apes director too? Despite his dance card being full of "Batman" movies (he reportedly wants to do a trilogy, which would keep him busy the next decade) he continues to put himself out there like the ball is in his court.

At his Jeff Goldsmith Q & A in December he said, "I hope they (the Apes folks) will wait for me". And at the USC event, when the question about the future of the Ape movies was brought up, Reeves practically yelled, "We'll see!" as if it's a given it's his to continue.

I think he seems born for these movies. Not everybody likes where he's taken the story but he does have the patience to film them and see the FX through to be the best they can be. They really are tough movies to direct. That's why I'm rooting for "War" on Sunday, not just as an Ape fan but because it's time that work got honored. And it seems like the tea leaves are pointing in that direction.

So I'd love to see Reeves continue but if he's going to do Batman he might have to take a break for the next trilogy and then come back for a third trilogy. On the other hand, his Batman might implode and he could be back to Apes soon. There's also the question of what Disney will want to do (Can a movie series exist half Fox and half Disney?). But Andy Serkis isn't getting any younger and neither are we.

When "War" came out last July, Reeves said, "Future conflicts in this kind of epic journey (may) take us toward the '68 movie without necessarily ever getting there (and) could be about conflicts between apes, not just conflicts between humans and apes. And so, to me there are many more exciting stories to be told and I would love to tell those stories". But does he really want to tell Apes and Batman stories the rest of his career?

Is Matt Reeves still da man? That'd be OK by me but the question lingers.

www.slashfilm.com/war-for-the-planet-of-the-apes-sequel/

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1975 is PAST history!

Hunter: Not while I live and breathe.

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"How many Oscar nominations will it take before they know

That too many Ape movies have passed?

The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind

The answer is blowing in the wind".

- - - Ape Dylan

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That's it. We gave them one last chance and they blew it. All to hell!

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Well, a Fox creature feature won Best Picture so they're learning I guess.

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I think the Apes merchandise boat has sailed. If NECA couldn't make it work with quality figures at reasonable prices, I don't think anyone can.

"Reaction figures" are like those "Pop" figures that grab all kinds of licenses to see what sticks. Their idea is to do old school quality figures of licenses that weren't done back in the day (which Apes doesn't really qualify for).

They are meant to look kind of bad and have a "made in the '70's" look to them. Basically pay good money for bad figures of characters you never thought you'd see.

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