Iconic Miniature Movie Props Take Over A Michigan Museum

A tiny bit of Hollywood has made its way to Michigan. How many of these classic films have you seen?

While you may not know his name you've most likely seen his works. Here's how you can view these historic Hollywood artifacts before they're gone!

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One of the great stop-motion animation artists of the time, Ray Harryhausen's work includes nearly 70 movie credits spanning a 30 year career. While compared to today's special effects Harryhausen's work may seem a little cheesy at the time they were considered state-of-the-art. Today Ray Harryhausen is regarded as a pioneer of the art  having developed his own special animation technique dubbed "Dynamation".

Famous Films Featuring Harryhausen

One of his most notable works-- and his final film credit-- was 1981's Clash of the Titans starring Sir Lawrence Olivier and Harry Hamlin. The Greek epic fantasy adventure film features many of Harryhausen's creations including the famous Kraken, Medusa, Pegasus, and Bubo The Mechanical Owl.

Other credits you may recognize include The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), Jason and the Argonauts (1963), and One Million Years B.C. (1966). A forgotten credit I didn't remember until I saw the film was the short children's film Mother Goose Stories (1946). As stated previously, you have definitely seen the work of Ray Harryhausen in your life time even if you didn't know it.

Fun Fact: the sushi restaurant Mike and Celia go to on their date in the movie Monsters Inc. is named Harryhausen's.

Now on Display:

The Kalamazoo Valley Museum currently has nearly 100 original creations by Ray Harryhausen on display through April 27, 2025. The museum, including this special exhibit, are free to explore.

I suggest attending one of the free screenings of Ray Harryhausen's movies prior to viewing the exhibit in order to bring these characters to life. I attended the screening of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad on March 30; upcoming showings include Jason and the Argonauts on April 6 and Clash of the Titans on April 13. Free tickets for movie screenings are first come first served. More here.