Destination Moon
The Filming of
Destination Moon
Sometime
in the late 1950's, I sat with my mother and father
in our darkened living room, my eyes focused
intently on the glowing screen of our Philco television set. We were watching a
local network broadcast of the movie Destination
Moon. I can still feel the excitement that the film generated in me on my
first viewing some forty odd years ago. As I watched, I
knew that somewhere high above our living room, in the even greater darkness of
space, there orbited tiny man-made satellites, hurled into the void atop roaring
rockets by nations determined to stake a claim for themselves among the stars.
And I intuitively understood 
that Destination Moon was a part of this new
reality; that this movie was something special, something which differed
from the Rocky Jones/Tom Corbett variety of comic book space adventures that I
usually watched. From our halo-encircled TV screen, this spectacle managed
to radiate a subliminally contagious confidence that men one day really
would set foot on the moon and explore its lonely, desolate landscapes.
Destination Moon helped initiate 50's pop-culture into
the mysteries of space travel by giving visual and dramatic expression to the
archetype that was beginning to animate the world's two great super powers.
Released in 1950, it ushered in the Space Age with a cinematic virtuosity that
made it simultaneously fantastic and highly believable. And, as it turned out,
no other SF film of the fifties was as successful in accurately predicting
things to come.
From the outset, Destination Moon had
a lot going for it. Conceived by famous science fiction writer Robert A.
Heinlein, produced by special effects experts Lee Zavitz (known as "the man who burned Atlanta" in Gone With The Wind) and George Pal,
with sets designed by Ernest Fegte and world renowned space artist Chesley
Bonestell, the film was an almost guaranteed success from the very
beginning. 
In his article, "Shooting Destination Moon,"
which appeared in the July, 1950 issue of Astounding Science Fiction (December,
1950 in England),
Heinlein states that director Irving Pichel became committed to making the film
as scientifically accurate as possible. This attitude infected the entire crew.
"By the time the picture was being shot," Heinlein relayed, "the
entire company--actors, grips, cameramen, office people--became imbued with
enthusiasm for producing a picture which would be scientifically acceptable as
well as a box office success." Dedication to accuracy paid off when Destination
Moon won 1951's Oscar Award for its stunning special effects.
Based on his novel Rocketship Galileo and story
"The Man Who Sold the Moon," Heinlein co-authored a
screenplay with Alford ("Rip") Van Ronkel and James O'Hanlon that
reflected both the scientific concepts and political fears of the
times. Destination Moon begins with a missile crash which is
immediately interpreted as an act of sabotage. Afterward, a group of
industrialists decide to finance the moon mission when they are told
about the military advantages of reaching the moon first. Later in the film, a
newspaper article warning of the dangers of the moon rocket's nuclear powered
engine is diagnosed as enemy propaganda. The Cold War is already heating up in
1950, and Destination Moon reflects the paranoia which fueled the Space
Race.
The movie also employs another device characteristic of the
times: the inclusion of actor 
Dick Wesson's scientifically naive character, who
provided an excuse for explaining things which the audience might not
understand. Today, the details of space flight and lunar exploration are taken
for granted and Wesson's dopey comments and questions often irritate
contemporary viewers of the film. But for people throughout most of the fifties
(with the exception of scientists and dedicated SF fans) the technical aspects
of a moon shot were about as esoteric as Egyptian hieroglyphs. Wesson's
character enabled Destination Moon to educate the public about a subject
that would soon come to play a very important role in their country's history
(and national budget!)
Today, critics often dismiss this film as a cinematic
anachronism. They feel that actual developments in space technology and changes
in the political climate have made the semi-documentary Destination Moon dull
and obsolete. But if today's viewers watch this movie with an open mind and try
to appreciate it as a significant piece of American political and social
history, they might be able to recapture the excitement and sense of wonder that
space flight once inspired.
Click below for more details about the
special effects used
in Destination Moon and view exciting images from the film!
