Ray Harryhausen's name is synonymous with stop-motion animation. From "Mighty Joe Young" (1949) through "Clash of the Titans" (1981), he created a menagerie of memorable monsters, aliens, dinosaurs and mythological creatures ranging from the Ymir in "20 Million Miles to Earth" (1957) and the Grand Lunar in "First Men in the Moon" (1964) to the living skeletons in "Jason and the Argonauts" (1963) and the title creature in "The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms" (1953). Stop-motion animation -- which involves photographing objects (often puppets) frame by frame in different positions, then combining them to create the illusion of movement -- is undergoing a renaissance, including the Oscar-winning "Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit," whose director, Nick Park, has paid tribute to Harryhausen's influence. After working in relative obscurity for decades, Harryhausen is clearly enjoying the belated accolades. [More]

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