2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY and Visionary Artist ROBERT MCCALL

IN JULY, 1968, a few months after Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey opened in theaters, Signet Books published a mass-market paperback edition of Arthur C. Clarke's fix-up novel (the book was actually developed concurrently with the film version). On the cover was a photo-still of actor Keir Dullea (as astronaut Dr. Dave Bowman) staring out through his helmet visor. At the center of the book were sixteen pages of black & white photo-stills, captured from the movie. On the back cover was a slightly cropped image of the film's publicity poster, painted by famed aeronautics artist Robert Theodore McCall, which was headlined by the following text:

"2001... THE NOVEL THAT PUTS TODAY'S MAN IN TOMORROW'S SPACECRAFT TODAY"

The back cover also had some very cool review blurbs:

"BRAIN-BOGGLING" --- Life
"BREATHTAKING" --- Saturday Review
"IT IS STAGGERING" --- New Yorker
"DAZZLING... WRENCHING... EERIE, A MIND BENDER" --- Time

Of course not everyone endorsed 2001 the way those blurbs did. Some movie goers were absolutely bored out of their skulls while watching it. However, most true science-fiction fans heartily approved of 2001, and many still believe it's the best cinematic representation of what real science fiction is supposed to be about, that is; big scientific ideas, bold futuristic concepts, life-altering discoveries, and inner & outer space exploration.

Some fans even watched 2001 while tripping on LSD. But not me, that would be like pouring sugar on a bowl of frosted flakes. I don't recall anybody suffering a bad trip though, which of course is not an endorsement for doing drugs because doing drugs for any reason other than medicinal is just plain stupid. But then again, I do remember a classmate from high school who went to see The Exorcist after dropping a full hit of window-pane, and, well, he's been struggling with reality ever since.

So, if we've learned anything from these two particular films it's that science-fiction creates mostly positive experiences for people, while horror creates, well, mostly negative experiences, especially if you were raised Catholic and then chose the wrong movie to drop acid with.

"The Cosmic Ride", a positive image, as seen during a specific sequence in 2001.

Book's FOREWORD:
    Behind every man now alive stands thirty ghosts, for that is the ratio by which the dead outnumber the living. Since the dawn of time, roughly a hundred billion human beings have walked the planet Earth.
    Now this is an interesting number, for by a curious coincidence there are approximately a hundred billion stars in our local universe, the Milky Way. So for every man who has ever lived, in this Universe there shines a star.
    But every one of those stars is a sun, often far more brilliant and glorious than the small, nearby star we call the Sun. And many---perhaps most---of those alien suns have planets circling them. So almost certainly there is enough land in the sky to give every member of the human species, back to the first apeman, his own private, world-sized heaven---or hell.
    How many of those potential heavens and hells are now inhabited, and by what manner of creatures, we have no way of guessing; the very nearest is a million times farther away than Mars or Venus, those still remote goals of the next generation. But the barriers of distance are crumbling; one day we shall meet our equals, or our masters, among the stars.
    Men have been slow to face this prospect; some still hope that it may never become reality. Increasing numbers, however, are asking: "Why have such meetings not occurred already, since we ourselves are about to venture into space?"
    Why not, indeed? Here is one possible answer to that very reasonable question. But please remember: this is only a work of fiction.
    The truth, as always, will be far stranger.
                                                                  ------ ARTHUR C. CLARKE

In 1972, Signet published The Lost Worlds of 2001: The Ultimate Log of the Ultimate Trip, as a paperback accompaniment to Clarke's initial novel. The contents included behind the scenes notes from Clarke about the script-writing, an EVA scene where astronaut Dr. Frank Poole (actor Gary Lockwood) is lost, alternative settings for launch preparation, unused dialogues concerning HAL 9000, production notes, a preliminary screenplay, and excerpts from the proto-novel.

Also included was Clarke's short story The Sentinel, which the film was loosely based on. What Lost Worlds doesn't have is photo inserts, but it's still a pretty cool paperback item, and the back cover has one of the coolest blurbs ever written:

"MIND-BLASTING PROBES INTO DAZZLING ILLUMINATION!"

In 1998, MGM released 2001 on DVD for the first time. The keepcase's liner cover has actor Keir Dullea staring out through his visor again, but this time with a great deal more inflection. The DVD's special features were rather meager, consisting of only an interview with co-screenwriter Arthur C. Clarke, and the original theatrical trailers for 2001 and its thematic sequel 2010. But tucked neatly inside was an eight-page booklet.

The booklet contained trivia, production notes, and a revealing look at the making of the film. HAL 9000 can be seen keeping a steady watch over the reader on the left side of each page. According to Kubrick and Clarke, HAL actually stands for "Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer." Ironically, each letter of HAL is alphabetically preceding the letters I, B, & M. Just a coincidence perhaps-- or was it by design?

HAL: "I am putting myself to the fullest possible use, which is all I think that any conscious entity can ever hope to do."

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

What should have been in the booklet, or at least on the liner, was some kind of reference to McCall's original publicity painting(s). It would take three years for that oversight to be rectified, but it was worth the wait.

Finally, on June 12, 2001, a definitive re-mastered DVD of 2001 was released, with McCall's poster art now prominently displayed on the front cover of the snapper-case. Picture and sound were both dramatically improved too over the initial 1998 product, so much so in fact that it's doubtful anyone would play that earlier disc again. This now extremely desirable release was also sold in a DVD box set with 6 other Kubrick films. 

Robert McCall's publicity painting for 2001, plus the contiguous concept art he created for the film, helped propel the self-taught artist to the forefront of science fiction movie artists. This immediate rise in stature gave McCall opportunities to consult on a number of films, including Star Trek: the Motion Picture (1979), where he is credited with being a production illustrator, and Walt Disney's science-fiction feature film The Black Hole (1979), which lists him as an actual art director. But McCall's association with science fiction goes all the way to the early 1960's, when he began to depict future spacecraft in a series of paintings commissioned by Life magazine. You might say he's been envisioning the future ever since, but always with an eye towards positivity.

The Space Sphere, from Life magazine (1960). Illustration by Bob McCall.

 

Epcot Center Mural, 19 x 60 feet. Click on image to enlarge

In 1976, McCall completed a huge six-story Space Mural for the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and then in 1982 he painted another equally large mural for the EPCOT Center in Florida. He also produced an enormous mural for the Johnson Space Program, showing the progression of the American Space Program from the first Mercury missions to the Space Shuttle.

For more than fifty years McCall's artwork has appeared in dozens of books and in nearly every popular magazine published in America. He also provided publicity posters for the feature films Ice Station Zebra (1968), Mosquito Squadron (1969), Tora, Tora, Tora (1970), and Juggernaut (1974). McCall even graced a series of collectible stamps for the U.S. Postal Service. His many distinctively styled aerospace paintings can be found in private collections and museums all across the United States, including galleries in the Pentagon and at the Air Force Academy.

Apollo 17 Mission Patch

Robert McCall has been dubbed the "World's Preeminent Space Artist" by various scientific organizations-- McCall even designed mission patches for NASA astronauts to wear, including the one that was worn by the crew of the Apollo 17 during the last time men actually walked on the moon, in 1972.

This poster, with artwork by McCall, was a variant produced in 1968. It shows several astronauts standing high above a lunar settlement that is located in the center of the Moon's crater, Clavious. McCalls illustration was also used on the back of the film's soundtrack stereo album, released in the same year by MGM Records Division. Note the handheld computer tablet---very prescient!

This conceptual illustration for 2001 by McCall shows the inside view of the spaceship Discovery One's spinning, centrifugal-force deck.

In 2007 a Blu-ray version of 2001 was released for the first time (*Note: the Star-child style cover art is not by McCall). The picture quality is about what you'd expect from any BD product, but please don't make the mistake of trying to watch it on a 22 inch 1080 Hi-Def monitor like I did; the movie appeared artificial looking and even waxy because it was so blatantly scrunched. Instead, view it the biggest screen you can find (anything over 37 inches is best), and then it's almost as good as seeing it in a theater (well, not really, but sort of... ).

On the back of the liner art was another great quote, in keeping up with what has gone before:

"THE MOST AWESOME, BEAUTIFUL AND MENTALLY STIMULATING SCIENCE-FICTION FILM OF ALL."

Author and film critic Danny Peary came up with that gem. It was taken from his 1993 book Alternate Oscars (Delta Press).

2001 was nominated for 4 Oscars in 1969, but received only one for its special visual effects. It sole competition that year in the effects category was Ice Station Zebra (based loosely on a novel of the same name by Alistair MacLean), which as you know had one of its variant film posters illustrated by McCall. Too bad there isn't an Oscar category for the best promotional poster; now that could be very interesting indeed.

The U.S. nuclear submarine was modeled after the U.S.S. Ronquil, a diesel-electric powered Guppy IIA. The large planes in the foreground are Russian Tu-95 Strategic Bombers, and high above them are streaking Russian MIG-17's.

My brother Jim was a commercial artist for many years, and while he wasn't a science fiction fan in the same sense that I am he still got a huge kick from 2001 (we saw it together at the Cooper theater in Denver in 1968). In fact, the film inspired him to create this unique piece of art.

2001: A Space Odyssey helped cement Kubrick's reputation as one of our greatest filmmakers, and it also influenced tens of thousands of young people to become serious science-fiction fans, and yet it's no Star Wars. However, in 2016 and '17, a whole slew of high-priced 2001 collectibles are slated to be made available from manufacturer Executive Replicas (Phicen Ltd.). These will include a black plexiglass monolith attached to a moon base diorama (approximately 24 x 10 inches tall, and 20 x 12 inches in diameter), and several colored versions of Discovery Astronaut space-suits (1:6 scale figures of Dr. Frank Poole (Gary Lockwood), and Dr. Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea). 

It took 50 years for 2001 to enter into Star Wars like merchandising territory, but the wait may have been worth it. These action figures look absolutely brilliant." Thank you, HAL, for finally opening the pod bay doors!"

[Originally posted in 2016. Ⓒ December, 2018, Jeffersen]