King Kong - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts

[discussimdb]

Fan of King Kong or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to King Kong

[kylie]

At the time of the film's release, select theaters offered free promotional 150-piece jigsaw puzzles featuring Kong battling the T-Rex. Examples in good condition have recently sold for over $4000.

[jesse]

Merian C. Cooper filmed the actors and actresses, then Willis H. O'Brien projected the image one frame at a time on a screen behind the models. That's how they filmed Kong's removal of Ann's clothing. Originally, Cooper had wires attached to her clothes to pull them off her body. The model's movements were then matched to hers. Unfortunately, O'Brien and Cooper forgot to patent their approach, thereby losing a fortune.

[harry]

A common mistake made by audiences is when Kong takes Ann into the cave where he fights the cave water monster. Many people describe the monster as a snake when it is in fact a plesiosaur and has defined fins and body rather than being completely serpentine.

[michele]

The 2005 DVD restoration further details the risqué liberties of a 1933 pre-code film release in two scenes. The first is when Ann is on the ship's deck while Charlie is peeling potatoes, and the second is where Denham is shooting some test footage of Ann ("Scream for your life, Ann, Scream!"). The thin material used for Ann's dress and gown in both scenes, makes it obvious that Fay Wray is not wearing a bra; a wardrobe decision that may not have made it past the Breen Code the following year.

[frances]

As a director, Merian C. Cooper was slow and meticulous whilst Ernest B. Schoedsack just rattled through scenes. After several days of working together and realizing that they didn't really coalesce as a team, it was decided that Cooper would work on the miniatures (which required precision and attention to detail) whilst Schoedsack would handle all the dialogue.

[bernice]

The finished film utilized less than ten thousand feet of film, although 238 thousand feet were shot.

[kristina]

Although many film historians insist that a spider pit scene was never shot, much less previewed, at least three production stills do exist showing the miniature ravine complete, with at least one spider and a crab creature, both of which are menacing miniature sailors. There was one person who claimed to have seen the first preview screening who said that the spider pit scene was in it, and the audience laughed at large bug-eyes on a spider model. He felt that this unintended laugh was the reason the scene stopped the film, and was cut.

[carla]

Willis H. O'Brien never liked the giant head bust of Kong, which he thought had limited dramatic possibilities.

[sara]

Merian C. Cooper was partially inspired by W. Douglas Burden, who brought the world's first captive Komodo dragons to the Bronx Zoo in 1926. Cooper was intrigued how the once mythic, massive predators quickly perished once caged and displayed for the public.

[cassandra]

There was more than one model of Kong used in the film. There are considerable differences between the Kong on the island, and the Kong in New York City. For instance, the Skull Island Kong has a longer face, which the filmmakers thought made the ape look "too human".

[leo]

Sensing a huge hit from industry buzz, MGM offered to buy the film outright from R.K.O. for $1.072 million (approximately $400,000 over its negative cost), figuring the little studio was reeling from losing $10 million plus in 1932. R.K.O. was smart to decline the offer. The film smashed attendance records nationwide, and ended up grossing $1.761 million during its initial release. R.K.O. would periodically, and extremely profitably, re-release the movie through the 1950s.

[janice]

The T-Rex's hissing was achieved by combining a puma scream and high-compression air. The brontosaurus sounds were created by grunting into a double-chambered gourd.