Planet of the Apes Revisited: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the Classic Science Fiction Saga

by Joe Russo, Larry Landsman, Edward Gross

Apes fans, this is it: aside from an early '70s article that appeared in Cinefantastique, nobody but nobody's paid much attention to the making of the groundbreaking Planet of the Apes saga. The wait is over, though--and how. Unapologetic fanboys Joe Russo and Larry Landsman (and, later, Edward Gross) have been laboring over this exhaustive, fact-packed, behind-the scenes record of all five movies, the TV show, and the cartoon for the better part of 17 years. The effort shows, with countless on-set pictures, unprecedented access to the estates of Rod Serling, Roddy McDowall, and producer Arthur P. Jacobs, and extensive quotes from virtually everyone associated with the project, from screenwriters to actors to makeup artists to the special effects crew. (To give you an idea of the devotion we're talking about, Russo actually wrote his first "making of" Apes book back in the fifth grade. It was hand stitched with a plastic cover.)

Deserving of special note is Charlton Heston, who contributed not only the foreword for this book but scores of entries from his swaggering personal journals. ("A helluva long day, in the course of which I was finally brought to earth as Taylor. Having evaded clubs, whips, horsemen, crowds, they tripped me ass over teakettle into a thrown net and hoisted me high.... Upside down in a net, a man isn't worth much.") But even more interesting are the minutiae that inevitably emerge in any close examination of a production this complicated: that Marlon Brando had been considered first for the lead, that there were racial casting concerns in the wake of the Watts riots, even the fact that Planet of the Apes hit the small screen in an attempt to knock off Sanford and Son. This account may sprawl a bit in spots, with some quotes that overlap overmuch and minutiae that's awfully minute, but any fan who has even an ounce of Russo and Landsman's enthusiasm will be hard-pressed to complain. --Paul Hughes

Genres: Nonfiction, Media Tie In, History, Film

280 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2001

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the behind-the-scenes story of the making of the "Planet of the Apes" films and TV series. It covers the strengths and weaknesses of each film, as well as controversies attached to them. This is a great book for fans of the film series. Highly Recommended.

[Jaime · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is so much trivia, background stoires and drawings & photos in this great book for POTA fans. It was a nostalgic ride back into my youth. I treasure this book.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fans of the 1968 sci-fi film classic Planet of the Apes and its four sequels (plus two short-lived TV shows) will be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive, authoritative and entertaining guide to late producer Arthur P. Jacobs's ape empire.

With access to Jacobs's files, the authors detail the several drafts of each screenplay, chronicle day-by-day shooting schedules and create an exhaustive behind-the-scenes history of the epic series. During the book's 15-year gestation, the authors were able to interview virtually every actor, director, producer, writer, production designer, makeup artist and composer on each film. (Some of the quotes could have been tightened to avoid repetition.)

Even those who are familiar with the series (or saw the 1998 AMC documentary Behind the Planet of the Apes) will glean new knowledge from amusing firsthand recollections of Roddy McDowall (who starred in four of the films, as well as the live-action TV show) and Natalie Trundy (Jacobs's widow, who acted in four of the films). Apes star Charlton Heston, who wrote the book's introduction, proves a sharp interviewee and allowed the authors to quote liberally from his daily journals. Likewise, memos from Rod Sterling (who scripted the original film and helped with the TV show) are illuminating.

Made on ever-decreasing budgets, each film in the series turned a profit and remains enjoyable, both as pop entertainment and for its political, social commentary and allegorical treatment of race relations (particularly the violent Conquest of the Planet of the Apes and its Watts riots reenactments).

[Cormac Zoso · Rating 5 out of 5]

This in-depth examination of the original Planet of the Apes movies and the television show. Even a final chapter on the sad-sack Tim Burton effort is included. The material on the original Apes movies are the best, especially the initial classic starring Charlton Heston. This is well-written and in-depth and if you're looking for the inside story, this is the book to get.

[Druss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously a labour of love. Two enthusiasts who have painstakingly researched the details of the original 5 ape movies plus a brief summation of the Burton appalling movie.
The enthusiasm comes through but not the best making of book that I have read. Something was missing but i cannot work out what. Would not rush to re-read.

[Carol Storm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely priceless -- the stars, the stories, the backstage drama of making the classic five film PLANET OF THE APES SAGA. Movie books don't get any better than this!

[Todd Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most definitive Apes book made. Great photos and behind the scenes access. A sentimental trip into the past.

[Mediaman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but nerdy and overly-detailed reference book about the film franchise. The focus on the first film is best, with lots of behind-the-scenes specifics, but that only makes up the first 90 pages. Two-thirds of the book is devoted to the sequels and TV series, but much of it is repetitive and unimportant.

The writers seem to think more is better so they throw in everything they can find instead of prioritizing and editing. Hearing about Charlton Heston's involvement with the first movie is interesting, reading for the tenth time how difficult the assistant producer is on the fourth movie is tedious.

There are too many transcript-like quotes, including some paragraphs that make up entire pages. While it's nice to get an idea of how each plot changed over the making of the movies, it just gets to be confusing by mentioning every little element. By the end I didn't care and wished a good editor would have made it more of an entertaining read. Just like the films, coverage of the first one here is the best and the others are very uneven.

[Caleb Peterson]

I met one of the authors of this book today, Ed Gross! He's a super nice guy, and it was really fun talking Planet of the Apes with him!

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear and detailed history.

[Dann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Planet of the Apes Revisited is a fascinating, in-depth chronicling of the film franchise from the 1968 original to the 2001 remake. Authors Joe Russo & Larry Landsman discuss the beginnings of Planet of the Apes as a novel and the tremendous hurdles at producer Arthur P. Jacobs had to overcome to bring it to the screen, as well as follow the development of each sequels and the franchise’s move to live-action and animated television series. The research Russo and Landsman have conducted is quite extensive, and include numerous cast and crew interviews, company memos, script excerpts, and original critic reviews. Also featured are a forward by Charlton Heston, dozens of behind-the-scenes photos, and an episode guide for the television series. At times it gets a little too much into the minutia of things, but overall Planet of the Apes Revisited is an impressive companion to this seminal science-fiction series.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Planet of the Apes Revisited is probably the most complete history of all of the Ape movies and other offshoots up until 2001. There is a detailed back story of how the movie(s) came to be and each gets a chapter devoted to it with casting searches and some of the problems that happened on each movie. The only reason it didn't get a five star review with me is that it heaped way too much praise at the end on the (at that time) newly released 2001 Planet of the Apes. I'd be nice to see a revised edition of this released with more of the feedback from this movie and the much better 2011 Rise of the Planet of the Apes. But, if you're an Ape fan, don't miss this book.