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In the spirit of "You can just do things"...
In 1966, Harold Warren (fertilizer salesman) was drinking in an El Paso bar with his friend, Hollywood screenwriter Stirling Silliphant. Warren bet Silliphant that he could make an entire movie himself. Silliphant accepted the bet.
Warren hired amateur actors from a local theatre group, paying them with a percentage of future profits (which were $0). He rented a hand-cranked 16mm camera. The camera had no audio, so the actors had to dub their own lines. Filmed in 8 days and for $19,000, "Manos: The Hand of Fate" immediately flopped and later became known as the second worst movie ever (after "Plan 9 From Outer Space"). Warren did win the bet. The most memorable actor, John Reynolds, playing "Torgo", killed himself a month before the film premiered. He was high on LSD throughout filming.
In 1993, Mystery Science Theatre 3000 did an episode using it, and it quickly became a cult classic. There have been several "Manos" projects since 1993; some were produced, and some failed. The total profits from the original "Manos" are unknown because Warren forgot to include the credits and copyright notice on the finished film. Torgo has his own cult following.
You never know how long a tail your IP might have. Building anything is almost always a good idea.
As a movie, Manos is pretty terrible. During the premiere, the cast was howling with laughter at how bad it was. Yet it will last forever. A testament to what one person with zero filmmaking knowledge can do within a few months, if they decide to do it.
RIP John Reynolds as Torgo.
Full movie on YT.
MSTK3 episode on Manos.
MSTK3 Manos therapy.
In 1966, Harold Warren (fertilizer salesman) was drinking in an El Paso bar with his friend, Hollywood screenwriter Stirling Silliphant. Warren bet Silliphant that he could make an entire movie himself. Silliphant accepted the bet.
Warren hired amateur actors from a local theatre group, paying them with a percentage of future profits (which were $0). He rented a hand-cranked 16mm camera. The camera had no audio, so the actors had to dub their own lines. Filmed in 8 days and for $19,000, "Manos: The Hand of Fate" immediately flopped and later became known as the second worst movie ever (after "Plan 9 From Outer Space"). Warren did win the bet. The most memorable actor, John Reynolds, playing "Torgo", killed himself a month before the film premiered. He was high on LSD throughout filming.
In 1993, Mystery Science Theatre 3000 did an episode using it, and it quickly became a cult classic. There have been several "Manos" projects since 1993; some were produced, and some failed. The total profits from the original "Manos" are unknown because Warren forgot to include the credits and copyright notice on the finished film. Torgo has his own cult following.
You never know how long a tail your IP might have. Building anything is almost always a good idea.
As a movie, Manos is pretty terrible. During the premiere, the cast was howling with laughter at how bad it was. Yet it will last forever. A testament to what one person with zero filmmaking knowledge can do within a few months, if they decide to do it.
RIP John Reynolds as Torgo.
Full movie on YT.
MSTK3 episode on Manos.
MSTK3 Manos therapy.
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