Island Life Magazine Ltd October/November 2009 | Page 23

life

INTERVIEW

Anne Ginger

Est. 1980

Manufacturers of fine soft furnishings

Left, Tony Dalton with Medusa; Above left: Ray Harryhausen with the Minotaur in Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger;
Right, 20,000 Fathoms Under the Sea ; Bottom photo: Harryhausen filming beheading of Medusa

Mythological monsters kept 1960s cinema-goers on the edge of
their seats. Roz Whistance meets Tony Dalton, who saved from
scrap the exquisite models of animator Ray Harryhausen, and
created a priceless archive of special effects
IF a film were to be made about Tony Dalton it

movie stars with which he stages exhibitions all

would be one of those feel good movies: boy

round the world.

smitten by the magic of cinema, irrepressible

He is also a mover and shaker in Freshwater

passion earns him a foothold in the film world,

and with his partner Tim Nicholson has just

and he ends up a respected authority who,

set up a film club, where the films will be

despite hobnobbing with the stars he once only

introduced and finish with a question and

knew on celluloid, never forgets his roots. Roll

answer session – Freshwater’s answer to the

the credits.

National Film Theatre.

“I was very lucky. I was at the right time in

era. He just loves it. “With some people it’s

Tony.

butterflies, with me it’s film,” he shrugs. “I

particularly, on the fantasy movies of animator

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Tony says film is in his blood. Any genre, any

the right place. That’s been my life really,” says
Tony is a film histori