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'''''Unknown World''''' (a.k.a. '''''Night Without Stars''''') is a [[1951 in film|1951]] [[independent film|independently made]], [[black-and-white]] [[science fiction]] [[adventure film]] from [[Lippert Pictures]], produced by [[Irving A. Block]], [[Jack Rabin (producer)|Jack Rabin]], and [[Robert L. Lippert]], directed by [[Terry O. Morse]], that stars [[Bruce Kellogg]], [[Marilyn Nash]], [[Jim Bannon]], and [[Otto Waldis]].
'''''Unknown World''''' (a.k.a. '''''Night Without Stars''''') is a [[1951 in film|1951]] [[independent film|independently made]], [[black-and-white]] [[science fiction]] [[adventure film]] from [[Lippert Pictures]], produced by [[Irving A. Block]], [[Jack Rabin (producer)|Jack Rabin]], and [[Robert L. Lippert]], directed by [[Terry O. Morse]], that stars [[Bruce Kellogg]], [[Marilyn Nash]], [[Jim Bannon]], and [[Otto Waldis]].


''Unknown World'' may have been loosely inspired by [[Jules Verne]]'s novel ''[[Journey to the Center of the Earth]]'' (1864) and ''[[At the Earth's Core (novel)|At the Earth's Core]]'' (1914) by [[Edgar Rice Burroughs]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}, as it concerns an expedition seeking liveable space beneath the Earth in the event a nuclear war makes surface life impossible.
''Unknown World'' may have been loosely inspired by [[Jules Verne]]'s novel ''[[Journey to the Center of the Earth]]'' (1864) and ''[[At the Earth's Core (novel)|At the Earth's Core]]'' (1914) by [[Edgar Rice Burroughs]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}.
The film's storyline concerns an expedition seeking livable space deep beneath the Earth's surface in the event a nuclear war makes surface life impossible.


==Plot==
==Plot==
Dr. Jeremiah Morley (Victor Kilian) is concerned about an imminent nuclear war. He organizes an expedition of scientists and has them use an atomic-powered machine, the Cyclotram, capable of drilling through earth and stone, to find an underground environment where humanity could escape the coming holocaust.
Dr. Jeremiah Morley (Victor Kilian) is concerned about an imminent nuclear war. He organizes an expedition of scientists and has them use a large atomic-powered tank-like boring machine, the Cyclotram, capable of drilling down deep through earth and stone, to find an underground environment where humanity could escape the coming nuclear holocaust.


The expedition (Jim Bannon, Marilyn Nash, Otto Waldis, Tom Handley and Dick Cogan) begins after government funding has fallen through and they are bailed out at the last minute by private funding from a newspaper heir (Bruce Kellogg), who insists on going with them as a lark. Romantic rivalry develops (between Bannon and Kellogg for Nash), and two lives are lost to the perils of the expedition.
The expedition (Jim Bannon, Marilyn Nash, Otto Waldis, Tom Handley and Dick Cogan) begins after government funding has fallen through and they are bailed out at the last minute by private funding from a newspaper heir (Bruce Kellogg), who insists on going with them as a lark. Romantic rivalry develops between Bannon and Kellogg for Nash, and two lives are lost to the perils of the dangerous expedition.


In the end the scientists accomplish their goal and find an enormous underground expanse with a plentiful air supply, its own ocean, and phosphorescent light. However, all the lab rabbits brought with them give birth to dead offspring. Through autopsies, it is discovered that this underground world has somehow rendered the rabbits, and hence any other life form, sterile. Dr. Morley is deeply depressed by the news. When an underground volcano suddenly erupts, he fails to enter the Cyclotram and quickly perishes.
In the end the scientists accomplish their goal and find an enormous underground expanse with a plentiful air supply, its own ocean, and phosphorescent light. However, all the lab rabbits brought with them give birth to dead offspring. Through autopsies, it is discovered that this underground world has somehow rendered the rabbits, and hence any other life form, sterile. Dr. Morley is deeply depressed by the news. When an underground volcano suddenly erupts, he fails to enter the Cyclotram and quickly perishes.


The survivors enter the underground ocean and find themselves rising to the surface of the upper world, eventually surfacing in the sea near a tropical island.
The survivors soon enter the underground ocean and soon find themselves rising to the surface of the upper world, eventually surfacing in the sea near a tropical island.


==Cast==
==Cast==
{{div col}}
* [[Victor Kilian]] as Dr. Jeremiah Morley
* [[Victor Kilian]] as Dr. Jeremiah Morley
* [[Marilyn Nash]] as Joan Lindsey
* [[Marilyn Nash]] as Joan Lindsey
Line 37: Line 38:
* [[Dick Cogan (actor)|Dick Cogan]] as Dr. George Coleman
* [[Dick Cogan (actor)|Dick Cogan]] as Dr. George Coleman
* [[Jim Bannon]] as Andy
* [[Jim Bannon]] as Andy
{{div col end}}


==Production==
==Production==
Portions of ''Unknown World'' were filmed in [[Carlsbad Caverns]], [[Bronson Caves]], [[Nichols Canyon]], and at [[Pismo Beach]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}
Portions of ''Unknown World'' were filmed in [[Carlsbad Caverns]], [[Bronson Caves]], [[Nichols Canyon]], and at [[Pismo Beach]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}


This film was actually put together by two special effects men, Jack Rabin and Irving Block, who are listed as producers.<ref>Internet Movie Database Trivia</ref>
''Unknown World'' was put together by two Hollywood special effects men, Jack Rabin and Irving Block, who are two of the film's three producers.<ref>Internet Movie Database Trivia</ref>


Some plot elements of ''Unknown World'' were reused in the later film ''[[The Core]]'' (2003).{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}
Some of the plot elements of ''Unknown World'' were reused years later in the big studio science fiction film ''[[The Core]]'' (2003).{{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}


==Reception==
==Reception==

The B-Movie Review site Million Monkry Theater found that the "production crew try hard, and it really seems like they have an important message to tell, but the execution and polish are lacking" <ref>http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/UnknownWorld.html</ref>
The B-Movie Review site Million Monkry Theater found that the "production crew try hard, and it really seems like they have an important message to tell, but the execution and polish are lacking" <ref>http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/UnknownWorld.html</ref>




==References==
==References==

Revision as of 10:11, 12 June 2017

Unknown World
Directed byTerry O. Morse
Written byMillard Kaufman
Produced byIrving A. Block
Jack Rabin
Robert L. Lippert
StarringBruce Kellogg
Marilyn Nash
Jim Bannon
Otto Waldis
CinematographyHenry Freulich
Allen G. Siegler
Edited byTerry O. Morse
Music byErnest Gold
Distributed byLippert Pictures Inc.
Release date
  • October 26, 1951 (1951-10-26)
Running time
74 minutes
LanguageEnglish

Unknown World (a.k.a. Night Without Stars) is a 1951 independently made, black-and-white science fiction adventure film from Lippert Pictures, produced by Irving A. Block, Jack Rabin, and Robert L. Lippert, directed by Terry O. Morse, that stars Bruce Kellogg, Marilyn Nash, Jim Bannon, and Otto Waldis.

Unknown World may have been loosely inspired by Jules Verne's novel Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864) and At the Earth's Core (1914) by Edgar Rice Burroughs.[citation needed].

The film's storyline concerns an expedition seeking livable space deep beneath the Earth's surface in the event a nuclear war makes surface life impossible.

Plot

Dr. Jeremiah Morley (Victor Kilian) is concerned about an imminent nuclear war. He organizes an expedition of scientists and has them use a large atomic-powered tank-like boring machine, the Cyclotram, capable of drilling down deep through earth and stone, to find an underground environment where humanity could escape the coming nuclear holocaust.

The expedition (Jim Bannon, Marilyn Nash, Otto Waldis, Tom Handley and Dick Cogan) begins after government funding has fallen through and they are bailed out at the last minute by private funding from a newspaper heir (Bruce Kellogg), who insists on going with them as a lark. Romantic rivalry develops between Bannon and Kellogg for Nash, and two lives are lost to the perils of the dangerous expedition.

In the end the scientists accomplish their goal and find an enormous underground expanse with a plentiful air supply, its own ocean, and phosphorescent light. However, all the lab rabbits brought with them give birth to dead offspring. Through autopsies, it is discovered that this underground world has somehow rendered the rabbits, and hence any other life form, sterile. Dr. Morley is deeply depressed by the news. When an underground volcano suddenly erupts, he fails to enter the Cyclotram and quickly perishes.

The survivors soon enter the underground ocean and soon find themselves rising to the surface of the upper world, eventually surfacing in the sea near a tropical island.

Cast

Production

Portions of Unknown World were filmed in Carlsbad Caverns, Bronson Caves, Nichols Canyon, and at Pismo Beach.[citation needed]

Unknown World was put together by two Hollywood special effects men, Jack Rabin and Irving Block, who are two of the film's three producers.[1]

Some of the plot elements of Unknown World were reused years later in the big studio science fiction film The Core (2003).[citation needed]

Reception

The B-Movie Review site Million Monkry Theater found that the "production crew try hard, and it really seems like they have an important message to tell, but the execution and polish are lacking" [2]

References

Bibliography

  • Warren, Bill. Keep Watching The Skies Vol. I: 1950–1957. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1982. ISBN 0-89950-032-3.