I caught ALIEN on the box recently and solved a mystery that's been bugging me for ages.
In the 1979 film can be seen some dangly springy plastic toy creatures in one of the Nostromo's doorways.
For yonks I've wondered what they are.....until now!
They are ...... Action Birdies!
Described as Patio and Room Decorations these slinky birds dangle and doingle from ceilings. I'm pretty sure we had one at home in the Seventies. Don't know the make. Do You?
You can even get modern re-issues!
They're called Hoptimist Busy birds
I can't find the scene in ALIEN where they appear though. i think its in a doorway near Mother.
Can anyone help?
I'm not the only one who thinks about these things either! On Worthpoint's listing for an Action Birdie [pics courtesy of Worthpoint] the seller said
"I believe there was a scene in 2001 A Space Odyssey that showed an Action Birdie in the spacecraft."
Its in ALIEN though isn't it readers?
Action Birdies contemporary Drinking Bird definitely is. Although im almost sure that AB may be too. Im not sure he turns up in 2001, as they only really appeared in the early seventies.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I love the start of the film with the drinking birdie. It features in an old Liam Neeson horror as well, Dark Man. Iconic kitsch!
Deleteive checked the Alien Movie Novel which has some lovely stills and I cant see it. There is one of those spring bodied things on the pic above, which can be seen at the beginning as Mother wakes the Nostromo.
ReplyDeleteI'm told the Alien illustrated story contains lots of stuff that didn't make it to the theatrical release or the directors cut, I've got one hopefully still tucked away in my parents loft! I'm still searching for it, it should be a first printing too, we've got Walt Simonson coming to a comic con in Porstmouth in may, hoping for an autograph!!- Mark J
DeleteYeah, I think it maybe near the beginning Bill. I'll have to see if I have ALIEN on VHS and photograph the TV svcreen!
DeleteIs that the softback book with the Nostromo on the cover Mark? I bought one for a mate years ago at the NEC. It did look good.
DeleteAye, soft cover, blue and gold illustration on the front! - Mark J
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DeleteAction birdie appears in Alien as several crew members struggle with the robot guy, just outside if Mother. I still have my orange action birdie from the ‘70’s!
As for the Hoptimists, it all started in the state of Denmark
ReplyDeletehttps://hoptimist.com/history/hans-gustav-ehrenreich/
Superb Arto! I love those Hoptimists! Even the originals look Scandinavian with their Very sleek designs. I wonder why they chose Action Birdies to go in the Nostromo?
DeleteMust admit that I missed the birdies in the film altogether... will check again.
DeleteI had one of these back in the 70's. Mine was yellow. I'm not sure how I got it, perhaps a birthday gift. Thanks for bringing back a faded memory.
ReplyDeleteYoure welcome Lance. They seem really familiar to me as well!
DeleteAs Bill Bulloch correctly points out, Drinking Birdie features prominently in Alien and Aliens (cut scene from Alien later reused in Darkman), however - I think Action Birdie can be glimpsed (briefly) in the scene where Ash attacks Ripley in the crew's quarters adjacent to the mess. An object suspended from the ceiling (that I always thought looked like a bee) swirls around Ian Holm's head, adding to the general unsettling feeling of derangement. It now occurs to me that this may be the auspicious screen debut of none other than Action Birdie, symbolising the unhinged urges of an insane robot.
ReplyDeleteThanks William. Yes, it was an iconic object in an iconic movie. It did addd to the derangement I agree with you. I knew the Drinking Bird was in Darkman but I didn't know it was cut from ALIEN! Thanks for that, I shall look into that for the blog. Superb and thanks.
DeleteThanks, I absolutely love this blog, it never ceases to delight me, and I really appreciate all your efforts. The 'Alien' scene featuring the Drinking Birdie is on the Blu Ray set, I think - in the Nostromo destruction sequence, there are shots of the crew quarters and a brief cut to the Birdie as the countdown reaches zero. Very effective, but works better in Darkman, wherein, as I'm sure you are aware, the Birdie's beak actually triggers the explosion. Thanks once again and best wishes.
DeleteThanks so much William. It means a lot that you like Moonbase. Thanks too for pinpointing the action birdie scene in ALIEN and the Darkman link. If I remember rightly its a Sam Raimi film. I think his brother stars in it too - the famous head through the manhole on a freeway scene!
DeleteThey were sold in Pennsylvania as Bobbie Birds.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Good name!
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