IRWIN ALLEN NEWS NETWORK
A warm welcome to the Irwin Allen News Network (IANN). Established in 1994 by Giants Log, with the late Paul Zastupnevich as president, IANN has focussed on bringing the wonderful worlds of Academy Award winning producer Irwin Allen to a wider audience. Working with fans, cast and crew around the world, IANN has published dozens of newsletters, specials and web sites to promote the television shows, movies, performers, and the production crew working so hard behind the scenes.
We hope you will enjoy browsing around the site and that you will find new material of interest. We welcome your ideas and input to help us to continue to bring the work of Irwin Allen to new generations.
If you would like to contribute research, personal memories of working on the productions, articles, photos, artwork and other creative ideas, please do contact us. We are continually developing the site whenever we have a spare moment, and the extent to which we can do this depends on everyone who has fond memories of these shows and movies.
If you hover the mouse pointer over the picture above, you can identify and visit the pages dedicated to each of the Irwin Allen productions.
IRWIN ALLEN NEWS VIA TWITTER
Latest Irwin Allen related news will be sent out via Twitter. If you have any upcoming events featuring Irwin Allen stars that you would like us to mention, please send us details.
NEWS AND FEATURES
PIPER LAURIE
Piper Laurie, star of Irwin Allen's thriller Dangerous Mission in 1954 passed away on 14th October 2023 at the age of 91 after a long and very successful acting career. She starred alongside Victor Mature, Vincent Price, and William Bendix in Dangerous Mission. Piper was nominated for an Oscar three times between 1962 and 1987.
Entertainment Weekly: Kyle MacLachlan remembers Twin Peaks costar Piper Laurie
MARK GODDARD
It has been with great sadness that we have learned this evening of the passing of Lost in Space star Mark Goddard on 10th October via Bill Mumy on Facebook. Mark and his work have been a feature in our lives for as long as we can remember. Our thoughts tonight are with Mark Goddard's family and friends including all of the Lost in Space cast who formed lifelong friendships with Mark after working on the show.
The photo above shows Mark Goddard with his fellow Lost in Space cast mates at the 24th January 2015 Hollywood Show in Los Angeles. Below is a photo we took of two Don Wests in 1998 after the movie premiere in LA.
HERITAGE AUCTIONS - THE GREG JEIN COLLECTION 14-15 OCT 2023
2023 has brought us some amazing auctions featuring major Irwin Allen props and collectibles, and the 14-15 October 2023 Heritage Auction continued that theme. The Greg Jein Collection Hollywood Platinum Signature® Auction #7278 included several Irwin Allen props. The top sale price for an Irwin Allen related item was $350,000 (including Buyer's Premium) for the Robot Feet.
The Greg Jein Collection Auction Gallery (images courtesy of Heritage Auctions, HA.com)
Here is a lovely video from "The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of" showing the Chariot prop which sold for $162,500 (including 25% Buyer's Premium) at the The Greg Jein Collection Hollywood Platinum Signature® Auction #7278.
SPINDRIFT MINIATURE PROP - JULIEN'S AUCTIONS
A very special lot went up for auction at Julien's Auctions on 6th September 2023 and that was the original "hero" Spindrift Miniature Prop from Land of the Giants which many of you may have seen on display at the Seattle Science Fiction Museum. This beautiful miniature prop sold for $45,500 including the Buyer's Premium.
Spindrift Supersonic Miniature Prop at Julien's Auctions
Spindrift Miniature Prop Auction Gallery with more Auction Details
HERITAGE AUCTIONS - THE IRWIN ALLEN COLLECTION 29 JULY 2023
July 2023 brought us an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime, opportunity to bid on a vast collection of original Irwin Allen props, paintings, drawings, and collectibles. The Heritage Auctions - Irwin Allen Collection auction took place in session 5 of the 3 day Hollywood/Entertainment Signature® Auction #7351 from 27 to 29 July 2023. Click here for the press release from Heritage Auctions (HA.com).
Winning bids ranged from $625 to $350,000 (including buyer's premiums of 25%). The top 5 purchase prices (including buyer's premium) were for the following items:
- Original John Berkey Final Poster Artwork for The Towering Inferno, sold for $350,000
- The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen Robot built by Greg Jein, sold for $237,500
- Original Hero B-9 Robot Walkable "Bermudas", sold for $212,500
- Guy Williams "John Robinson" Season 1 Tunic, sold for $200,000
- Bill Mumy "Will Robinson" Season 1 Costume Ensemble, sold for $187,500
The Irwin Allen Collection Auction Gallery (images courtesy of Heritage Auctions, HA.com)
THE FANTASY WORLDS OF IRWIN ALLEN ROBOT
Aside from all the exceptional original artwork featured at the upcoming Heritage Auctions (HA.com) Irwin Allen Collection auction on 29th July 2023, the star of the show must surely be "The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen Robot" which is a precise replica of the original B-9 Robot. Recreated by Academy-nominated visual effects model builder Greg Jein from studio molds, with lighting, electronics and wiring installed by Ron Hamill, this exciting one-off creation will be the item to watch during the auction. Below is this Robot when it appeared in The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen with Bill Mumy and June Lockhart.
ORIGINAL POSTER ARTWORK FOR TOWERING INFERNO
Bidding on the original final poster artwork by John Berkey for The Towering Inferno has already exceeded over $200,000. The original art pieces in the Irwin Allen Collection are not only attracting Irwin Allen fans, but also art connoisseurs who will see these works of art as great investments. Original props and costumes are also drawing the attention of investors as illustrated by recent sale prices.
Poster Artwork for The Poseidon Adventure
Up for auction at Heritage Auctions on 29th July 2023 is the original Mort Künstler Final Poster Artwork for The Poseidon Adventure. Shown below is the orginal artwork next to one of the many posters featuring this art. Other auction lots feature both original storyboard art and storyboard copies.
TIME TUNNEL PRESENTATION BOOKS
Featured in the Heritage Auctions - Irwin Allen Collection auction are two presentation books for The Time Tunnel. Why does the top right picture in the season one book remind us of the Lost in Space Trip Through the Robot episode?
TIME TUNNEL SEASON ONE PRESENTATION BOOK
TIME TUNNEL PROPOSED SEASON TWO PRESENTATION BOOK
PAUL ZASTUPNEVICH - LOST IN SPACE COSTUME ART
Before the Heritage Irwin Allen Collection auction takes place on 29 July 2023, there is an Azarian Collection Auction featuring 5 pieces of Paul Zastupnevich Lost in Space Costume Art.
SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON ORIGINAL CONCEPT ART
Below is some original concept art illustrating Irwin Allen's thinking for his series Swiss Family Robinson. This original art is up for auction at the Heritage Auctions Irwin Allen Collection on 29th July 2023. Click on the image to see the auction lot.
HERITAGE AUCTIONS - IRWIN ALLEN COLLECTION CATALOG
Here is the cover of the catalog for the Heritage Auctions Irwin Allen Collection featuring the final poster artwork by John Berkey for The Towering Inferno. This packed catalog is a collectible in itself.
INFINITY #63 JULY 2023 - HEATHER YOUNG INTERVIEW
The July 2023 issue of Infinity (#63) sci-fi magazine features a six page interview with Land of the Giants star Heather Young in conversation with Karen Myatt. It also features a 2 page Land of the Giants poster. Available in magazine stores and also from the Infinity website.
IRWIN ALLEN: MASTER OF DISASTER COLLECTION
Released on 12th September 2023 (in the US) is the blu-ray set Irwin Allen: Master of Disaster Collection featuring 7 television and theatrical release movies. The set features the following movies: The Poseidon Adventure, When Time Ran Out, Fire, Flood, Cave-In, Hanging by a Thread, and The Night the Bridge Fell Down (#ad).
Replica Voyage Movie Patch
A new collectible patch is available based upon the original Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea movie uniform patch. The patch can be found on eBay and on the Three Inches Under patch website.
THE FANTASY WORLDS OF IRWIN ALLEN BY JEFF BOND
Irwin Allen's wife Sheila spoke fondly of her desire for there to be a coffee table book on producer Irwin Allen and his career, and that dream finally came true with Jeff Bond's book The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen with a foreword written by Lost in Space star, Bill Mumy.
PLEASE NOTE: Creature Features is the only authorized source for new copies of this book and will not be offering it thru Amazon or any other retail sellers.
Details of and sample pages from the book The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen
HELP NEEDED WITH RESEARCH
The main focus of our efforts at the Irwin Allen News Network is to document the history of all of the Irwin Allen movies and television shows and this implies extensive levels of research. We are particularly trying to credit actors and crew who didn't receive on-screen credits in the productions.
We are also studying the movies, trying to identify as many people as possible who appeared on screen and this is proving to be a never-ending challenge. We have recently added a gallery of faces from The Poseidon Adventure and The Time Travelers amongst others and have several faces we cannot yet identify. If you can help with any of these missing names with corroborating pictures of the unnamed actors, please contact us.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Every so often we will showcase something from different creative fans on this main page. The image above shows several pieces of original artwork and model building from fans around the world. Click on each image to see more of this wonderful work. You can also see more outstanding work from other artists, animators, and model builders by visiting the creativity showcase and models pages on this site.
IRWIN ALLEN FILMOGRAPHY
Click here or on the image below to see the Irwin Allen filmography credits.
IRWIN ALLEN BLOG
We have set up a new blog for general chat, all the little bits of information we come across, and to highlight the latest news in the Irwin Allen worlds.
IRWIN ALLEN GALLERY
We have built a new structured and searchable Irwin Allen Gallery with lots of different bits and pieces on anything and everything related to the Irwin Allen productions. It includes new showcases of the work of the talented and creative fans, without whom there would not be many new things in the Irwin Allen universe to enjoy. If you would like your work and collections showcased here, you are welcome to send material via the Email link in the IANN contact page.
ARCHIVE
This website is a tribute to Irwin Allen, the performers, the production crews, and the studios who made the television shows and movies a reality. It is also a tribute to all the people who help to keep these productions alive for future generations.
