This morning, while taking a browse of some favorite sites, I found myself watching a short compliation video of various monsters, creatures, and nefarious extraterrestrials from that old cult classic sci-fi series The Outer Limits. Though I never saw the show until my teens, I was given an Outer Limits annual, one snowy Christmas, when I was around pre-school age. This book was filled with comic strips about ravenous alien gloop and stories about crash-landed flying saucers. It started a passion for this kind of stuff that has lasted right through. But there’s nothing new in that.
The compilation clip was by Wah Ming Chang for a project called Monsters. Chang was a cinematographer, designer, and sculptor who is probably better known to Star Trek fans as Wah Ming—the mega-talent responsible for designing the tricorder and communicator on the original series, as well as a whole host of martians, monsters, and what-have-you. (Indeed, there’s a good blog to be done on Chang.) Anyhow, Chang also designed many of the monsters and special effects for The Outer Limits—hence the fine little compilation clip (see below) of various happy memories of scary things from outer space like the “Man from Galaxy ‘X’” or “The Zanti Misfits.”
All this, eventually, made me seek out a whole set of the Monsters From Outer Limits trading cards that were issued to coincide with the original TV series by Bubbles Inc. (Topps) in 1964. Back then, a packet of these cards (with a stick of chewing gum) cost 5¢. I was way too young to have ever bought or even thought about these magnificent works of pop culture, but know now I would have tried my hardest to collect a whole set if I had been. Nowadays, a single card from this set can fetch up to $50—which is fair return on an original investment all those years ago.
Having never actually seen a full set (I don’t get out much, I live in a trailer park, I like Wheetos), I thought it would be a fun diversion to gather all these past riches together for our delight and delectation. ‘Nuff said?
#1 The Television Terror.
#2 The Radio-Active Man.
#3 Transparent Creature.
#4 Terror from Space.
#5 Man from Galaxy ‘X’.
#6 The Jelly Creature.
#7 The Unstoppable One.
#8 Jelly Man Attacks.
#9 Fangs of Death.
#10 Visit from the Future.
#11 Man from Tomorrow.
#12 Monster from Venus.
#13 Horror in the Woods.
#14 Hunting New Victims,
#15 The Brainless Glob.
#16 The Man with Super Sight.
#17 Not of this World.
#18 Invasion of the Sea Beast.
#19 The Sea Beast Strikes.
#20 Fury of the Sea Beast.
#21 Prize Catch.
#22 The Captive Beast.
#23 Human Insects.
#24 ‘Invade Earth.’
#25 Thing from Mercury.
#26 The Death Ray.
#27 The Doom Machine.
#28 Twin Space Terrors.
#29 Night of Terror.
#30 The Invader.
#31 The Mind Stealer.
#32 ‘You are in My Power.’
#33 Incredible Ice Man.
#34 Frozen Terror.
#35 Plotting Destruction.
#36 Bring the Earthmen.
#37 ‘You Can’t Stop Me.’
#38 The Brain Destroyer.
#39 Martian Torture.
#40 The Touch of Death.
#41 Fearful Foe.
#42 Captive Scientist.
#43 Living Nightmare.
#44 The Subterraneans.
#45 The Clay Man.
#46 Clay Man’s Revenge.
#47 The Clay Man’s Next Victim.
#48 Uninvited Guest.
#49 The Escape.
#50 Destruction of the Clay Man.
Via Data Junkie, Zontar Mag, Lost Wackys, and Monster Brains.
Previously on Dangerous Minds:
‘A Clockwork Orange’ trading cards
‘Grindhouse Girls’ of the 50s and 60s: An eye-popping set of sexy black & white trading cards
‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ trading cards
‘Wicker Man’ trading cards
The psychedelic beauty of The Beatles’ ‘Yellow Submarine’ trading cards
The ultraviolent 1962 ‘Mars Attacks’ trading cards that inspired the Tim Burton movie