the little boy who was taken aboard the ship is Carey Guffy. Back in late 90s, i was a programmer at a company in Anniston Al and met Carey, not knowing his background. We'd hang out, talk. Not once did he bring up his role in CE3K. One day at work a local tv crew was interviewing him at work, and i asked my coworker 'Why they intervieing him?' He said 'Do you not know who he is? Hes the kid from Close Encounters' After the tv crew left, i walked over to Careys desk and said'You're the kid from CE3K?' He said yep, thats me.. i asked him how he got the role. He said as a very young toddler living in Mobile Al, his mom got him into local tv commercials. He ended up doing a commercial for Charmin(i believe he said) and Steven Spielberg saw that commercial and wanted him for Close Encounters. He continued acting doing a role in the miniseries 'North and the South'. He said Spielberg got him to meet Queen Elizabeth and all sorts of celebrities. I asked him right there if he still likes acting. He said it was fun but wanted a normal life away from hollywood. He said that Spielberg would still call him asking if he'd take roles in upcoming movies, but he always declined.. I saw him at a funeral home a few years ago and we reconnected. He said he's content with just being a normal guy.. He's very nice and loves to meet people and talk about his brush w fame, fortune
Beautiful story, thank you🙏🏾….btw, my mom in 1977 watching the movie with the family was crying her eyes out, when Barry said GOODBYE to the ship😂😂😂, actually we all were😂😂😂 even my dad, even tho, he will never admit it😂😂😂😂
The Air Traffic Control scene is in my view, one of the greatest movie scenes ever. Incredibly natural performances (from actual Air Traffic Controllers) build the tension and the pilots close encounter is left totally to the imagination. Absolutely brilliant.
Steven Spielberg eventually regretted the idea of Roy leaving and abandoning his children. It wasn’t until he had his own kids that he realised how negative the impact would have been on them.
Did a bike ride up to Devils Tower several years ago. Stayed at a KOA campground that would show Close Encounters every evening outside the office with the real Tower in the background. Weather permitting. Very cool.
So Cool. From IMDB Trivia about the movie, "This film is shown every night at the Devil's Tower KOA Campground, thereby making it one of the most screened movies ever."
We stopped at Devils Tower on an RV trip to the states from Australia years ago. We posted a box of clothes home from the KOA office. They never arrived
I saw this movie as a teen in the 70's. I still watch it. The part where the investigators go to a village where the people are chanting the 5 notes, and Lacombe asks where it comes from, and they all point up at the same time, still gives chills. Spielberg is an absolute genius! What a cool long strange trip it's been enjoying his works. Dan, I agree with your appreciation of Trumbull model effects. Model making in films is a work of art.
And visually the UFO close fly-by of the plane is never shown. It's just the air traffic control room. Everything is left up to the imagination. Brilliant.
@@robburns4176 I used to be stationed at a NORAD sector and AWAC/Air Control Squadrons. All of us Sci-Fi nerd Airman always referenced how epic that scene was.
My thoughts exactly! How the scene is blocked and the colors of the controllers' shirts and the authentic jargon and faces reflected in the radar screens. That scene was actually filmed in 1975 in Palmdale before the movie started production to gain year-end tax credits
I would not describe Neery's wife Ronnie (played by Teri Garr) as "a bit of a dingbat." You can clearly see that she's struggling to try to connect to her husband. But as he gets more and more remote, and loses his job, she's scared. How can she stay with a guy who has apparently gone nuts? And she takes the kids and leaves.
I agree for the most part, but there's a scene near the beginning where she's trying to visualize the UFOs that Roy saw and she's saying to him (something like): "Was it like a cookie? You know those frosted pink cookies?" She sounds pretty vapid in that scene.
One of my favorite performances in the film is that of Roy’s oldest son. Watching him try to keep it together while watching his father losing his mind is quite heartbreaking.
The Ziegfeld Theater in NYC is where I saw the first showing that Friday, 2 days after it's big premier. THAT was extremely Cool! I still have the program from that venture. Still have the bendy alien toy, too. Fun facts: According to Spielberg, there were government people on set constantly. Why, hmmmmmm? Spielberg was stoned and looking at the refinery upside-down on the hood of his car when he got the idea for what the Mother Ship will look like. All the close encounters that took place through the film were all based on real U.F.O. stories. Great one, Dan!
When I saw this in 77 I had a crush on Teri Garr and the only thing I had couldn't believe was that anybody could be unhappy married to her. She sadly passed less than 3 months ago. She was great in this role. Going to have to watch this movie tonight. Thanks for doing this video. Lot of great information. Knowing the secrets doesn't ruin the magic of the film.
I'll say it again, the 70s was such a great time to be kid and a great time for movies! We saw the Mothership at the Smithsonian in 2017 and were surprised at how small it was. Thanks Dan!👍👍
I was stationed at Fairchild AFB outside Spokane, Washington, at the time. Spokane did not have Close Encounters on opening weekend (the same as had happened with not getting star Wars either!). Myself and two buddies from the Air Force, drove the 250 miles to Seattle so that we could see CE3K. We arrived near midnight, and went to a midnight showing of Star Wars, then the next morning to see Close Encounters. Hard to believe we travelled more than 500 miles there and back just to see a couple of movies, but it was so worth it!
Thank goodness richard Dryfus got the part.he realy simblelized the ordinary everyman.dealing with extrodanary events.the minatures the effects the music.and the overlaping dialog added to the realisem of the movie.great movie.❤
Steven Spielberg in an interview said he couldn't make this movie today because after becoming a father years later said he loved his children so much and could never have a character leave his kids behind.
I think he overdid it a little in _Hook_ by having Peter say he wanted to become a dad as his motivation for growing up. I think pregnancy just happens and guys come to accept fatherhood, some liking it.
My little anecdote. When the movie came out, they started playing the "Theme from Close Encounters" pseudo-pop tune on the radio. I was 5 at the time. I've always been musically inclined and I picked up on some qualities in that tune that I really loved (probably my earliest exposure to synth melodies). It was the first time I wanted to have an actual song to listen to whenever I wanted. I begged my mom to pick up the Close Encounters soundtrack, which she eventually did. We listened to the whole album and it wasn't on there. After being disappointed for about an hour, I randomly rifled through the (LP) album folder and lo and behold, there was a small pocket inside which had the tune on it as a single.
Alongside Star Wars (1977), this film shaped my Gen-X childhood and inspired my dream of becoming a filmmaker. Life led me to a career in law enforcement and the USAF, including time at WPAFB, but I’ve always connected with both 1977 films on an emotional level. Especially their production backstories.
If you haven't yet, read Bob Balaban's diary of the making of the film, currently rereleased under the awkward title Spielberg, Truffaut and Me. Sounds like something a committee came up with but the book is excellent.
Dan, thanks for covering one of my favorite movies of all time. Your comment about Roy leaving his kids is a great insight into Spielberg at the time. Someone may have mentioned this in the comments already, but in subsequent years three interesting tidbits have surfaced: 1) Spielberg has stated that it would have been hard to depict Roy leaving his children after Spielberg himself had children, 2) during an interview Spielberg admitted that the use of synthesized music for communication at the end was probably a subconscious desire to reunite his mother (a musician) and his father (an engineer), and perhaps most importantly, 3) Spielberg has said that Roy leaving at the end probably has a lot do do with subconscious abandonment issues he had with his own father leaving the family when he was young, which you’ll see in The Fablemans. For anyone interested, a search for these items will bring up numerous interviews.
Been waiting for *THIS* one, Dan! I'll get started on sculpting my mashed potato version of Devil's Tower right now, and watch the rest of this video later tonight on the Big Screen! Thanks, and Happy New Year!!
I too saw it in a huge theatre in Chicago on its opening weekend. It blew me away. And the visuals and sound in that theatre just added to the quality of the movie.
You are so lucky I hate you. Seeing science fiction movies with a live audience in the theater beats streaming any day of the week. I got to see endgame in the movie theater and I swear to God that place exploded. I know some people don't like people making noises in the movies but it was like Rocky horror picture show crank to 11.
Really I thought it was a Moog synthesizer. It cracks me up when the alley in mothership answers them and all the windows get busted out. Remind me of my first apartment where my downstairs neighbor was a heavy metal head banger. 😊
I saw this film with my little brother when it first came out. When the dad, Roy, started throwing plants and dirt IN the house, my little brother laughed so hard I acted like I didn’t know him. Good times! Thanks for the memories Dan!
Even though I am a massive Sci-fi fan this is probably the biggest Sci-fi movie I haven't seen. I follow someone who recently did an amazing review of this. Covering the making of it and the depth of the characters. There are characters who are divisive but in the best way for filmmaking. Stimulating thought and debate.
For the past 25 years I have had the 5-tones of the Close Encounters movie sounding off over the household P.A. system whenever a vehicle comes down our long driveway. Indeed I had to pause the intro of your clip because I thought I was getting a delivery.
Great presentation Dan. It’s one of my favourite films as I left school in 1977 and had the time to visit the local cinema. Close Encounters and Star Wars were brilliant. When I left the cinema after watching it we all looked up into the sky hopping there was someone watching us.😂 keep up the great work Dan. 👍
I liked this film. The kid opening the door always stood out. Had that feel of one of the old 1950s sci-fi films. Everything that Spielberg touched seemed to turn to Gold back then. He knew how to pull the kid still inside of us out.
My father was a UFO book collector and took me to a few of those early UFO documentory SUN films. I was amazed by the film when we went to see it for my birthday. Fell in love with it. One of the few times my father and I liked the same thing. Because of this film I always watch these type of films -good or bad-. Not much merchandise out there. But, I remember see those ads in Starlog for that Mothership statue. But, so way out my budget as a kid and dad so no way. He said you never get what you expect from those things. Thanks again for a memory trip!
Love the enthusiasm you have for “models” over cgi. They’re the only way to go. Alas though, with higher definition the slightest defects become even more noticeable. Bless the producer/directors that insist on models (even with the higher cost and time involved) versus the “cheap” cgi shortcuts. Great content Dan.
They said they did models for the Onyx Cinder in _Star Wars: Skeleton Crew_ as well as stop-motion animation for the crab-monster. But people still criticize it by saying "the CGI is bad."
My wife and I traveled to Devil’s Tower several summers ago. I very much enjoyed the trip and nerded out. The only close encounter I had was of The Nerd kind. This is one of my all-time favorites. I saw this with my brother when I was 12. Great video Dan!
Excellent, as always Dan. Thank you. This was one of my Mom's favorite movies. My Dad took me to see Star Wars, and my Mom took me to see Close Encounters. Great memories.
Went and saw this for my 11th birthday at the Hastings Theatre in Pasadena. Still one of my favorite movies. Even at that age I wanted my cars to start moving around my bedroom - never happened.
Another awesome video Dan. I saw this in the theater when it came out and was blown away by how good the special effects were, and how entertaining the story was. I loved Teri Garr and Melinda Dillon in this movie, sadly both no longer with us. There is just something so real and raw with the practical effects used at the time. Perhaps the pendulum might swing back and someone will make a new film with top notch practical effects. Thanks for all the time and effort you put into these videos, much appreciated.
Thanks Dan. Love this movie. I went to the premiere at the Odeon Leicester Square in London and was totally blown away. I came out of the theatre watching the skies 😃. It stands up just as well today. 👍🏻
Seeing it in the theater as a 7 year old was just magical, especially coming off of Star Wars earlier in the year. 2 absolutely different movies, but each had the magic touch of their respective creators/directors. It's still an all-time favorite of mine.
Story goes, Dreyfuss finally won over Spielberg for the role of Roy Neary when he told the director, 'You don't need a responsible adult for the part. You need a child.' Spielberg realized Dreyfuss was right, and, well..... how cool is that?
Another brilliant presentation of an amazing movie. Thanks again for the wonderful story and all the background tidbits that fill in the cracks and crevices. Just frickin brilliant!!!!
Beautifully done as usual. Dan consistently has a story arc to his videos, with great detail and information. I had forgotten how beautiful Melinda Dillon is in this film. Even though this is not one of my favorites, Dan really brought it to life and made you appreciate it. Thanks.
Outstanding episode as usual. Love everything about this movie specially the end. The Devils Tower was on my bucket list, visited 3 years ago; it is impressive and beautiful. I took my CLOSE ENCOUNTERS metal lunch box with me, it was full circle!
Thank you Don for your work on this channel. The movies themselves will go on for centuries, but without your considerable efforts the details of all those moments will be lost in time, like… tears in rain.
I was 11 and was fortunate to have seen it in theaters. unexpectedly my older married cousin showed up with her husband one night and just offered to take me. I only recall a couple details of the night, but enough to hang onto all these years. thank you Donna and Charlie.
❤️ Thank you, Dan, for another fascinating and insightful retrospective! I still remember the first time I saw this movie on the ABC Sunday Night Movie (anyone else remember that?). It’s been a favorite of mine ever since, and I still love this movie to this day! ❤️
Another excellent video Dan! We learn something from every video you make! This is one of those movies you watch every time it comes on. A real favorite! Great info as always, and it's always good to hear from your B9! LOL! Thanks for all the time you spend on giving us so much great info!
That was amazing Dan. Very emotional at the moment, this movis is spiritual and has the most profound effect. The beauty about movies like this is that there is so much to uncover, follow up videos can always happen. On a side note , knowing your way around the Kitchen means we need a 'Dan Cooks' channel.
We saw this film again a few years ago on the big screen when a local theater showed it. The special effects absolutely held up. The film in 35mm film on a full sized screen was beautiful. I had not seen it in that environment since I was 11. It is a much better movie than I remember it being.
I remember mom and dad seeing this first. Not long after that, mom dropped me off to see it. Beautiful work! Can not beat a great classic. Thank you for doing this video about it.
One of my favorite movies with lots of truth buried in it. Saw this at the drive in and was both scared and curious... the curiosity got me through it. What an awakening!
Wonderfully solid research and exposition on this film, Dan. By 1977 I was completely over my fascination with UFOs after I read the Phillip J. Klass book “UFOs Explained”. Arthur C. Clarke’s own musings on the nonsense of UFOs visiting Earth further reinforced my skepticism-but I saw the film on initial release anyway, simply because I hungered for ANYTHING remotely having to do with science fiction. I recall how a sudden WAY out of scale reveal of the Mother Ship relative to Devils Tower drove me a little nuts in one scene. The element I liked least was seeing the missing pilots of Flight 19-the 1940s era TBF Avengers that went missing-it made NO sense for an alien race to abduct the pilots, never revealing a rationale why this was done. I also hated the line where a scientist proclaims that “Einstein was probably one of THEM”, referring to the space aliens-very disingenuous to a brilliant (and very Earthbound) scientist.
Another great video! I live in Northern Virginia and love seeing the model on display at the Smithsonian’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles International Airport. It’s one of the coolest museums I’ve ever visited.
One of my favorite movies, my dad and I would watch it together on old RCA video disc back in the 1980s. Also, my wife and I were in Chantilly, VA at the air museum about 12 years ago when I came across the mothership. I think I was the only person in the entire joint who was incredibly excited about see some old model. I was going nuts taking pictures from all angles because it was underneath plexiglass and I was getting reflections in the pictures. Great movie and great memories watching with my dad.
The thing I remember most when I originally watched it as a child in the theater, and what brought this film "down to Earth" for me as far as allowing me to suspend my disbelief, was the realism of the characters interacting with each other, most specifically the family scenes with Dreyfus and Garr. It never felt scripted to me, it felt like it was just happening in real-time. Whether it was or not, or if it was just great acting I don't know, but this is definitely on my list of "watch at least once a year" films.
I had the awesome pleasure of seeing the mothership model at a museum about 35 years or so ago. It was incredibly detailed. I saw the little R2-D2 and some of the other fun greeblies the model makers placed on it. Great video Dan! 😁
I enjoyed seeing this movie when I was young! I was a freshman in HS. I have memories of hearing the Meco disco version of the theme song on the radio! Thank you for the video and bringing back such good memories!
I still have the MECO full CLOSE ENCOUNTERS DISCO CD they made. Converted to digital audio and preserve the CD, but still listen to the MECO versions over the actual Original Movie Soundtrack CD. I just like the MECO versions better.😲😁
When I was a undergraduate music major or oboe professor (John ellis) was the oboe soloist from the spaceship scene (it features oboe & tuba duet) Such a low key, soft spoken man playing such an crazy solo/duet. Not sure if he was supposed to have it, but john showed me his part. In a way I got to touch greatness😊
@MoviesMusicMonsters it was my brief "encounter " with movie greatness. John was 1st call oboe on (most if not all) John Williams scores from 70's to mid 80's. Sometimes he would disappear from campus(in north carolina) for a week cause he was in LA recording. Luckily my senior year they offered a class on recording in studio situations & John was our teacher...so insightful.
Dan, the bedroom scene terrified me for years! (and, in a way, still does today LOL). I share your love for practical effects. The details in the mothership model are a must! Thank you for sharing all this valuable information. Have a great 2025!!
Star Wars got me reading any material I could find on the hows of studio scale modeling and CEotTK put me over the edge. I saw it when I was 12 and by the time I was 14 I was given the chance to build a studio scale ship similar to the mother ship for a friends older brothers film class. It had lots of kit bashed greebles and a ton of lighting including some fiber optics. This remains one of my all time favorite films. I've watched it dozens of times and never get tired of watching it. I tell you this, I never saw so many UFO's as I did summer of 77.
if they could have done a second movie I think one where the dad comes back after a time (he did not age) but is kids are all grown up and have moved on and how he deals or doesn’t with it. Thanks Dan happy 25 to you and your family.
I agree with this sentiment. Perhaps it could be done the same way that ET returned to Elliot in the short Christmas commercial sponsored by Xfinity back in 2019. It was short and emotional .... however, 'Roy' would have to visit the grave of the recently passed 'Ronnie". A tribute to the movie and to Teri Garr.
The guy who plays the synthesizer (ARP 2500) in the movie is Philip Dodds, ARP Instruments's VP of engineering who was there to install and demonstrate the complex synthesizer but ended up playing the role of Jean Claude. There was a commentary track on a Blade Runner DVD set with Douglas Trumbull and Dennis Muren. They talked a little bit about the mothership in "Close Encounters." Trumbull remembered the model work fondly, but Muren recalled that working with that model was not fun at all because it was heavy and hard to move around, which made it problematic to do precision work with.
Hey Dan, just a small correction for you. Films were not shot in 70 mm, they were filmed in 65 mm and 70 mm was the wider format to support optical tracks on the side. CE3K as we used to refer to it in the industry was the movie that inspired me to approach Doug Trumbull for a job in the FX industry and he later hired me to work on Star Trek the Motion Picture. I later had the pleasure of wiring up the lighting in the mothership for and exhibit in downtown LA. There was a blend of neon and low voltage miniature grain of wheat lamps and it was daunting to hook all of that stuff up!
I saw Close Encounters in a local theater with my Mother. It was a movie we still talk about today. Lots of great actors including Teri Garr and Richard Dreyfuss...WOW! Thanks once again for the deep dive, Dan Monroe!
the little boy who was taken aboard the ship is Carey Guffy. Back in late 90s, i was a programmer at a company in Anniston Al and met Carey, not knowing his background. We'd hang out, talk. Not once did he bring up his role in CE3K.
One day at work a local tv crew was interviewing him at work, and i asked my coworker 'Why they intervieing him?' He said 'Do you not know who he is? Hes the kid from Close Encounters'
After the tv crew left, i walked over to Careys desk and said'You're the kid from CE3K?' He said yep, thats me.. i asked him how he got the role. He said as a very young toddler living in Mobile Al, his mom got him into local tv commercials. He ended up doing a commercial for Charmin(i believe he said) and Steven Spielberg saw that commercial and wanted him for Close Encounters.
He continued acting doing a role in the miniseries 'North and the South'. He said Spielberg got him to meet Queen Elizabeth and all sorts of celebrities.
I asked him right there if he still likes acting. He said it was fun but wanted a normal life away from hollywood. He said that Spielberg would still call him asking if he'd take roles in upcoming movies, but he always declined..
I saw him at a funeral home a few years ago and we reconnected. He said he's content with just being a normal guy.. He's very nice and loves to meet people and talk about his brush w fame, fortune
Beautiful story, thank you🙏🏾….btw, my mom in 1977 watching the movie with the family was crying her eyes out, when Barry said GOODBYE to the ship😂😂😂, actually we all were😂😂😂 even my dad, even tho, he will never admit it😂😂😂😂
The Air Traffic Control scene is in my view, one of the greatest movie scenes ever.
Incredibly natural performances (from actual Air Traffic Controllers) build the tension and the pilots close encounter is left totally to the imagination.
Absolutely brilliant.
Yes, absolutely agree!
Spielberg has this way during scenes to sometimes have multiple people talking at the same time to create tense situations. As in that iconic scene.
the TV version had Deleted scenes & extended scenes.
I always thought the controller was Morgan Freeman. Its not, but sure sounds like him.
@@lear60man ha ha. I thought so too. Exactly like him.
Steven Spielberg eventually regretted the idea of Roy leaving and abandoning his children. It wasn’t until he had his own kids that he realised how negative the impact would have been on them.
Great.
RIP Carl Weathers and Teri Garr. 😥
...and Douglas Trumbull.
And RIP to extra no 6, your 5 seconds of screen time changed my life, ill never forget how you inspired me...
Respect indeed 🙏
As well as Francois Truffaut(as LeComb) and J Allen Hyneck(as a cameo of himself).
@@noam65 Thank you your kind
Did a bike ride up to Devils Tower several years ago. Stayed at a KOA campground that would show Close Encounters every evening outside the office with the real Tower in the background. Weather permitting. Very cool.
So Cool. From IMDB Trivia about the movie, "This film is shown every night at the Devil's Tower KOA Campground, thereby making it one of the most screened movies ever."
We stopped at Devils Tower on an RV trip to the states from Australia years ago. We posted a box of clothes home from the KOA office. They never arrived
@@davidferry548 So you had a clothes encounter of the unreturned kind.
How cool was that? I am thinking very cool!
Devil's Tower looks like a huge tree stump
I saw this movie as a teen in the 70's. I still watch it. The part where the investigators go to a village where the people are chanting the 5 notes, and Lacombe asks where it comes from, and they all point up at the same time, still gives chills. Spielberg is an absolute genius! What a cool long strange trip it's been enjoying his works. Dan, I agree with your appreciation of Trumbull model effects. Model making in films is a work of art.
One of the sequences that fascinates me is the editing of the air traffic control scene. Brilliant.
And visually the UFO close fly-by of the plane is never shown. It's just the air traffic control room. Everything is left up to the imagination. Brilliant.
@@robburns4176 I used to be stationed at a NORAD sector and AWAC/Air Control Squadrons. All of us Sci-Fi nerd Airman always referenced how epic that scene was.
My thoughts exactly! How the scene is blocked and the colors of the controllers' shirts and the authentic jargon and faces reflected in the radar screens. That scene was actually filmed in 1975 in Palmdale before the movie started production to gain year-end tax credits
I am going through a tumultuous divorce, thankfully vids like this help me get my mind off of how horrible my life currently is...thank you
Sorry to hear that. Been there, done that. :-/
Hang in there. Things will get better even though it may not seem like it now.
@@tracytobias9367yep, me too. Completely understand, not fun, but eventually the outlook and life does improve!
I can relate-going through it now. Watching CE3K hits differently during a divorce; hard to explain why.
@@williegladney4014You’re totally right, like the Persian adage “This too shall pass”
I would not describe Neery's wife Ronnie (played by Teri Garr) as "a bit of a dingbat." You can clearly see that she's struggling to try to connect to her husband. But as he gets more and more remote, and loses his job, she's scared. How can she stay with a guy who has apparently gone nuts? And she takes the kids and leaves.
I agree.
I agree. Garr played the part well. Totally tired and could not understand what was happening to Roy. We just lost Terri Garr recently.
@@rumblehat4357 Melinda Dillon 2 years ago.
Terri Garr was in an episode of the original Star Trek
I agree for the most part, but there's a scene near the beginning where she's trying to visualize the UFOs that Roy saw and she's saying to him (something like): "Was it like a cookie? You know those frosted pink cookies?" She sounds pretty vapid in that scene.
One of my favorite performances in the film is that of Roy’s oldest son. Watching him try to keep it together while watching his father losing his mind is quite heartbreaking.
Spielberg did well auditioning kids and getting good performances out of them.
The Ziegfeld Theater in NYC is where I saw the first showing that Friday, 2 days after it's big premier. THAT was extremely Cool! I still have the program from that venture. Still have the bendy alien toy, too. Fun facts: According to Spielberg, there were government people on set constantly. Why, hmmmmmm? Spielberg was stoned and looking at the refinery upside-down on the hood of his car when he got the idea for what the Mother Ship will look like. All the close encounters that took place through the film were all based on real U.F.O. stories.
Great one, Dan!
When I saw this in 77 I had a crush on Teri Garr and the only thing I had couldn't believe was that anybody could be unhappy married to her. She sadly passed less than 3 months ago. She was great in this role. Going to have to watch this movie tonight. Thanks for doing this video. Lot of great information. Knowing the secrets doesn't ruin the magic of the film.
Need to see Teri in "Oh! God!"
She was so good in Young Dr. Frankenstein.
@ absolutely
Let's not forget "Mr Mom" with Michael Keaton, she was also really good in that, RIP Teri Garr 🙏..
I'll say it again, the 70s was such a great time to be kid and a great time for movies! We saw the Mothership at the Smithsonian in 2017 and were surprised at how small it was. Thanks Dan!👍👍
I was stationed at Fairchild AFB outside Spokane, Washington, at the time. Spokane did not have Close Encounters on opening weekend (the same as had happened with not getting star Wars either!). Myself and two buddies from the Air Force, drove the 250 miles to Seattle so that we could see CE3K. We arrived near midnight, and went to a midnight showing of Star Wars, then the next morning to see Close Encounters. Hard to believe we travelled more than 500 miles there and back just to see a couple of movies, but it was so worth it!
Yet another triumph of movie magic...I really miss triumphs.
I miss movie magic.
😥
Thank goodness richard Dryfus got the part.he realy simblelized the ordinary everyman.dealing with extrodanary events.the minatures the effects the music.and the overlaping dialog added to the realisem of the movie.great movie.❤
UFO magazine was a favorite of mine when I was a kid and somewhere I have the issue dedicated to this movie! Thanks Dan!
Dan Monroe is a dam national treasure. Thanks for another great episode brother!
Steven Spielberg in an interview said he couldn't make this movie today because after becoming a father years later said he loved his children so much and could never have a character leave his kids behind.
I think he overdid it a little in _Hook_ by having Peter say he wanted to become a dad as his motivation for growing up. I think pregnancy just happens and guys come to accept fatherhood, some liking it.
My little anecdote. When the movie came out, they started playing the "Theme from Close Encounters" pseudo-pop tune on the radio. I was 5 at the time. I've always been musically inclined and I picked up on some qualities in that tune that I really loved (probably my earliest exposure to synth melodies). It was the first time I wanted to have an actual song to listen to whenever I wanted. I begged my mom to pick up the Close Encounters soundtrack, which she eventually did. We listened to the whole album and it wasn't on there. After being disappointed for about an hour, I randomly rifled through the (LP) album folder and lo and behold, there was a small pocket inside which had the tune on it as a single.
Pretty sure I blew a fuse or two with the DJ's of our local radio station requesting that same theme.
There was the up tempo disco version played on hit radio, same with the Star Wars disco medley
I remember that tune...g'bye
RIP Teri Garr. I got to watch this now. Thanks, Dan.
François Truffaut too.
Alongside Star Wars (1977), this film shaped my Gen-X childhood and inspired my dream of becoming a filmmaker. Life led me to a career in law enforcement and the USAF, including time at WPAFB, but I’ve always connected with both 1977 films on an emotional level. Especially their production backstories.
If you haven't yet, read Bob Balaban's diary of the making of the film, currently rereleased under the awkward title Spielberg, Truffaut and Me. Sounds like something a committee came up with but the book is excellent.
Dan, thanks for covering one of my favorite movies of all time. Your comment about Roy leaving his kids is a great insight into Spielberg at the time. Someone may have mentioned this in the comments already, but in subsequent years three interesting tidbits have surfaced: 1) Spielberg has stated that it would have been hard to depict Roy leaving his children after Spielberg himself had children, 2) during an interview Spielberg admitted that the use of synthesized music for communication at the end was probably a subconscious desire to reunite his mother (a musician) and his father (an engineer), and perhaps most importantly, 3) Spielberg has said that Roy leaving at the end probably has a lot do do with subconscious abandonment issues he had with his own father leaving the family when he was young, which you’ll see in The Fablemans. For anyone interested, a search for these items will bring up numerous interviews.
I should add: knowing these things gives the movie a completely different feel if you watch it again.
Thanks for the extra insight into Spielberg's decision-making. It's interesting to see those connections!
Been waiting for *THIS* one, Dan! I'll get started on sculpting my mashed potato version of Devil's Tower right now, and
watch the rest of this video later tonight on the Big Screen! Thanks, and Happy New Year!!
Saw this on it's opening weekend in a huge theater in Chicago. I was awe-struck by the HUGE looking starship that comes up behind the Mountain.
I too saw it in a huge theatre in Chicago on its opening weekend. It blew me away. And the visuals and sound in that theatre just added to the quality of the movie.
You are so lucky I hate you. Seeing science fiction movies with a live audience in the theater beats streaming any day of the week. I got to see endgame in the movie theater and I swear to God that place exploded. I know some people don't like people making noises in the movies but it was like Rocky horror picture show crank to 11.
Really I thought it was a Moog synthesizer. It cracks me up when the alley in mothership answers them and all the windows get busted out. Remind me of my first apartment where my downstairs neighbor was a heavy metal head banger. 😊
Someone said they made a goof, and based on its positioning and movement would have gone through the mountain. But it's still OK.
I saw this film with my little brother when it first came out. When the dad, Roy, started throwing plants and dirt IN the house, my little brother laughed so hard I acted like I didn’t know him. Good times! Thanks for the memories Dan!
Even though I am a massive Sci-fi fan this is probably the biggest Sci-fi movie I haven't seen. I follow someone who recently did an amazing review of this. Covering the making of it and the depth of the characters. There are characters who are divisive but in the best way for filmmaking. Stimulating thought and debate.
For the past 25 years I have had the 5-tones of the Close Encounters movie sounding off over the household P.A. system whenever a vehicle comes down our long driveway. Indeed I had to pause the intro of your clip because I thought I was getting a delivery.
Great presentation Dan. It’s one of my favourite films as I left school in 1977 and had the time to visit the local cinema. Close Encounters and Star Wars were brilliant. When I left the cinema after watching it we all looked up into the sky hopping there was someone watching us.😂 keep up the great work Dan. 👍
I liked this film. The kid opening the door always stood out. Had that feel of one of the old 1950s sci-fi films. Everything that Spielberg touched seemed to turn to Gold back then. He knew how to pull the kid still inside of us out.
My father was a UFO book collector and took me to a few of those early UFO documentory SUN films. I was amazed by the film when we went to see it for my birthday. Fell in love with it. One of the few times my father and I liked the same thing. Because of this film I always watch these type of films -good or bad-. Not much merchandise out there. But, I remember see those ads in Starlog for that Mothership statue. But, so way out my budget as a kid and dad so no way. He said you never get what you expect from those things. Thanks again for a memory trip!
Thanks for all your efforts Dan,I really enjoy and appreciate your channel!
Love the enthusiasm you have for “models” over cgi. They’re the only way to go. Alas though, with higher definition the slightest defects become even more noticeable. Bless the producer/directors that insist on models (even with the higher cost and time involved) versus the “cheap” cgi shortcuts.
Great content Dan.
They said they did models for the Onyx Cinder in _Star Wars: Skeleton Crew_ as well as stop-motion animation for the crab-monster. But people still criticize it by saying "the CGI is bad."
It’s funny.
I was ten when this came out and loved it. At the time, I thought it was much better than Star Wars because it was so “realistic.”
My wife and I traveled to Devil’s Tower several summers ago. I very much enjoyed the trip and nerded out. The only close encounter I had was of The Nerd kind. This is one of my all-time favorites. I saw this with my brother when I was 12. Great video Dan!
Excellent, as always Dan. Thank you. This was one of my Mom's favorite movies. My Dad took me to see Star Wars, and my Mom took me to see Close Encounters. Great memories.
Being from Wyoming and knowing that my all-time favorite director, Steven Spielberg, was here filming this amazing movie, makes me proud.
Great start to the New Year. Thanks for sharing Dan
Went and saw this for my 11th birthday at the Hastings Theatre in Pasadena. Still one of my favorite movies. Even at that age I wanted my cars to start moving around my bedroom - never happened.
I was 11 also😎
Better than seeing _Poltergeist_ at age 11 like I did.
Another awesome video Dan. I saw this in the theater when it came out and was blown away by how good the special effects were, and how entertaining the story was. I loved Teri Garr and Melinda Dillon in this movie, sadly both no longer with us. There is just something so real and raw with the practical effects used at the time. Perhaps the pendulum might swing back and someone will make a new film with top notch practical effects. Thanks for all the time and effort you put into these videos, much appreciated.
Thanks Dan. Love this movie. I went to the premiere at the Odeon Leicester Square in London and was totally blown away. I came out of the theatre watching the skies 😃. It stands up just as well today. 👍🏻
Oh God, forgotten about this one! Saw it originally in the theater when came out!!!! I was 14! Thanks Dan!!!!
Seeing it in the theater as a 7 year old was just magical, especially coming off of Star Wars earlier in the year. 2 absolutely different movies, but each had the magic touch of their respective creators/directors. It's still an all-time favorite of mine.
Story goes, Dreyfuss finally won over Spielberg for the role of Roy Neary when he told the director, 'You don't need a responsible adult for the part. You need a child.'
Spielberg realized Dreyfuss was right, and, well..... how cool is that?
Another brilliant presentation of an amazing movie.
Thanks again for the wonderful story and all the background tidbits that fill in the cracks and crevices.
Just frickin brilliant!!!!
Beautifully done as usual. Dan consistently has a story arc to his videos, with great detail and information. I had forgotten how beautiful Melinda Dillon is in this film. Even though this is not one of my favorites, Dan really brought it to life and made you appreciate it. Thanks.
Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Outstanding episode as usual. Love everything about this movie specially the end. The Devils Tower was on my bucket list, visited 3 years ago; it is impressive and beautiful. I took my CLOSE ENCOUNTERS metal lunch box with me, it was full circle!
Your presentation and the comments are quite amazing. Its wonderful when art maintains a wonderful memory and experience.
Another cool one! My fave piece of trivia in here is the aliens' smile meant to match wee Barry! Thanks Dan!
Thank you Don for your work on this channel. The movies themselves will go on for centuries, but without your considerable efforts the details of all those moments will be lost in time, like… tears in rain.
I was 11 and was fortunate to have seen it in theaters. unexpectedly my older married cousin showed up with her husband one night and just offered to take me. I only recall a couple details of the night, but enough to hang onto all these years. thank you Donna and Charlie.
Roy's attitude to his kids mirrors everything else in his life - he becomes obsessed
❤️ Thank you, Dan, for another fascinating and insightful retrospective! I still remember the first time I saw this movie on the ABC Sunday Night Movie (anyone else remember that?). It’s been a favorite of mine ever since, and I still love this movie to this day! ❤️
Another excellent video Dan! We learn something from every video you make! This is one of those movies you watch every time it comes on. A real favorite! Great info as always, and it's always good to hear from your B9! LOL!
Thanks for all the time you spend on giving us so much great info!
That was amazing Dan.
Very emotional at the moment, this movis is spiritual and has the most profound effect.
The beauty about movies like this is that there is so much to uncover, follow up videos can always happen.
On a side note , knowing your way around the Kitchen means we need a 'Dan Cooks' channel.
We saw this film again a few years ago on the big screen when a local theater showed it. The special effects absolutely held up. The film in 35mm film on a full sized screen was beautiful. I had not seen it in that environment since I was 11. It is a much better movie than I remember it being.
Very good story !!! I enjoy these very much. Thanks for all the effort.
Great trip down memory lane! Thanks Dan, super video as always!! 🎉
Cheers!
Keep 'em coming, Dan! They get more interesting as you go along!
I remember mom and dad seeing this first.
Not long after that, mom dropped me off to see it.
Beautiful work!
Can not beat a great classic.
Thank you for doing this video about it.
Saw this movie Christmas Day, 1977. We were blown away!
You get so much information and spend a lot of time looking into it to give us all terrific videos, well done Dan, hats off to you mate😊
One of my favorite movies with lots of truth buried in it. Saw this at the drive in and was both scared and curious... the curiosity got me through it. What an awakening!
Wonderfully solid research and exposition on this film, Dan.
By 1977 I was completely over my fascination with UFOs after I read the Phillip J. Klass book “UFOs Explained”. Arthur C. Clarke’s own musings on the nonsense of UFOs visiting Earth further reinforced my skepticism-but I saw the film on initial release anyway, simply because I hungered for ANYTHING remotely having to do with science fiction.
I recall how a sudden WAY out of scale reveal of the Mother Ship relative to Devils Tower drove me a little nuts in one scene. The element I liked least was seeing the missing pilots of Flight 19-the 1940s era TBF Avengers that went missing-it made NO sense for an alien race to abduct the pilots, never revealing a rationale why this was done. I also hated the line where a scientist proclaims that “Einstein was probably one of THEM”, referring to the space aliens-very disingenuous to a brilliant (and very Earthbound) scientist.
Great video Dan ! It is amazing how they make these movies !
Sir, you manage a great channel! You bring back wonderful memories. Thanks so much.
Your reading my mind ole bean ,I’m so glad you did this.
Another great video! I live in Northern Virginia and love seeing the model on display at the Smithsonian’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles International Airport. It’s one of the coolest museums I’ve ever visited.
One of my favorite movies, my dad and I would watch it together on old RCA video disc back in the 1980s. Also, my wife and I were in Chantilly, VA at the air museum about 12 years ago when I came across the mothership. I think I was the only person in the entire joint who was incredibly excited about see some old model. I was going nuts taking pictures from all angles because it was underneath plexiglass and I was getting reflections in the pictures. Great movie and great memories watching with my dad.
Thanks for another out of this world video Dan!!
The thing I remember most when I originally watched it as a child in the theater, and what brought this film "down to Earth" for me as far as allowing me to suspend my disbelief, was the realism of the characters interacting with each other, most specifically the family scenes with Dreyfus and Garr. It never felt scripted to me, it felt like it was just happening in real-time. Whether it was or not, or if it was just great acting I don't know, but this is definitely on my list of "watch at least once a year" films.
Another Home Run... Awesome deep dive. Thanks, Dan!
Great episode !! Loved the new ships and creatures in the intro !!
I had the awesome pleasure of seeing the mothership model at a museum about 35 years or so ago. It was incredibly detailed. I saw the little R2-D2 and some of the other fun greeblies the model makers placed on it. Great video Dan! 😁
I still watch it regularly to this day. An awesome film. Great insight, secrets and information all about it Dan. Thanks so much. You ROCK !
Happy New Year, Dan! 🙏
I enjoyed seeing this movie when I was young! I was a freshman in HS. I have memories of hearing the Meco disco version of the theme song on the radio! Thank you for the video and bringing back such good memories!
I still have the MECO full CLOSE ENCOUNTERS DISCO CD they made. Converted to digital audio and preserve the CD, but still listen to the MECO versions over the actual Original Movie Soundtrack CD. I just like the MECO versions better.😲😁
@ can the cd still be found and bought? I would like to find a copy!
A new Dan Monroe video: How cool is that?!
Thank you so much for this Dan. I really enjoyed this. I have this movie. Thank you for all the work you put i into this. You are awesome.
Wow, thank you!
I love all of your videos, Dan! Keep 'em coming, and Best Wishes for a great new year for you & your family!
Thank you so much! Cheers to you and yours as well!
Wow, this video really computes with me ! Loved it.
Glad you liked it!
I watched it again last summer. It just gets better. Saw Devils Tower in person 4 years ago. Amazing.
When I was a undergraduate music major or oboe professor (John ellis) was the oboe soloist from the spaceship scene (it features oboe & tuba duet)
Such a low key, soft spoken man playing such an crazy solo/duet.
Not sure if he was supposed to have it, but john showed me his part. In a way I got to touch greatness😊
Wow, that's so cool!
@MoviesMusicMonsters it was my brief "encounter " with movie greatness.
John was 1st call oboe on (most if not all) John Williams scores from 70's to mid 80's.
Sometimes he would disappear from campus(in north carolina) for a week cause he was in LA recording.
Luckily my senior year they offered a class on recording in studio situations & John was our teacher...so insightful.
Another great episode. So many fun facts. One of my favorite channels.
I remember seeing this in 1977, and the scene at the RR crossing gave me chills! Thanks for the deep dive!!
Great video Dan. I really enjoyed it.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Dan, the bedroom scene terrified me for years! (and, in a way, still does today LOL). I share your love for practical effects.
The details in the mothership model are a must! Thank you for sharing all this valuable information. Have a great 2025!!
Star Wars got me reading any material I could find on the hows of studio scale modeling and CEotTK put me over the edge. I saw it when I was 12 and by the time I was 14 I was given the chance to build a studio scale ship similar to the mother ship for a friends older brothers film class. It had lots of kit bashed greebles and a ton of lighting including some fiber optics. This remains one of my all time favorite films. I've watched it dozens of times and never get tired of watching it. I tell you this, I never saw so many UFO's as I did summer of 77.
if they could have done a second movie I think one where the dad comes back after a time (he did not age) but is kids are all grown up and have moved on and how he deals or doesn’t with it.
Thanks Dan happy 25 to you and your family.
I agree with this sentiment. Perhaps it could be done the same way that ET returned to Elliot in the short Christmas commercial sponsored by Xfinity back in 2019.
It was short and emotional .... however, 'Roy' would have to visit the grave of the recently passed 'Ronnie". A tribute to the movie and to Teri Garr.
Hi Dan - your deep dive of Close Encounters certainly had plenty of Wowness!
Great video! Thanks for all you do 😎✌️
The guy who plays the synthesizer (ARP 2500) in the movie is Philip Dodds, ARP Instruments's VP of engineering who was there to install and demonstrate the complex synthesizer but ended up playing the role of Jean Claude.
There was a commentary track on a Blade Runner DVD set with Douglas Trumbull and Dennis Muren. They talked a little bit about the mothership in "Close Encounters." Trumbull remembered the model work fondly, but Muren recalled that working with that model was not fun at all because it was heavy and hard to move around, which made it problematic to do precision work with.
I wish Dan and everybody else a happy new year
Great video to start the new Year's!!🎉🎉 Thanks Dan for another high quality presentation!!
Hey Dan, I love the new starting theme, how cool is that, this was another one of those Dan how cool is that episode
Hey Dan, just a small correction for you. Films were not shot in 70 mm, they were filmed in 65 mm and 70 mm was the wider format to support optical tracks on the side.
CE3K as we used to refer to it in the industry was the movie that inspired me to approach Doug Trumbull for a job in the FX industry and he later hired me to work on Star Trek the Motion Picture.
I later had the pleasure of wiring up the lighting in the mothership for and exhibit in downtown LA. There was a blend of neon and low voltage miniature grain of wheat lamps and it was daunting to hook all of that stuff up!
Imagine how easy with LED today it is. Cool story
This was awesome on the big screen with a bucket of over buttered popcorn and a large drink. Loved the ships and all the actors that made this film.
Thanks, Dan. A really memorable film.
I saw Close Encounters in a local theater with my Mother. It was a movie we still talk about today. Lots of great actors including Teri Garr and Richard Dreyfuss...WOW!
Thanks once again for the deep dive, Dan Monroe!
Fantastic job, Dan! Couldn't have done it better myself! lol. Bravo, my friend.