He Was 'Grumpy' Long Before Land of the Lost: How Wah Chang's Dinosaurs Captured the Hearts of a Generation


 Written by Ken Hulsey

This morning I was going through more of my photos from the Monster Island News archive when I stumbled across this one of the puppet used for 'Grumpy' the Tyrannosaurus who menaced the Marshall family in the 70s Saturday morning science fiction series Land of the Lost. I believe that the image originally came from a 1998 Sid & Marty Krofft memorabilia auction when it was sold to a private collector.

Land of the Lost: Season 1 DVD - $39.99 @ Amazon.com

Interestingly enough, good old 'Grumpy' wasn't actually created for Land of the Lost at all. In fact, both the puppet and the full-sized stop-animation model seen in the series made their first appearance in a short educational film produced in 1970 entitled 'Dinosaurs: The Terrible Lizards.' In fact, most of the dinosaurs that ended up populating ' The Land of the Lost' were in the film also. These terrible lizards were created by sculptor and artist Wah Chang, who also created the flip-open communicator from the original Star Trek series, along with many other props and creature costumes, including the Gorn from Arena. The dinosaurs were animated by Doug Beswick, who later worked on animation for the original Star Wars Trilogy.

"I wonder why he's so grumpy?" - Holly Marshall

Check out Dinosaurs: The Terrible Lizards and look for some of your favorites from Land of the Lost:





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Experience Trains Across Louisiana in Spring/Summer 2026!

Image
Photos and Story by Ken Hulsey Above: A CPKC mixed freight roars across the Louisiana and North West Railroad diamond in Gibsland. Kansas City Southern Railway (Images of Rail) Paperback Edition - $21.99 @ Amazon.com   The CPKC train continues thundering eastward out of Gibsland and into open country. (Above) The same CPKC train, again, taken further away as it approaches the LNW yard. 
Read More »

This Day In History: July 16th, Apollo 11 Begins Trip To The Moon - The First Atomic Bomb Tested - DC Becomes The Nation's Capitol

Image
 From History.com At 9:32 a.m. EDT, Apollo 11 , the first U.S. lunar landing mission, is launched on a historic journey to the surface of the moon. After traveling 240,000 miles in 76 hours, Apollo 11 entered into a lunar orbit on July 19. The next day, at 1:46 p.m., the lunar module Eagle, manned by astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, separated from the command module, where a third astronaut, Michael Collins , remained. Two hours later, the Eagle began its descent to the lunar surface, and at 4:18 p.m. the craft touched down on the southwestern edge of the Sea of Tranquility. Armstrong immediately radioed to Mission Control in Houston a famous message, “The Eagle has landed.” At 10:39 p.m., five hours ahead of the original schedule, Armstrong opened the hatch of the lunar module. Seventeen minutes later, at 10:56 p.m., Armstrong spoke the following words to millions listening at home: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” A moment later, he ...
Read More »

Embracing the Majesty of Nature: Lessons from John Muir and Discovering Hidden Wilderness Treasures

Image
Written by Ken Hulsey Over the past couple of weeks, Terri and I have been enjoying Ken Burns' series on The National Parks on Amazon. We truly love learning about our great nation's history and certainly love seeing all the vast beauty that we here in America have been blessed with. The early episodes of the series focus on the efforts of acclaimed naturalist John Muir to preserve many of our nation's most majestic locations, such as Yosemite, Yellowstone, and even the Grand Canyon. Muir considered the mountains and meadows of Yosemite to be one of God's most majestic temples, a living example of his divine power of creation. From viewing scenes of this amazing natural wonder, one can do nothing but marvel at its beauty and gaze in awe at its majesty. 
Read More »

Dinosaur Dreams and Wigwam Wonders: A Nostalgic Journey to Holbrook's Quirky Attractions

Image
 Photos and Story by Ken Hulsey In its heyday, Route 66 was a literal haven of roadside attractions and souvenir emporiums. Some of these landmarks were rather interesting, while the others truly deserved the title 'tourist trap'. Indeed, the 2,448-mile highway that spanned from Chicago to Los Angeles was a thing of wonder for anyone who pulled over from time to time as well as anyone who simply spent the hours staring out the window.
Read More »

Knowledge vs. Wisdom: Why Our Souls Crave the True Depth of Understanding

Image
Rocks That Seem To Extend Endlessly Into The Pacific Ocean - Oceanside California - By Ken Hulsey  Written by Ken Hulsey "Huh! I should think that you Jedi would have more respect for the difference between knowledge and... heh heh heh... wisdom." - Dexter Jettster (Star Wars) Only this Space Cowboy would start off a post about wisdom with a quote from a Star Wars movie. It may be a sign that I need some of that elusive wisdom because I chose not to quote a wise Star Wars character like Yoda or Obi-Wan Kenobi in favor of something uttered by an intergalactic fry cook in a movie that I don't particularly care for instead.
Read More »

Unveiling Southern Charm: A Day at Rosedown Plantation in St. Francisville

Image
 Last week my travels brought me to the Rosedown Plantation State Historic Site in St. Francisville, Louisiana. Over the past few years, I have been through St. Francisville a handful of times, and I have to say that the town is one of my favorite locations here in Louisiana. The town is quiet, charming, and filled with history. From the nearby John James Audubon Bridge. Audubon State Historic Site, St. Francisville Historic District, to the preserved Illinois Central Railroad Caboose, the town provides the visitor the perfect place to spend a day just exploring. Located just over 30 minutes north of the State Capitol of Baton Rouge, St. Francisville is easy to get to and should be considered a must-see location for anyone visiting the region.
Read More »

How the St. Francisville Caboose Connects Us to the Past of the West Feliciana Railroad!

Image
 Photos By Ken Hulsey Text from signage adjacent to the railcar History of ICG 199328 The St. Francisville Caboose is an important historical attraction for the town. The caboose was purchased by the town in 1995 and moved to its current location through a generous donation by Richard Holcomb. The intention was that it would serve to remind visitors and future generations of the history of the West Feliciana Railroad, the third oldest railroad in the United States. The WFRR ran from Bayou Sara to Woodville, MS from 1834 to 1978, carrying the region's valuable cotton crop to the Mississippi River where it could be easily shipped to New Orleans. It was innovative, ahead of its time and necessary.
Read More »

Set Free, But Still Living Like a Prisoner? | Finding Your Identity in Christ | Ascend with Pastor Steve

Image
In this powerful message, we are reminded that freedom is more than just forgiveness; it represents a new identity in Christ. Through personal testimonies, biblical truths, and the story of Israel’s journey out of Egypt, we discover how the enemy often attacks our thoughts, convincing us to live as prisoners even after Christ has set us free. Though freedom was purchased by the blood of Jesus, we must learn to walk in that freedom every day. 
Read More »