In 1960 MGM released The Time Machine, director George Pal's special effects-laden science fiction movie classic starring Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimieux and Alan Young.

One of man's oldest dreams -- time travel -- came to the silver screen in 1960 via a stunning adaptation of the 1895 novel by celebrated British author H.G. Wells. With square-jawed Rod Taylor as the intrepid time traveler and beautiful, fair-haired Yvette Mimieux as his romantic interest, George Pal's The Time Machine represents a stunning achievement in the history of science fiction cinema.

H.G. Wells and The Time Machine

The Time Machine was published in 1895 by William Heinemann of London. Its author, H.G. (Herbert George) Wells (1866-1946), had previously tackled the subject of time travel in a short story titled "The Chronic Argonauts," published by the Royal College of Science in 1888.

Wells would later go on to write a number of other science fiction classics, including The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), The War of the Worlds (1898), The First Men in the Moon (1901) and The World Set Free (1914).

George Pal's The Time Machine

The driving force behind the film adaptation of The Time Machine was George Pal (1908-1980). A native of Hungary, Pal came to Hollywood in 1940, eventually working on such sci-fi films as Destination Moon (1950), When Worlds Collide (1951), The War of the Worlds (1953) and Tom Thumb (1958).

Hollywood was cool to Pal's time travel movie, prompting the producer/director to pitch his idea overseas. He then found a friendlier reception at British MGM, where he had filmed Tom Thumb two years earlier.

The Cast

The principal cast members were Rod Taylor (H. George Wells), Yvette Mimieux (Weena), Alan Young (David Filby/James Filby), Sebastian Cabot (Dr. Philip Hillyer), Tom Helmore (Anthony Bridewell), Whit Bissell (Walter Kemp), Doris Lloyd (Mrs. Watchett) and Paul Frees (Voice of the Talking Rings).

Pal's first choice for the starring role of George had been Paul Scofield.

Filmed in Culver City

Budgeted at $750,000, The Time Machine was filmed in Culver City, California, where a variety of props were used to bring the H.G. Wells novel to life.

The main prop -- the time machine -- was designed by George Pal and art director William Ferrari. Crafted from an old barber's chair, various accouterments were then added, including a large spinning wheel in back, a throttle, a chronometer, footrests and skis -- the latter signifying a "slide" through time.

Various props were appropriated from Forbidden Planet (1956). These included the costumes worn by the London air raid wardens in the atomic attack scene and the steering globe from Forbidden's spaceship as seen in the old museum housing the talking rings.

Oatmeal with red and orange food coloring was used to great effect in simulating bubbling lava in the 1966 atomic war sequence.

The Time Machine Begins

Written for the screen by David Duncan, The Time Machine begins on the final day of the 19th century, where a bedraggled scientist enters his home in England and encounters his dinner guests. Startled by his appearance, the four men listen in stunned silence as their host, George, explains that he has just returned from a voyage though time.

The movie then digresses to earlier in the evening, where George demonstrates a miniature model of his time machine to his skeptical friends. Later, he heads down to the basement where a full-scale version of his fantastic machine rests.

Seating himself behind the controls, George begins to experiment, eventually accelerating far into the future to the year 802,701 A.D. Here he encounters a post-apocalyptic society comprised of the Eloi and the Morlocks. The gentle Eloi reside above ground while the mutant Morlocks inhabit the dark tunnels below the earth.

Release and Reviews

The Time Machine hit American movie theaters on August 17, 1960.

"An enchanting adaptation and materialization of H.G. Wells' provocative novel..." said Variety (7/20/60).

"Lots of fun," reported The New York Herald Tribune (8/18/60).

"Recommended...Good sci-fi, fair H.G. Wells," opined Films in Review (10/60).

Wins Oscar for Special Effects

Not surprisingly, The Time Machine won an Oscar for Best Special Effects (Gene Warren and Tim Baar). And what superlative effects they were, employing stop-motion and time-lapse techniques, including an amusing sequence whereby George observes a mannequin in a store window undergoing a series of fashion changes as the years quickly pass before his eyes.

Two notable remakes were later released: The Time Machine (NBC-TV, 1978) starring John Beck and The Time Machine (DreamWorks, 2002) starring Guy Pearce.

"If that machine can do what you say it can do, destroy it, George! Destroy it before it destroys you!" a concerned David Filby tells his friend.

Don't make up your mind right away, George. After all, you have all the time in the world...