It Came from Outer Space [Hardcover]

Ray Bradbury (Author), Donn Albright (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2004

Gauntlet Press is thrilled to announce our upcoming publication of Ray Bradbury's four screen treatments for IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE.

Released in 1953, It Came From Outer Space was one of the first 3-D films made. Rumors about Bradbury's participation with the film have run rampant for years. Bradbury did not write the final screenplay -- good news, actually, as Bradbury retained their rights -- but he wrote four treatments and gets story credit. These screen treatments have NEVER been published before.

We are also pleased to announce that Donn Albright, who edited our edition of DARK CARNIVAL in 2001, is now editing IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE. He has done a FANTASTIC job in pulling together the original Bradbury typed pages of the outlines and treatments, gathering more bonus material than we could have ever imagined possible, and convincing Bradbury to allow us to use never before published short stories in this book.

The Gauntlet edition of IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE is more than just a printing of the outlines and treatments which Bradbury wrote for the film. It is an in-depth study of the evolution of the film. The book is filled with:

Photos
Original ads
Marketing posters
Reviews
Letters
Never before published Bradbury short stories
Insightful essays and introductions from Bradbury Scholars Jon Eller and Bill Touponce

The book is an oversized book, 8 1/2" x 11", so as to keep intact the size of the script pages.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bradbury buffs who can afford the high ticket price will welcome this trove of materials, most previously unpublished, related to the classic 3-D film, It Came from Outer Space (1953). This hefty compendium includes four Bradbury screenplay treatments, scholarly essays, studio letters, posters, ads, reviews and moreâ€"everything except the 3-D glasses. Readers will enjoy following the evolution of the script, which at first had a human spaceship visiting a distant planet rather than an alien ship crashing on Earth. Ironically, the final screenplay was written by Harry Essex, and Bradbury received credit only for the original story. The book's last item is a brief, unproduced screenplay Essex wrote based on Bradbury's story "The Chrysalis." Editor Albright deserves all due credit for thoroughness.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From the Publisher

This is a limited edition publication. SIGNED COPIES OF THIS BOOK CAN ONLY BE PURCHASHED THROUGH GAUNTLET PRESS.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Gauntlet Press; Sgd Ltd edition (March 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1887368663
• ISBN-13: 978-1887368667
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 8.7 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,110,101 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ray Bradbury has published some 500 short stories, novels, plays and poems since his first story appeared in Weird Tales when he was twenty years old. Among his many famous works are 'Fahrenheit 451', 'The Illustrated Man' and 'The Martian Chronicles'.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The quintessential piece for any Sci-Fi/Bradbury fan., May 29, 2004

By 

Igor (Horror-Web.Com) - See all my reviews

This review is from: It Came from Outer Space (Hardcover)

It never ceases to amaze me how much effort Gauntlet Press places in the
creation of their publications. Last week I received Ray Bradbury's "It came
From Outer Space". Honestly, I'm speechless. I know, I generally always
give books a good rating BUT - frankly, this book is breathtaking. This is a
necessary include for any Sci-Fi or Bradbury collection. WOW!

Lets start from the top shall we? First, the cover is simply stunning.
While I wish the back of the cover were really the front of the cover, I
believe that the way the cover is done it
gives the book an edge. Bradbury does the front artwork, and the back has a
poster picture, which gives the title of the book. Never the less the cover
alone is incredible and made me drool.

What is in this book, you ask? Quite literally everything you ever wanted to
know about "It Came From Outer Space". A book of this style has never
before been published. Within this tome you will find exclusive material
such as the controversy behind "It Came From Outer Space", Correspondences
both to and from Ray Bradbury, Screen treatments, never
before published short stories, original ads and more. The lettered edition
of this book includes an additional section, which includes and introduction
by Jonathan Eller, a letter from Mathilde Moser to Ray Bradbury and, the
unfinished screenplay entitled "Face of the Deep".
One of the things about this book that really just touched me was when
Bradbury discusses how he met up with Spielberg after watching "Close
Encounters of the Third Kind" and found out that "It Came From Outer Space"
was the inspiration behind the Spielberg hit. Simply beautiful!

In my opinion, this book is a powerful and personal journey through the
highlights of Bradbury. You can feel the emotions that Bradbury must have
experienced in his emergent period, and it just empowers your soul. This
book shows you a boy with a love for a genre and the fortitude to embark
upon his dream, making it his life.

I strongly urge you purchase this book if you have any ounce of sense in
you. This is most definitely the quintessential piece for any Sci-Fi/Bradbury fan.
5 Stars without a doubt!

4.0 out of 5 stars The story of a 1950s classic, May 7, 2007

By 

Henry W. Wagner (Rockaway, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It Came from Outer Space (Hardcover)

Released in 1953, It Came From Outer Space is notable for being one of the first 3-D movies ever made. Shot from a Harry Essex screenplay based on a story by Ray Bradbury, the movie was a classic of Cold war paranoia and anxiety. Although thought of fondly by movie buffs (Steven Spielberg is a great fan), the film has been the subject of much controversy over the years, specifically over the extent of Bradbury's contributions to the finished product.

Although Bradbury did not write the final screenplay, he did write four treatments, to which he retained the rights. These four previously unpublished treatments have now been gathered together by Donn Albright (editor of the 2001 Gauntlet edition of Bradbury's DARK CARNIVAL) in IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, an interesting, beautifully packaged study of the evolution and development of the classic film.

Containing the original Bradbury typed pages of outlines and treatments which the author wrote for the film, the book also includes a wealth of bonus material, such as informative essays and introductions from Bradbury scholars Jon Eller and Bill Touponce, reviews, letters, photos, promotional material, and reviews. Of special note to Bradbury mavens is the inclusion of the never before seen short stories "A Matter of Taste," the short story that contains the seeds of the plot of the movie, and "Troll Charge," a collaboration between Bradbury and screenwriter Harry Essex.

IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE is truly a wonderful book, a perfect present for you or the Bradbury aficionado in your life. Obviously a labor of love for editor Albright and publisher Barry Hoffman, it's an impressive artifact, a book anyone would be proud to own. Unfortunately, beauty is costly; as this oversized tome will set you back $125. Hopefully, a less expensive trade edition is planned for those who can't shell out that kind of dinero.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Where's the beef?, June 22, 2004

By 

Ripped-Off Kong Fan (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: It Came from Outer Space (Hardcover)

IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE fans get a very short interview with Ray Bradbury, Bradbury's script and nothing else of interest. The rest is filler. Apparently NOT wanting to share the proceeds with Universal, there are only a few photos, horribly reproduced. For $125??! Bah.