SCIENCE FICTION A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z                    HOME ABOUT CATEGORIES SITE MAP COPYRIGHT ADVERTISE CONTACT entire Web this site Destination Moon A 1950 film directed by George Pal that depicts the first Moon landing – 19 years ahead of the real event. It single-handedly started the boom in science fiction movies of that decade, including Pal's own When Worlds Collide (1951), War of the Worlds (1953), and The Conquest of Space (1955). It was based on Robert Heinlein's book Rocketship Galileo. Although not memorable for its quality of acting or pace of action, Destination Moon revealed an extraordinary optimism about the prospects for the Space Age, and showed, too, how far scientific and technical knowledge had progressed since the days of Melies' Le Voyage Dans la Lunes and Lang's Die Frau Im Mond (Woman in the Moon). The realism of the film was aided by Chesley Bonestell's stunning artwork. Destination Moon was also perhaps the first movie to realistically not have sounds in the vacuum of space. In particular whenever something was dropped onto the lunar surface, such as a ladder or oxygen tank, this happened in complete silence. The only sounds heard while on the Moon, or external to the rocket was it was traveling through space, were those that came over the crews' suit radios. [Thanks to Paul Samuels for this piece of information.] Related categories    • SCIENCE FICTION    • MOON TOPICS Recommended products   Also on this site: Encyclopedia of Alternative Energy & Sustainable Living Encyclopedia of History Transport Concepts & Designs (partner site) BACK TO TOP