Blood "N" Bubbles

The History of Diving In the Movies.

Nowadays blockbuster movies create an industry of their own. You know, after a movie has won an Oscar, consumers are told to see the video, read the movie inspired book, buy the toy, wear the clothing and eventually see the sequel. This month's Blood 'N' Bubbles wasn't the big hit its producers hoped it would be. So there was no sequel or spun off TV show however, it did get its own comic book! Pictured below is the cover of the Dell 12 cent comic with scenes from the movie. Hard not to tell that this movie/comic was drawn in the sixties ... the male diver has all the latest gear including a microwave receiver on his helmet, and a full wet suit while the female has to swim around wearing only a bikini! The movie was made in 1965 and starred Lloyd Bridges, Shirley Eaton and David McCallum. It is the tale of how a new deepwater submarine fights underwater creatures and stops a series of devasting seaquakes from destroying the world! Can you name the movie?

Answer

AROUND THE WORLD, UNDER THE SEA. Made in 1965 by MGM, this 111 minute blood 'n' thriller was directed by Ivan Tors, the creator of both Sea Hunt and Flipper TV series. In this movie Lloyd Bridges is Dr. Doug Standish, a scientist driven to save the world from the 'Big Shake'. His plan is to place a network of earthquake warning system devices underwater. His team consists of the best divers and seismology experts the Free World has produced. They travel underwater in a submarine that in reality must have been the size of Prince Edward Island! There are underwater fights, big eels, treasure and lava eruptions.

Although dated, the underwater scenes hold a certain ring of truth to them. There are a number of rear projection reef scenes as seen through the picture windows of the sub that tug at the flipper straps of most divers. The location shots were filmed in Australia on the Great Barrier Reef, in the Bahamas and Florida. The underwater volcano scene has not aged as well, especially when compared to the style of disaster action that is standard fare today.

Rating - 3 Bubbles