Evening @ The Barn
Kinoshita & His Robots: Event A Blast
On May 19, the Hollywood Heritage Museum hosted “An Evening at the Barn” with Robert Kinoshita. Mr. Kinoshita has been an Art Director and Designer in the motion picture industry for over 50 years and is perhaps best know as the designer of Robby the robot from the motion picture “Forbidden Planet” and the B-9 robot from the “Lost in Space” television series.
Before the scheduled program began, fans seeking his
signature to be written on vintage toys, photos, movie stills and posters
swarmed Mr. Kinoshita. Being a generous and giving man, he signed until
everyone had all the signatures they desired. A classic photo-op occurred when
Bob posed in front of the original Robby and a replica of B-9, both on display
during the evening.
The program started off with introductions by the panel moderator, Mike Clark. Mike is a Sci-Fi writer and editor at Columbia/Sony Studios and a personal friend of Bob Kinoshita’s. The introductions included “Forbidden Planet” (1956) co-stars Warren Stevens (Doc Ostrow), Richard Anderson (Quinn) and George D. Wallace (the Boson). Other panel participants were Marcel Veracutara, a former MGM special effects technician who donned the Robby suit for a famous episode of “The Twilight Zone”, Bob May, who donned the B-9 robot suit for the “Lost in Space” television series (1965-68) and Bill Malone, the current owner and restorer of the original Robby the robot.
A series of film clips where shown to highlight Mr. Kinoshita’s career, with emphasis on scenes of Robby and B-9, his movie and television Sci-Fi icons. Many of the clips were rare and not seen for over 40 years. Included in the presentation where drawing and sketches of other design projects thru out Bob’s career including a fascinating sketch of a Las Vegas hotel-casino-movie studio complex (complete with back lot) that unfortunately was never built.
A panel discussion followed the film clips. Bob Kinoshita talked about his dream of becoming an Art Director at an early age after seeing some sketches drawn by an Art Director from Twentieth Century Fox. The audience learned about the interruption of his career caused by WWII and his relocation to an Interment Camp. And later, how he learned to form and bend ceramics and plastics in curved and rounded shapes never before attempted. This knowledge served him well in the design of Robby and B-9. His big break came at ZIV Studios; working on early syndicated television series like “Highway Patrol” and “Sea Hunt,” and he was later hired to work at MGM. He also spoke about the challenges of creating a robot that would accommodate a human operator inside. Bob’s current challenge is to become the oldest bowler to bowl a 300 game!
The cast members of Forbidden Planet reminisced about seeing Robby for the first time and marveling at his unique design. Richard Anderson commented that when he first saw Robby, he knew every 10-year-old boy would want to see the movie.
Bob May told stories about the challenges of working inside the B-9 suit, with its heavy weight and high interior temperatures. Marcel Veracutara got one of the biggest laughs of the evening when he told a story about wearing the Robby suit to an annual MGM family day held in a studio sound stage. He remembered that within minutes of his arrival inside the stage, the mere sight of Robby caused all the children in attendance to run out in terror! Bill Malone shared his experiences with restoring Robby after years of neglect and his scavenger hunts for spare and remanufactured parts.
The program concluded with a Q/A secession that demonstrated the deep admiration the audience had for our honored guest. Many had travel from across the country, including as far as the east coast to participate. Most spoke of Bob’s genius and how the designs of the robots are timeless. Some referred to his creations as works of art. Still others spoke of his influence on design culture; much like the famous GM automobile design chief Harley Earl.
The attendance, audience enthusiasm and genuine admiration shown Mr. Kinoshita made it a very successful and memorable night. Judging from the positive feedback received that night and for days following it, this was an appropriate and fitting tribute to a Hollywood Sci-Fi legend! .
For those that where unable to attend, a signed portfolio of Robert Kinoshita’s designs of the “Lost in Space” B-9 Robot is available by sending $25.00 + 3.50 S/H to: Bob Kinoshita, P.O. Box 822, Culver City, CA 90232.