Queen of Outer Space (1958)

Director:

Edward Bernds

Writers:

Charles Beaumont (writer)
Ben Hecht (outline) (episode)

Release Date:

7 September 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Mankind's first fantastic flight to Venus - the female planet!

Plot:

American astronauts are drawn by a mysterious force to the planet Venus, which they find to be inhabited only by beautiful women and their despotic queen.

Plot Keywords:

Venus | Space Station | Beautiful Woman | Mask | Female Dominated Society

Cast

Zsa Zsa Gabor	...	Talleah
Eric Fleming	...	Capt. Neal Patterson
Dave Willock	...	Lt. Mike Cruze
Laurie Mitchell	...	Queen Yllana
Lisa Davis	...	Motiya
Paul Birch	...	Prof. Konrad
Patrick Waltz	...	Lt. Larry Turner
Barbara Darrow	...	Kaeel
Marilyn Buferd	...	Odeena
Mary Ford	...	Venusian Girl
Marya Stevens	...	Venusian Girl
Laura Mason	...	Venusian Girl
Lynn Cartwright	...	Venusian Girl
Kathy Marlowe	...	Venusian Girl
Coleen Drake	...	Venusian Girl

Also Known As:

Queen of the Universe

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Allied Artists Pictures

Trivia:

In an interview, director Edward Bernds said that Zsa Zsa Gabor got very "testy" with the actresses playing the Venusian girls. They were mostly beauty contest winners, and were many years - and in some cases a few decades - younger than her. When she noticed that the crew was paying more attention to the tall, leggy, mini-skirted "Venusians" than they were to her, she became very difficult to work with. He said that Gabor gave producer Ben Schwalb such a hard time on the picture that Schwalb eventually wound up in the hospital with ulcers.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: Two rockets are shown in the launch. A V2 is shown in the fueling process, then an Atlas rocket is shown being launched. A third, much more streamlined model, is seen in space.

Quotes:

Base Commander: I know you men are anxious to return home, but you must endure your privations and hardships.

Movie Connections:

References Forbidden Planet (1956)

A side-splitter

To the ranks of "Go ahead, make my day", "Badges? We don't need to stinkin' badges" and "You had me at hello," can now be added "Men cannot liff vizout vimmin," uttered dreamily by renowned philosopher Zsa Zsa Gabor in this no-budget sci-fi "epic". Everybody involved seems to be having a good time, with the exception of lead Eric Fleming, who goes through the movie with a "when this is done I'm gonna strangle my agent" look on his face, but it's a fun movie to watch. Director Ed Bernds made his name at the helm of some of the better Three Stooges shorts--including "Micro Phonies", considered by many Stoogephiles to be the team's best--so you know he couldn't have been taking this thing seriously while he was making it. (I've always wondered, however, how a writer with the stature of Ben Hecht--credited with the story--got involved in a project like this. Then a few years ago I read an article that said Hecht got loaded at a party one night and started spinning a yarn about a spaceship that crash-lands on a planet of beautiful, horny women. Somebody who heard that story passed it on to someone else, and eventually it became "Queen of Outer Space." Hecht sued the producers when he heard it was being made into a film, and as part of the settlement he got a story credit.)

It's still a fun movie, although by no standards could it be considered a good one. Just appreciate it for what it is--a chance for '50s teenage boys to see lots of tall, beautiful, leggy women running around in skimpy outfits and short skirts, for one thing--sit down with a six-pack and a pizza and have a good time.