A Review of the Prehistoric Times Magazine (Spring 2012)

Prehistoric Times Magazine Issue 101 Review

Prehistoric Times, the magazine for dinosaur fans and model collectors begins its next hundred issues with an issue that balances the latest news on dinosaur replicas, finds and fossil discoveries with some thoughtful retrospectives on the inspiring artwork of Charles R. Knight, a countdown to the top ten dinosaur movie battles of all time and a wonderful insight into the attempts by fans of the original King Kong movie to recreate a lost scene from the movie. Collectors and manufacturers of dinosaur models will find much of interest in this quarterly publication.

The cover shows part of the impressive painting of Tyrannosaurus rex in a confrontation with Triceratops. The artwork was created by Charles R Knight and the entire mural can be viewed at the Field Museum in Chicago. Charles R Knight was one of the most important and influential illustrators of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals of the latter part of the 19th century and the first part of the 20th century. His murals and other works of art can still be seen on display, providing a backdrop to fossil exhibits in several of America’s leading natural history museums. Prehistoric Times honors his groundbreaking artistic endeavors and features an interview with Richard Milner, author of a new book highlighting the great man’s contribution to the illustration of prehistoric animals.

Could some dinosaurs climb trees?

Among all the usual inclusions, letters from dinosaur fans and collectors, updates on new dinosaur replicas and models, plus some short reports on the latest fossil discoveries, is the second part of the excellent article “Tree Climbing Theropods” written by Tracy Lee Ford. In this thoughtful piece, the author asks if some dinosaurs could perch, how did they get to the trees in the first place? Also, there is a detailed feature about one of the best known Lambeosaurine Hadrosaurus – Corythosaurus, a dinosaur known as “Helmet Lizard”. This dinosaur was named “Helmet Lizard” for the strange, bony crest that was on the top of its head. There is also a special section featuring Hesperornis, a serrated seabird from the Cretaceous.

Most popular dinosaur movie battles

Linked to the magazine’s activities on social media, there is a roundup of the top ten dinosaur movie fights of all time as suggested by readers and the third part of the Invicta dinosaur story researched and written by the talented English designer Anthony Beeson.

Packed with more things to thrill a dinosaur than a paleontologist’s backpack after a visit to Lyme Regis at low tide, Prehistoric Times is essential reading for dinosaur fanatics and dinosaur model collectors.

Part of the original King Kong movie is being created

Special mention should be made of the fascinating but far too short article on the dedicated work of a group of King Kong devotees who are busy recreating one of the lost scenes that never made it from storyboard to finished film: the infamous “Spider Pit” scene. After being thrown into a ravine by the giant monkey, the terrified men who have survived the fall; Battle with an astonishing variety of fearsome monsters. Having discussed the original 1933 film with colleagues, we believe that the scene was never added to the final film as it was thought to be too shocking. I’m sure a number of sci-fi movie fans will be eager to see the end result.

Hopefully we’ll hear more about the work of King Kong fans in future issues, and for now, Prehistoric Times issue 101 has more than enough content to keep even the most enthusiastic paleontologist satisfied.