Buena Vista, 1954. Comprising 5 "lighting and mood" concept paintings by Goff of the Nautilus attacking the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln, gouache on illustration paper, 8.75 x 11.75 in.; a "Continuity Sketch" of Ned Land carrying an unconscious man on the Nautilus, pen and ink on graph paper, 4.25 x 10.25 in.; a design of Captain Nemo's salon, charcoal on graph paper, signed and dated ("Harper Goff, '53"), captioned "Int. The 'Nautilus' / Early pencil sketch / suggesting props and dressing. / Note View Port," 9.25 x 13.25 in.; an original design of rudder repair scene, pen and ink on graph paper, signed ("Harper Goff, '54"), 12 x 9.5 in.; a prop San Francisco newspaper page headlined "Monster Exists, Says French Scientist in Warning to the World!" 11 x 13.5 in.; approximately 66 black-and-white and 76 color photographs, gelatin silver prints, various sizes, mostly behind-the-scenes images; approximately 31 clippings or reproductions, including 18 of interior and set designs of the Nautilus; photographs of Goff's continuity sketches of the squid attack sequence, April 28, 1954; an autograph letter signed ("William Beebe"), 1 p, July 18, 1930, on Bermuda Oceanographic Expedition stationery, to Goff, with transmittal envelope, with an LA Times story, May 6, 1930, concerning Beebe; a color photograph of a painted design of Vulcania, gelatin silver print, 10 x 13.5 in.; a black and white reproduction of Goff's screen credit; 2 Goff business cards, 1 with Walt Disney Productions; a reproduction of Goff's design of the layout of the Nautilus; a color postcard of the Nautilus, 3.5 x 5.5 in.; an autograph letter signed ("Tom Scherman"), 1 p, October 16, 1967, with drawing by Scherman and a photograph of Scherman in a 20,000 Leagues diving suit; an invitation to a gathering of 20,000 Leagues fans, 1985, 14 x 8.5 in.; articles on the film; and other related ephemera; with handwritten captions throughout in pen and pencil; 82 pp (3 pp are blank), housed in a red photograph album.

Titled "A history in informal photography," this is production designer Harper Goff's personal scrapbook documenting every stage of the making of his masterpiece, Walt Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. This is a mother lode of original artwork, rare photographs, and ephemera from the film, curated throughout with Goff's handwritten captions. Goff's original art in this lot includes an incredible series of 5 vividly-colored, action-packed sequential paintings of the submarine Nautilus' attack on the USS Abraham Lincoln. These striking, vibrant designs depict the submarine with somewhat more fish-like eyes. Also included are Goff's impressive sketches of Captain Nemo's salon and of the rudder repair scene, both of which he replicated closely onscreen. Goff juxtaposes many of his original designs or copies of them with images of their onscreen counterparts, including the Nautilus, the Victorian diving gear, the cannibal sequence in the Bahamas, and the Giant Squid attack. The album is well-illustrated with behind-the-scenes photographs, many taken by Goff himself; they depict Goff's initial forays to Bermuda locations with director Richard Fleischer, their underwater filming, constructing the full-size Nautilus at Walt Disney Studios, on-location candids, and much more. Two small color underwater pre-production images are captioned "First exposure film test / of lateral visibility at / 30 ft. down. Old, slow / Technicolor film. Photo H.G." One early black and white underwater photograph of the Nautilus is captioned "First tank test of medium / size sub. miniature." There are several rare pictures of Goff in costume for his cameo in the film as a stranded missionary, including a behind-the-scenes photo of him, Paul Lukas, and Peter Lorre filming that deleted scene. Goff is shown in other photos pensively standing atop and alongside the massive wooden frame of the full-size Nautilus prior to the addition of its fiberglass hull. The film's divers are pictured suiting up and diving, including a series of three rare snapshots of Goff himself donning diving gear, captioned "Flossee caught me acting blaze [sic] / but suffering stomach moths / just before descending a ladder / into the depths of Avalon Harbor." Among the images of the film's diving gear is a rare color shot captioned "Golden-Boy Technicolor Test Suit" depicting a soaked diver in a different and much brighter version of the film's diving suits. A gag photo of Goff shows him posing with a fishing rod, holding the Nautilus like it was his "catch," which he captioned "Fish caught by Harper Goff / on Labor Day 1952. . . The fish has since been / named 'Oscar.'" The coverage of the cannibal sequence includes photographs of Goff painting a prop skull as an extra watches and a rare candid of Richard Fleischer, Peter Lorre, and Kirk Douglas on location. Walt Disney himself appears in one candid with Fleischer. Goff is also shown teaching Kirk Douglas how to play the banjo. A fascinating series of photos shows Goff painting a large "sheet steel pirate cut / ship cut-out" model for the film. There are several color shots that Goff took while filming the ill-fated "Sunset Squid" sequence. Notably, a set of reproductions of Goff's storyboards for the squid attack sequence included here is that "Sunset Squid" version instead of the rain-soaked final version. The Nautilus is, naturally, frequently represented, including two very sharp images of Goff's "Labor Day" model and two "squashed" images of it, part of the crew's anamorphic film tests. There is also an enthusiastic letter from 20,000 Leagues fan and Goff's dear friend, Tom Scherman, dated 1967, possibly their first correspondence. Goff also delves into an early catalyst of 20,000 Leagues: a 1930 letter from William Beebe, director of the Bermuda Oceanographic Expedition, to the teenage Goff, who had (unsuccessfully) volunteered to join Beebe's expedition to Nonsuch Island in Bermuda. The letter is preceded by an LA Times story about Beebe's trip in a bathysphere and followed full-circle by photographs of Goff in 1952, using that same bathysphere in an experimental underwater trip as part of his 20,000 Leagues research! An extraordinary and unique collection of material from the true mastermind of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
Album: 2.75 x 12.5 x 16.5 in.