Thursday, September 10, 2009

The Harper Goff " Nautilus Two " that you won't see at the D23 Expo " Treasures of the Disney Archives " Exhibit



Only few people in the world have seen what i will show you today. Thanks to Rowland Scherman, the brother of Tom Scherman - whom i thanks a lot - you will discover the "Nautilus Two" designed a long time ago by Harper Goff, creator of the legendary 20000 Leagues under the sea Nautilus.

Tom, as we know, dedicated his life to Harper Goff's Nautilus and thanks to Tom we have the Discoveryland's Nautilus at Disneyland Paris. Harper and Tom were close friends, and when Harper told Tom about his "Nautilus Two" design, Tom Scherman could not wait to build a huge 3D model out of Harper Goff's plans and renderings. Tom did the model in the early 1990's and this is the one you will see today. Believe me, very few people have discovered this amazing new version of the Nautilus!



Now, when i say "Nautilus Two", i don't mean that Captain Nemo was supposed to own a second Nautilus. No, in the mind of Harper Goff, this Nautilus Two was designed at the time he designed it a long time ago, as a submarine which the look, although always "19th century", could fit better with modern and nuclear times.







The man looking at the Nautilus Two on this last shot is William Babington, huge Nautilus fan and who produced the 7 foot model Nautilus in the late 1990's.

The design of this Nautilus Two is incredible, and i think that someone should let Dick Cook know about it. Why? Well, as you know, a 20000 Leagues prequel is in production right now, and obviously they will need for the movie a new Nautilus design. The movie will tell how Nemo "became" Nemo, the man revolted by the "system", so we can expect a movie with more "muscles". And this Nautilus Two - which looks more "agressive" than the first one but also have a 19th century look - should be perfect for the new movie. Some people are probably working on a submarine design right now, but they don't need to, they already have another Harper Goff great Nautilus design which they've probably never heard about!

As for fans - like me - of the "first" and original Nautilus, the best news of the year will come from the D23 Expo where the EFX company will show its stunning 4 feet long limited edition model. But this we will talk again soon, probably even tomorrow in the first D23 Expo special report!

Pictures: copyright Tom scherman courtesy of Rowland Scherman


Thanks to leave a comment or discuss this article on D&M english forum on Mice Chat

6 comments:

DisWedWay said...

Alain, What a flash back. I remember Tom showed me some sketches of the Nautilus 2 he was working on. That was almost 10 years after seeing his steam powered Iron Man at Ward Kimbals Depot for the big race. The Iron Man was very Victorian compaired to the Nautilus 2, but all a part of Tom great talents and creativeness.

Anonymous said...

Wow , I was so drawn in on this day, a lot of things all happening at once. I have always admired Tom's masterpieces, they just mesmerize me. I still want to model each of Tom's creations in miniature, like a little collectors set.
Will Babington

Unknown said...

Hi,

I'm making a 3D model of the N2 from these pictures. I really love the model, it is a master piece, nothing less.

Would it be possible to have some more photos? I hate to employ guess work on it but the under side is hidden plus major areas around the stern. Any help would be highly appreciated!

All the best from Copenhagen,

Sebastian

Alain Littaye said...

Dear Seborgarsen, i'm sorry but these are all the pictures of the Nautilus 2 i have.

Unknown said...

Ok, thanks for your time.

Love the site, btw :)

Rowland said...

Alain: Ilet Tom's plas in Florida find a home for Tom's Nautilus 2 model. I am told it is in less than perfect shape. Perhaps we should get it back and have it repaired. I would be willing to SELL Tom's model to the highest bidder.

My email address is photomota@comcast.net, and not the gmail one, which I never use