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In this episode of Triplecast, we wrap up our series of podcasts about movies with twist endings by taking a look at the 1968 sci-fi fantasy, “Planet of the Apes.” “Planet of the Apes” stars Charlton Heston in one of his most iconic roles as Colonel George Taylor, Roddy McDowell as Cornelius, Kim Hunter as Zira, Maurice Evans as Dr. Zaius and Linda Harrison as Nova. Colonel Taylor and his crew travel thousands of years through space and crash land on a distant planet ruled by intelligent apes. But is the planet all that they believe it to be?
We also share our thoughts on the movie’s plot and directing, as well as our views on the acting, style, and the twist ending. We also discuss Rod Serling’s influence on the film and the great dialoge that can arise from movies like this one. We do spoil the ending of the movie in the podcast, so make sure you watch the movie before you listen. The movie is available via Netflix streaming (affiliate link).
Send in your feedback and ideas for future Triplecasts to 304-837-2278 or feedback@goldenspiralmedia.com.
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Heston never played a character called Colonel George Taylor. The character he protrayed in Planet was George Taylor.
Thanks for listening to the podcast, Potafan. Honestly, I thought he was Captain George Taylor, but before I published the podcast, I wanted to make sure. According to Planet of the Apes Wiki page, he was indeed, Colonel George Taylor. Here’s the link I got the info from: http://planetoftheapes.wikia.com/wiki/George_Taylor
You should check out IMBD (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063442/) or the credits to the film itself (http://pota.goatley.com/pressbooks/pota/original/plpressbook02.html). Heston never played a character called Colonel George Taylor.
Thanks for the links, PotaFan. I checked them both out. If you click on George Taylor on the IMDB page, it brings up a page for Colonel George Taylor. The other website calls him Commander George Taylor on several pages.
That still doesn’t change the fact that in Planet of the Apes, the actual film, he is never called or refered to as Colonel Taylor. Watch the actual film or read the script: http://pota.goatley.com/scripts/pota_finalshoot1.pdf.
PotaFan, I did watch the movie and researched my info prior to publishing this article. I don’t mind admitting when I’m wrong, but that is not the case here. This is a situation similar to Star Wars. We do not learn that Darth Vader’s real name is Anakin Skywalker in A New Hope, but that does not mean that he was not still Anakin in that movie. While POTA does not refer to George Taylor as a Colonel, Escape From Planet of the Apes does.
Here’s an excerpt from the Escape from the Planet of the Apes Characters wiki found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Planet_of_the_Apes_characters
Taylor appears in references during the third Apes movie, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, (where he is given the rank of Colonel which was never mentioned in the two previous films) and a few times in flashbacks, but his (and Heston’s) role in the series was complete after the first two installments. Heston hadn’t wanted to come back, but the studio held him to his contract; he agreed to appear if his salary were donated to charity, and if the original storyline (which had Taylor and Nova surviving, to found a new human breed) were changed to keep him from having to return for another sequel.
Except you’re podcast is not about Escape from the Planet of the Apes, it is about the original film. In that movie the character created by Rod Serling and Michael Wilson, and played by Heston, was named George Taylor, not Colonel Taylor. The fact that the character was later refered to as Colonel Taylor two films later in a sequel written by another writer in which the character doesn’t appear is irrelevent to the original film.
Potafan – let go of the bone…