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A Word from GorillaMen.com

Diana Fox Jones' Original Material

Introducing Charlie

My Daddy Was A Gorilla

Tinseltown Tidbits

Tinseltown Innovations

Picture Gallery

PG1  PG2  PG3

PG4  PG5  PG6

New Additions from Diana Fox Jones

Coming Soon

GORILLA MEN Contributions

Charles Gemora (A LOST SOULS Biographical piece written for THE IRISH GOTHIC AND HORROR JOURNAL)

Charlie Unmasked!

The Forgotten Horrors of INGAGI

Fragments of THE GORILLA (1927)

Charles' Gorilla to Quit Aping (1949)

Simian Cinematheque

Clips & Trailers

Presenting:"The Chimp"

Presenting:"Who Killed Doc Robbin?"

Presenting: "Bear Shooters"

Presenting: "Africa Screams"

Presenting: "Sing, Bing, Sing"

   When I first became fascinated with the guys in the gorilla suits of Old Hollywood, I quickly realized that there was one man who was consistently hailed not only as master of his craft, but as a genuinely pleasant and unique person as well. Gorilla Man Bob Burns is primarily responsible for bringing the diminutive Filipino, Charles Gemora, to my attention. With an assist from genre writer, Tom Weaver, Bob related the tale of his youthful encounter with the effects master at Paramount Studios in print a few years ago. Fortunately for Gorilla Men devotees like myself, Gemora's craft secrets were passed to young Bob, inspiring him to construct his own suit and pursue a career that few have dared to attempt. Sadly, Charles passed on before Bob had a chance to share his simian suit creation.

   Information of any sort about Gorilla Men is often difficult to unearth, so when I began searching for more about Charles Gemora I discovered not only was there a website dedicated to the gorilla suit pioneer, but it was also authored by his daughter, Diana Fox Jones. Diana shared a number of personal anecdotes that only deepened my admiration and affection for this amazing man whose life beyond the gorilla suit was more impressive than I could have imagined.

   Unfortunately, the site disappeared from the web a few of years ago and I had serious concerns about the fate of it's creator. Obsessive about the subject as I am, I had the foresight to save every word and picture presented there.  I had hoped that one day I would see this unique insight into Charlie's life available for all to read and enjoy again. As loose as the Internet landscape is with regards to copyright and respect for intellectual property, I did not feel comfortable publishing this material without some knowledge of why the site became defunct and the status of Diana Fox Jones.

   Much time passed since the site shutdown and I had given up hope of ever discovering why. In early 2007 I created a MySpace identity for the GORILLA MEN site and I was pleasantly surprised to see how effective it was at connecting me with other gorilla suit enthusiasts. About 2 months after logging onto MySpace, I was contacted by Diana's daughter who graciously praised me for my efforts to champion her grandfather and his peers. Chatting back and forth, I was relieved to discover that her mother was alive and well. She related to me the site's demise was a result of some unfortunate circumstances and that it would be great to see it revived. As I reconstructed the material, I continued to try and contact Diana directly. Three years after my first attempt to contact Diana Fox Jones, I recently opened a dialogue with her on our mutually adored Gorilla Man.

   Available for your perusal is the original content as written by Diana with only minor alterations or omissions. One item that appeared on the original site that has been omitted is her recollection of the night she and her father created the unforgettable Martian from WAR OF THE WORLDS. The story 'How to make a Martian' was related to Tom Weaver and published in STARLOG some years ago. A link to Diana's new site dedicated to Charles Gemora has the entire piece in print.

   New material drawn from correspondence with Diana and my own personal research will also appear here to further expand on the rich tapestry of Charlie's incredible journey from a small island in the Pacific to the world's Dream Factory of yesteryear and celebrate the films of which he was a part of.
I am thrilled to play a small part in perpetuating Charles Gemora's memory and perhaps lead others to enjoy his work as I have.

FRIENDS OF CHARLES GEMORA: HOLLYWOOD GORILLA MAN

DIANA FOX JONES

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