A Filmmaker's Guide to the 60 Things You Should Know About "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968)

In the Uptown Theatre, Washington D.C on the 2nd of April, 1968 - Stanley Kubrick premiered the epic space film, "2001:A Space Odyssey" (1968). It is clear that this film is one of the greatest films ever made with most people citing it as one of the greatest examples of the Greek/Shakespearean Tragedy in space. It is a brilliant film and a true cinematic experience to watch. Personally, I've seen it a few times and even after watching it a few times, it is still just as overwhelming as it has always been.

There are a number of iconic scenes throughout the movie which have either been parodied by other mediums and shows such as the episode of "the Simpsons" in which the AI takes over the home and tries to kill Homer or even the recurring feature of the AI on board the spaceship in the cartoon "Futurama". There are even more parodies apart from that, but we have something else to go through today...

All the Things You Should Know About "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968):

1. Backing for the film was secured in 1965

2. Stanley Kubrick's daughter Vivian plays Dr. Floyd's daughter in the film

3. "The Blue Danube" and "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" are the two most used pieces of music in the filn

4. The estimated budget was 10-16 million dollars

5. The film went through many edits with Kubrick and Clarke getting confused along the way about what would happen to certain characters

6. HAL sings "Daisy Bell" as he is shut down

7. It was released on the day Martin Luther King died

8. Stanley Kubrick based the star-child on Percy Shelley's "Prometheus Unbound."

9. Kubrick and Clarke disagreed on the birthday of HAL

10. The first and last words are spoken by Dr. Floyd

11. HAL speaks to Frank first

12. It took months for Kubrick to figure out how to make a pen float in space during the trip to the moon scenes

13. It was selected for the National Film Registry in the Library of Congress in 1991

14. If calculated in time, only 2 of the sections of the film could've taken place in 2001 since there is an 18-month time gap between some sections

15. The film developed a celebrity cult including Mick Jagger and even John Lennon

16. The monolith had many different designs before they settled on the black slab

17. Entertainment Weekly's 26th greatest film of all time

18. Is considered to be the greatest Sci-Fi film of all time

19. It is confirmed in the novel that space travel is common - it is only implied in the film

20. Steven Spielberg called this one of the biggest movies of his generation

21. Foresaw a tablet design as Poole etc. watch BBC News on a tablet-like device that looks like the one Apple would come up with years and years later

22. The one of two Kubrick films to have a sequel

23. Is in the Vatican's 45 Greatest Films of All Time

24. The first Sci-Fi film to be shot in 65mm

25. Sight and Sound Magazine's 2nd Greatest Film of All Time

26. It had a four-page advert in the New York Times on its release

27. It's Tom Hanks' favourite film of all time

28. Kubrick was involved in every aspect of production - even costume and makeup

29. It is Christopher Nolan's favourite movie

30. In Chicago, a group of hippies went several times to see the film, sitting in the front row and then, during the intermission they would get up and go to sit on the floor to see the final star ride as close as physically possible

31. There are 5 on-screen murders but the film still got a G rating

32. The Kubrick Estate owns the costume of Moonwatcher

33. The film originally opened with a black and white sequence of interviews from scientists

34. HAL was introduced into the Robot Hall of Fame in 2003

35. Kubrick rejected Martin Balsam's delivery of HAL, stating there was too much emotion

36. The film inspired David Bowie's "Space Oddity" single

37. One of the only films in which the lion on the MGM logo does not roar at the beginning of the movie

38. Kubrick's decision to use classical music put the budget up quite a bit

39. John Lennon stated that the film should be shown in a temple 7 days a week and 24 hours a day

40. The deleted scenes note the day to day life on the Discovery

41. HAL was originally meant to be a female - ironically this is what she is turned into in the spoof episode on the cartoon "Futurama"

42. When told that Kubrick was interested in working with him, Arthur C Clarke replied with: "FRIGHTFULLY INTERESTED IN WORKING WITH ENFANT TERRIBLE STOP CONTACT MY AGENT STOP WHAT MAKES KUBRICK THINK I'M A RECLUSE QUERY".

43. Keir Dullea spent 12 hours in makeup in the scenes where he is an old man

44. There are visible instructions for replacement explosive bolts in the film, noting Kubrick's great attention to detail.

45. The silverware designed for use on the Discovery is still available today and is designed by a Dutch designer called Arne Jacobson

46. Whilst watching the film, one man stood up in a trance in the middle of a movie theatre during the shot in which the Monolith appears. He shouted "It's God" and ran through the screen before security could stop him

47. An early version of the script had a narration section

48. In the first 25 minutes and the last 23 minutes, there is no dialogue

49. For the New York Premiere, Kubrick cut 19 minutes from the film to speed up the pace

50. Both Kubrick and Clarke watched an unprecedented amount of Sci-Fi films before making "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968)

51. The harsh breathing in the space suits apparently, is actually Stanley Kubrick himself

52. Only 13 people worked on painting the entire set. It was done in a year

53. The films' spaceships were made from wood

54. Geoffrey Unsworth earned the BAFTA for Best Cinematography but didn't enjoy working with the 'controlling' Kubrick

55. The film shows a very rare version of the MGM lion which became the logo of the MGM Hotel in Las Vegas but didn't last long on the movies

56. The end credits' music don't list a conductor

57. One of the crew members was almost killed by a falling wrench on set

58. According to sources, the film was so realistic that the moon-equipment made for the film would actually work on the moon

59. At first, the film was not financially successful

60. The title is inspired by "The Odyssey" by Homer and sets itself along a somewhat similar premise of exploration and adventure