One of the spiders used in "The Giant Spider Invasion," a movie produced in central Wisconsin, is the centerpiece of a new exhibit at the Merrill Historical Society. Bill Rebane, right, directed the movie, and Brandon Johnson, left, is curator of the exhibit that opened Saturday and is scheduled to run for the next year.
Movie posters in different languages from the 1975 film “The Giant Spider Invasion” are on display in "Bill Rebane's Hollywood Midwest: A Retrospective on Wisconsin's First Feature Film Studio," an exhibit at the Merrill Historical Society.
Bill Rebane looks at a photo of the General Stuart Heintzelmann, a former U.S. Navy transport ship that he took from Germany to New York when he was 15 in 1952. The photo is part of an exhibit on Rebane's life.
Brandon Johnson, curator of the Rebane exhibit, looks over a vintage movie projector on loan from the Cosmo Theatre in downtown Merrill. This projector likely showed "The Giant Spider Invasion," which was also partially shot outside the theater in 1974.
Bill Rebane gets a first look last week at the re-creation of how one of his spiders was used in his 1975 film "The Giant Spider Invasion.” Up to six people would be inside the spider, seen here without its fur coat, to control its legs and to help pull victims through the mouth and into the spider.
There were two large spiders built with metal tubing for "The Giant Spider Invasion.” The spider on top could be hoisted by a crane and set on top of buildings, cars and other objects. The other spider, seen under construction, was made using the chassis of a Volkswagen Beetle and could be driven across the Wisconsin countryside.
One of the spiders used in "The Giant Spider Invasion," a movie produced in central Wisconsin, is the centerpiece of a new exhibit at the Merrill Historical Society. Bill Rebane, right, directed the movie, and Brandon Johnson, left, is curator of the exhibit that opened Saturday and is scheduled to run for the next year.
Movie posters in different languages from the 1975 film “The Giant Spider Invasion” are on display in "Bill Rebane's Hollywood Midwest: A Retrospective on Wisconsin's First Feature Film Studio," an exhibit at the Merrill Historical Society.
Bill Rebane gets a first look last week at the re-creation of how one of his spiders was used in his 1975 film "The Giant Spider Invasion.” Up to six people would be inside the spider, seen here without its fur coat, to control its legs and to help pull victims through the mouth and into the spider.
There were two large spiders built with metal tubing for "The Giant Spider Invasion.” The spider on top could be hoisted by a crane and set on top of buildings, cars and other objects. The other spider, seen under construction, was made using the chassis of a Volkswagen Beetle and could be driven across the Wisconsin countryside.
Brandon Johnson, curator of the Rebane exhibit, looks over a vintage movie projector on loan from the Cosmo Theatre in downtown Merrill. This projector likely showed "The Giant Spider Invasion," which was also partially shot outside the theater in 1974.
Bill Rebane looks at a photo of the General Stuart Heintzelmann, a former U.S. Navy transport ship that he took from Germany to New York when he was 15 in 1952. The photo is part of an exhibit on Rebane's life.
