Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/780285
Stephen Dane was born to work in Hollywood. His father, Raymond Dane, was a publicity agent at 20th Century Fox for the young movie star Shirley Temple, and his mother was Dorothy Jeakins, the renowned costume designer who won that craft's fi rst Oscar in 1947 for Joan of Arc, one of her twelve nominations (she won twice more for Samson and Delilah and The Night of the Iguana). Stephen grew up in Brentwood, near to Johann's Hobby Shop on San Vicente Boulevard. He had a knack for building models with balsa wood and from kits, and from art classes in school he became a facile illustrator. He also learned to play the cello. At a Sunday garden party at Gene Kelly's house in Beverly Hills, Stephen played a duet on cello with Gene's daughter on violin. Later on, when his mother became more successful, he was sent to the exclusive boys' ranch prep school, Midland, in the Santa Ynez Valley. Right: Mr. Dane's first pass at the Ecto-1, before specific materials had been purchased, to show director Ivan Reitman and secure permission to proceed. Center: Some details of the various structural elements that made up the roof rack, drawn the next day to enable the prop shop at The Burbank Studios to begin construction. The colorful details were yet to come. Opposite page, left column top: Four side and top elevations of the vehicle, showing to positions where the various elements should be placed, drawn by Mr. Dane before it was determined that he would travel to New York to supervise the final assembly. Bottom: Some early sketches for the ghost trap that was set near a poltergeist and operated with a foot pedal to make it open and suck the ghost inside. Right column, top: Two views of the finished ghost trap, one of the many props Mr. Dane designed in the few days leading up to principal photography. Center: The proton pack was built on a backpack frame and became the primary weapon the Ghostbusters used to subdue their adversaries. Bottom: Very few designers see their creations become part of the world's popular mythology the way Mr. Dane did. The Lego company has released several versions of the Ecto-1, and the Smithsonian Institution has discussed whether the vehicle ought to be added to its collection of important Americana.