'THE THING' from Another World: What Was that in the Ice?

 The two versions of the movie THE THING were inspired by a short story by Who Goes There? a 1938 novella by American author John W. Campbell, written under the pen name Don A. Stuart. 

The 1951 movie version The Thing: From Another World, was directed by Christian Nyby and Howard Hawks, screenplay written by Charles Lederer, John W. Campbell Jr., Howard Hawks.   The stars included Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan, James Arness (as the creature). The release date was April 7 1951. A later remake by John Carpenter will align itself more with the original story by Campbell and will be more dark and nihilistic in nature.

The original movie is a favorite for many based on its close ensemble cast of characters, the fast talking and natural patter between them, and the pace and dramatis evoked through film and soundtrack. For this writer. it was also the ending scene were the newspaper man is radioing back his story of the fight for humanity at the North Pole.  He urged people to "watch the skies."

Re-watching the film recently it was noticed that the head of the creature, the thing, varied from the way it looks in other scenes in the film.  Arness' makeup later in the film will be more reflective of the influence of "Frankenstein" than anything else.

The THING in the frozen slab of ice:

Note the large dark eyes - far more reflective of the image on the cover the novel Communion decades later!

The THING in a publicity still from 1951, aka James Arness:

Note the absence of the large dark eyes...

The question for this writer was - where did that image of large dark eyes originate?

This writer suspects that the concept was influenced by the rumors of just that type of creature from Roswell in 1947. Just prior to the film's release what was in the news was has come to be known as The Aztec, New Mexico UFO hoax  of a flying saucer's crash alleged to have happened in 1948 in Aztec, New Mexico. The story was first published in 1949 by author Frank Scully in his Variety magazine columns, and later in his 1950 book Behind the Flying Saucers.  There are many who believe in this crash and one at Kingman, Arizona. This author, however, feels that they were the result of an attempt to clamp down the lid over the events of Roswell.

At decade's end, many military and civilians may have begun to feel free to discuss events related to the Roswell Incident. Leaks and loose lips.  How to make dure those people were not believed?

The big gun in debunking has always been ridicule. The events of Aztec, so close but so incredibly contrived, too large, and just "off", coupled with shady con-men, insured that the story would not be believed and further call into question anyone who thought it was real.

So....the use of what would later be called "stereotypical abduction era" depiction of a big headed, big eyed alien, could be due to the influence of someone who knew...someone who had talked with someone at a cocktail party or over a meal of something they saw "once upon a time"...in the desert of New Mexico.

Decades later, before the book Communion, there will be witnesses who share images of big headed, large eyed creatures seen in connection with "flying saucers", "discs", and "UFOs."

So...the big eyed creature in the ice...where did that image come from and what was it intended to say?