# "Manos" cameraman dies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 6, 2003, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718 "2003-11-06T16:51:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Doug\_Bowe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/1 "2003-11-06T16:51:19Z")
Bob Guidry worked for the El Paso Times, Mithoff Advertising and owned International Ad Agency, but his most infamous roll might have been as the cameraman for “Manos, Hands of Fate.” He was 68. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/2 "2003-11-06T17:22:37Z")
> [@](#): > > but his most infamous roll Actually, I think there were probably several camera rolls involved. 😉 _MHoF_ is his only listing on the IMDB. A career cut short, he had nowhere to go but up! ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/3 "2003-11-07T01:37:47Z")
The poor guy had to work with a [wind-up](http://jophan.org/mimosa/m18/18_p35.html) 16mm camera, hence the brevity of the shots. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/4 "2003-11-07T07:33:27Z")
Is this considered Karma? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/5 "2003-11-07T15:25:40Z")
That he died of natural causes at age 68, thirty-seven years after he made _Manos_? ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/6 "2003-11-07T17:16:11Z")
It’s one of those s-l-o-o-w curses – the worst kind. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/7 "2003-11-07T17:28:46Z")
$19,000 to rent a wind-up B&H camera? Insane! Any filmmakers want to rent my Eclair NPR with two 400’ mags, Zeiss lens, and a crystal motor? I’ll only charge _half_ of that! 😃😉 ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/8 "2003-11-07T18:53:47Z")
“Manos” had a cameraman? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2003, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/9 "2003-11-07T23:58:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Walloon \* > \*\*That he died of natural causes at age 68, thirty-seven years after he made _Manos_? \*\* Well, the curse was about as well made as the movie… ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/10 "2003-11-08T00:37:44Z")
“Every shot in this movie looks like it’s somebody’s last known photograph.” ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/11 "2003-11-08T00:43:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > **$19,000 to rent a wind-up B&H camera? Insane!** Now now, that $19,000 budget wasn’t just for the camera, it was for **everything** – the actors, the locations, the transportation, the enormous number (snicker) of prints made for distribution to the theaters, the advertising, the producer’s gin and tonic, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/12 "2003-11-08T00:58:31Z")
> [@](#): > > “Yeah. Hal only raised $19,000 to rent the cameras and pay for the film and processing, and so he couldn’t afford to actually pay any of us…” I read this as $19K to rent the camera, buy the film stock, and process the film. I see that on the next page they said the _budget_ was $19K. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/13 "2003-11-08T02:06:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\*I read this as $19K to rent the camera, buy the film stock, and process the film. I see that on the next page they said the _budget_ was $19K. \*\* The joke was, “What kind of movie did you expect from a fertilizer salesman?” This movie should serve as the perfect example of, just because you CAN make a movie, it doesn’t mean you SHOULD. ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/14 "2003-11-08T02:20:51Z")
I don’t know about that, **Mr. Blue Sky** , what with all the fun we’ve had with it since. I just don’t ever want to watch it without commentary. _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2003, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/manos-cameraman-dies/211718/15 "2003-11-08T02:34:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by whiterabbit \* > \*\*I don’t know about that, **Mr. Blue Sky** , what with all the fun we’ve had with it since. I just don’t ever want to watch it without commentary. _shudder_ \*\* Were it not for MST3K, this movie would have disentegrated by now. I’m it’s made more money through the show than it ever did when it was in theaters.