# what are the Indiana Jones movies a pastiche of? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 28, 2004, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602 "2004-10-28T02:15:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Freejooky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ba8739/32.png) [@Freejooky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freejooky)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/1 "2004-10-28T02:15:01Z")
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always sort of known that the Indy movies were a pastiche or homage to a certain type of old film or story - but what? What original should I check out if I want the “indiana effect”? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/2 "2004-10-28T02:21:38Z")
Indie’s an homage to the old adventure serials of the 30s and 40s. I’m afraid I’m more familiar with the Sci-fi serials, I can’t really give a paricular title to look for. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/3 "2004-10-28T02:42:17Z")
They’re certainly made in imitation, as **Tengu** noted, of the old adventure serials, with all the cliffhangers in place. The difference is, you don’t have to wait until next week for the resolution. Spielberg and Lucas gave you immdiate payoff in the films. As for which serials, I’m not familiar with them, but more than one writer has claimed that **he Perils of Nyoka** was a direct inspiration. Of curse, there’s another source of Indiana JOnes. Read my Teemings piece **Only the Penitent Duck Shall Pass** : Only the Penitent Duck Shall Pass (Teemings #5 June/July 2001) – [http://www.teemings.com/issue05/penitent.html](http://www.teemings.com/issue05/penitent.html) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/4 "2004-10-28T02:51:15Z")
> [@](#): > > …and this little Australopithecus cried “Wee, wee, wee” Olduvai home. In any civilized society… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/5 "2004-10-28T02:54:45Z")
Apart from the single-reel/three-reeler adventure films, there are plenty of borrowings from radio serials as well, particularly stuff like _I Love A Mystery_, _Adventures by Morse_, _I Love Adventure_, _Alllen Quartermain_ etc. There are also plenty of references to feature films in the adventure and noir genres, notably _Green Hell_, _The Secret Service on the Dark Continent_, and stuff from later films like _Nevada Smith_ (Natch!) You will also recognize the [attractive Macguffin](http://www.conelrad.com/conelrad100/images/kissme_deadly.gif) (also used to great effect by Tarantino in _Pulp Fiction_) borrowed from the Mike Hammer flick _Kiss Me Deadly_. Amongst many, many other references, of course. I’ve had bitter, bitter arguments amongst fellow film nerds about which film contains more adventure film references – _Star Wars_ or _Raiders of the Lost Ark_. I think your perception comes down to which subgenre you are more familiar with. If you’ve seen more sci-fi/fantasy films, you’ll catch more of the references in _Star Wars_. If you like action/adventure films, you’ll pick up on more of the Indiana Jones stuff. Both of them are high art, as far as I’m concerned. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/6 "2004-10-28T03:10:42Z")
Something I found very interesting on the making-of DVD was that the movies are such an homage that they got the Indy outfit down in one shot. The very first piece of concept art has a generic muscly guy (because the part hadn’t been cast yet) wearing the leather jacket, unbuttoned shirt, fedora and brandishing a whip and revolver. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/7 "2004-10-28T03:20:42Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > _Nevada Smith_ (Natch!) I don’t see any similarity. > [@Silentgoldfish](#): > > generic muscly guy Doc Savage! ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/8 "2004-10-28T09:07:01Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I don’t see any similarity. Uh… you _are_ kidding, right? I’m not saying that _Raiders of the Lost Ark_ is substantially similar to a revenge flick like _Nevada Smith_, but… really… You don’t see one (or perhaps two) rather obvious points of isomorphism? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/9 "2004-10-28T12:41:37Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > Uh… you _are_ kidding, right? Nevada Smith is after revenge for those who killed his parents. He has to learn how to be a gunfighter. Jones is after an object and is skilled in fighting at the start. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/10 "2004-10-28T12:45:02Z")
As a sign of the fact that it’s taken from Saturday serial, note that Raiders breaks into twelve separate set-pieces, just like the serials. ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/11 "2004-10-28T15:11:10Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Of curse, there’s another source of Indiana JOnes. Read my Teemings piece **Only the Penitent Duck Shall Pass** : > > Only the Penitent Duck Shall Pass (Teemings #5 June/July 2001) – [http://www.teemings.com/issue05/penitent.html](http://www.teemings.com/issue05/penitent.html) **Cal** , I’ve been a Duck fan all my life, and have a closet full of Gold Key, Gladstone, etc comics, but I’d never associated The Prize of Pizarro or The Ghost of the Grotto with the Indiana Jones series. Thanks for your great analysis – now I want to dig through the piles of comics to find and reread those. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/12 "2004-10-28T15:56:21Z")
The Indiana Jones character is a wholesale theft of H. Ryder Haggard’s literary hero, Alan Quatermain. Of primary interest is “King Solomon’s Mines”, but he also wrote “Alan Quatermain” and “She”. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/13 "2004-10-28T16:08:06Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The Indiana Jones character is a wholesale theft of H. Ryder Haggard’s literary hero, Alan Quatermain. Of primary interest is “King Solomon’s Mines”, but he also wrote “Alan Quatermain” and “She”. _Without_ the anti-semitism. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/14 "2004-10-28T16:24:32Z")
Milt Caniff’s [Terry and the Pirates](http://www.toonopedia.com/terry.htm) (which also become a radio and television series). Has anyone else wondered whether the name Indiana Jones is a play on the name of [Inigo Jones](http://www.britainexpress.com/History/inigo-jones.htm)? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/15 "2004-10-28T16:35:30Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > H. Ryder Haggard’s literary hero, Alan Quatermain. I can’t see Quartermain shooting the sword fighter; Indy would have ravished She right off the bat. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/16 "2004-10-28T17:05:54Z")
> [@](#): > > I can’t see Quartermain shooting the sword fighter; Well the story goes that the script called for a big sword vs. whip fight. Only the day of shooting Ford was so sick he could barely stand so he said “Why don’t I just pull out my gun and shoot the guy?” Everyone on the set laughed so they shot it that way… ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/17 "2004-10-28T18:18:25Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > As for which serials, I’m not familiar with them, but more than one writer has claimed that **he Perils of Nyoka** was a direct inspiration. Interesting. Bondage fans fondly remember the series because the female lead had several scenes where she did some truly awesome writhing while tied up by bad guys. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that…) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/18 "2004-10-28T18:21:35Z")
> [@lno](#): > > **Cal** , I’ve been a Duck fan all my life, and have a closet full of Gold Key, Gladstone, etc comics, but I’d never associated The Prize of Pizarro or The Ghost of the Grotto with the Indiana Jones series. Thanks for your great analysis – now I want to dig through the piles of comics to find and reread those. Take a look at the classic Uncle Scrooge adventure **“The Seven Cities of Cibola”** (Uncle Scrooge #7) and you will find a story where an idol is booby-trapped, such that removing the idol causes the surrounding structure to fall apart and a giant boulder to come crashing down. **Cal** , I’m pretty sure Spielberg has acknowledged the Barks influence. (I’m sure I recall reading that somewhere.) And I agree with you that Uncle Scrooge’s various archaeological adventures may be the biggest influence on the Indiana Jones series. ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/19 "2004-10-28T18:38:28Z")
> [@spoke-](#): > > Take a look at the classic Uncle Scrooge adventure **“The Seven Cities of Cibola”** (Uncle Scrooge #7) and you will find a story where an idol is booby-trapped, such that removing the idol causes the surrounding structure to fall apart and a giant boulder to come crashing down. Aah! You’re right! I just found a scanned version of it online and it all came rushing back. As soon as I read the first few pages, I remembered the giant emerald statue that the Beagle Boys try to steal which triggers the collapse of the Seven Cities. Damnit, how could I have missed those references all these years? ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2004, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602/20 "2004-10-28T21:52:23Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > Uh… you _are_ kidding, right? > > I’m not saying that _Raiders of the Lost Ark_ is substantially similar to a revenge flick like _Nevada Smith_, but… really… > > You don’t see one (or perhaps two) rather obvious points of isomorphism? Here’s a hint: Nevada Smith. Indiana Jones. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-indiana-jones-movies-a-pastiche-of/271602.md?page=2)