Torgo (Mystery Science Theater 3000)
- For the Marvel Comics character, see Torgo (comics).
Torgo is one of the main characters in the 1966 movie "Manos" The Hands of Fate, played by John Reynolds. Torgo, though he appeared human, was actually meant to be a satyr — half goat and half human. He was the servant of "The Master", apparently charged with looking after the lodge while the Master was away.
Template:Spoiler Torgo had wild, unkempt hair and a beard. He wore an old tattered suit, which was supposed to look like a Union uniform from the American Civil War. Torgo had huge misshapen knees and cloven feet, though they are not clearly visible onscreen, especially in the MST3K version of the movie. Because of his strange knees and feet, he walked with an awkward gait, and used a large staff with a hand on the end to help him walk. When Torgo was first seen in the film, a strange music piece played which was dubbed "The Haunting Torgo Theme" by one of the characters (Crow.) The music is now known to most by this name.
His bizarre speech patterns, such as saying words in a staccato manner, putting stress on unstressed syllables, stating a sentence, then a second sentence, then repeating the first and randomly changing his voice's pitch, also became one of his "trademarks," although it isn't actually Reynolds' voice (see below).
Trivia
The role of Torgo would be John Reynolds' first and last. He committed suicide the year of the film's release due to emotional problems and drug abuse (not in shame over the film's reception, as is sometimes rumored).
Reynolds and Tom Neyman (who played "The Master" and was also the film's propmaster) developed Torgo's leg prosthetics and the odd gait that became Torgo's trademarks. Had they been worn correctly, they would have had the effect of making Torgo's knees appear to bend backwards like those of a goat. Instead, according to Neyman, Reynolds wore the leg appliances incorrectly, causing considerable pain. Director Hal Warren had already shot some scenes with Torgo's backwards knees featured prominently and didn't want to reshoot them. This led to Reynolds becoming addicted to prescription painkillers.
All the voices in the movie were dubbed in by Hal Warren and three others. Therefore, his strange voice was most likely not part of Reynolds' original performance.
After the film turned out to be a flop, Torgo faded into obscurity until the early 1990s, when Manos: The Hands of Fate was showcased on Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1992. Due to the popularity of this MST3K episode (experiment #424, the season 4 finale), Torgo developed a large cult following. In the episode in which Manos was featured, "Torgo" (played by Michael J. Nelson) appeared at the end of the last host segment as a pizza delivery man. He delivered the pizza, but forgot the drinks. In a subsequent episode, "Torgo" returned with the drinks, which TV's Frank rejected. In a later episode (experiment #624, Samson vs. The Vampire Women, the season 6 finale) he became "Torgo the White" (an apparent reference to J. R. R. Tolkien's character Gandalf the White) and escorted TV's Frank to "second banana heaven," where henchmen could live in peace without fear of reprisal from their vengeful bosses. "Torgo" also made appearances in Deep 13 as Frank's latest acting talent (ex. #620) and Frank's layoff replacement (ex. #523).
Torgo's garb and gimpy gait have since become a popular Halloween costume for dedicated MSTies (devotees of the show).
Homages
- Torg, one of the main characters in Sluggy Freelance, is named in honor of Torgo.
- In Wing Commander, a star system is named Torgo. The system thus named is a regional headquarters for the Confederation military.
- In Escape Velocity, a planet called "Torgo Prime" has a description which alludes to the character's slurred speech and prosthetic knee joints.
- A documentary made in 2004 entitled Hotel Torgo detailed the making of the film.
- The comic book series Young Justice contained several hidden references to MST3K, including a pizza box labelled "Torgo's Pizza".
- One of the co-hosts of the nationally syndicated talk radio program Free Talk Live goes by the name Torgo.
Quotes
- "I am Torgo. I take care of the place while the Master is away."
- "The Master does not approve."
- "Very well. The Master will be greatly disturbed."
- "There is no way out of here. It'll be dark soon. There is no way out of here!"
- "Just let me get your complimentary Krazy Bread..." (Mike Nelson as Torgo the pizza delivery driver)