Celebrating Lenny Dalrymple

Veteran special effects coordinator and tech Garry “Lenny” Dalrymple, 60, reported for his last call time on location to the great beyond in Pasadena, CA on July 28 after a lengthy battle with multiple illnesses acquired from his early-career service in the U.S. Navy.

Born in Syracuse, NY and raised in Tucson, AZ, Lenny lived life on his terms. After graduating from high school in 1979, he entered naval submarine school and went on to serve as a nuclear power technician on the USS Bainbridge. On the side, he honed his skills in special effects prop-making, building upon his experimentation with 8mm stop-motion filmmaking as a teen. After leaving the Navy, Lenny briefly worked as a stuntman at Old Tucson Studios before moving to Los Angeles to work in a prop house. This led to a 35-year career that included on-set practical effects, Disney theme park attractions, and miniature model mechanical effects for film with the best in the industry.

His credits include at least 53 feature films, 16 television series, more than 40 commercials, and music videos including “Nightmare on Elm Street (3 & 4)”, “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, “Broken Arrow”, “Volcano”, “The Fifth Element”, “Batman and Robin”, “Armageddon”, “The Last Samurai”, Spider-Man 2”, “Fight Club”, “War of the Worlds”, “Iron Man (1 & 2)”, “Indiana Jones 4”, “Inception”, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, “Mission Impossible 5”, “Cloverfield Paradox”, “True Blood”, “KC Undercover”, “Shooter”, and “The Orville”. He was also a member of William Mesa’s 1990 Emmy-award winning special visual effects team for “Miracle Landing”. He worked on the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, as well as the Roger Rabbit ride and ToonTown, among other features at Disney theme parks around the globe. His goal was to entertain people and that he did, as at least a billion people, easily, over the decades have watched or experienced the entertainment projects to which he contributed.

It was on Waterworld where he met fellow modelmaker Suzy Schneider, who would join him for life in marriage in 1998. Suzy and Lenny grew their family to four with the birth of Sophie Rose and then Sadie Renee and lived a peaceful life with friends and family in Pasadena, entertaining trick-or-treaters with elaborate interactive Halloween displays. Lenny also volunteered his time serving on the board of the Association of Special Effects & Pyrotechnic Operators (ASEPO) to promote safety, avoid over-regulation, and enjoy time with colleagues.

Lenny was predeceased by his father and is survived by his mother, wife, two daughters, and six siblings.

Memorial information is at https://everloved.com/life-of/garry-dalrymple/