Tupac Shakur was only twenty-five years old when he was ambushed while he sat in a parked car on a Las Vegas strip on 7th September 1996. The attack came following the Mike Tyson-Bruce Seldon fight which Shakur had attended. He died in hospital six days later on 13th September.

See Also: 10 Crazy Conspiracy Theories Clouding The Music Industry

Conspiracy theories almost immediately began to fly. Many claimed that he was killed by fellow rapper, Biggie Smalls, who himself would be gunned down several months later. As time went on though, the theories strayed into “Elvis” territory, with claims that the rapper and actor had faked his own death, theories that still circulate today. Here are ten reasons some people firmly believe Tupac Shakur is alive and well . . . somewhere . . .

10 Lock Down At The Hospital

After he was admitted to hospital following the shooting, it is claimed only his mother, very close friends and certain designated medical staff were allowed to see Shakur. Perhaps because of this lock down, people began to speculate there was possibly more going on behind the scenes.

The rapper spent six days fighting for his life, during which time it was said he had to be revived several times, eventually succumbing to internal bleeding as a result of his gunshot wounds.

Perhaps the most controversial statement came recently from author Michael Carlin who claimed that the rap star was likely “finished off” in hospital by persons unknown. Carlin has worked closely with Los Angeles Police Department in researching Tupac’s killing. One thing he claims he is certain of is that the police and medical records regarding the rapper’s death are “bogus!”^[1]

9 The Person Who Performed His Cremation Disappeared

Perhaps one of the most mysterious parts of the Tupac Shakur murder is that the person who performed his cremation has apparently since vanished from the face of the planet.

Close friend of Tupac, and the person who was in the car he was riding in when he was ambushed and shot, Marion “Suge” Knight, reportedly claimed that he paid for the rapper to have a private cremation. Not only has the person in question allegedly disappeared, but the amount that Knight claimed he handed over for his services is also questionable given that it was $3 million. Was this part of the “missing millions” as they came to be known?^[2]

8 Tupac’s Missing Millions

It is claimed that Tupac Shakur was worth a little over $100,000 when he died, which doesn’t make him a pauper by any stretch of the imagination, but when considering the immense wealth he had accumulated from his music and his acting career, it is a drop in the ocean of the money he would, at one time, have surely had.

Furthermore, he had no property in his name when he died and his only possessions appeared to be two cars. There seemed to be concerns about the rapper’s contract with his record label, and exactly how much money he was actually paid, while his record company, the infamous Death Row Records, claimed it was Tupac’s own lavish lifestyle that had left him (relatively speaking) destitute.

Others though have speculated that the “missing millions” may have been discreetly “moved” elsewhere – remember the $3 million paid for the cremation?— in anticipation of a life to be lived out in secret.^[3]

7Detective Claims He Was Paid To Help The Rapper Fake His Death

In September 2015 a former detective, David Myers, made the claim that Tupac Shakur had faked his own death, and what’s more, he had been paid $1.5 million to help the rapper achieve it. Myers made the announcement from his death bed while in critical condition in hospital, stating that he “could not die without letting the world know” and that he was “ashamed” of his involvement. According to Myers, a body double was even arranged to be taken to the morgue in place of Shakur.

It should be noted however, that while this story appeared on several well-known web sites, there does not appear to be a definite source. Myers, if indeed he did exist, also didn’t state why the rap star wished to have the world believe he had died. One thing of interest though is the claim of a body double, particularly when inconsistencies concerning the mortuary records came to light.^[4]

6 Different Height and Weight Records

According to official records there was some discrepancy regarding Tupac’s height and weight as recorded by the mortuary. His driver’s license, as well as various celebrity “measurements” sites, listed Shakur’s height at 5” 10 and his weight at 168 pounds. But the mortuary records showed him to be two inches taller at a straight six feet and at a weight of 215 pounds – considerably heavier.

Could this simply have been sloppy record keeping at the mortuary? It’s certainly a possibility and realistically most likely, but nevertheless it has been a talking point for those who believe there is something being hidden about the rapper’s alleged death.^[5]

5 Alleged Last Photograph Inconsistencies

One of the most famous photographs of the Tupac Shakur murder, was said to be taken in the immediate minutes before his death. It shows him in the passenger seat of a car, with none other than larger than life, Suge Knight driving.

However, eagle-eyed fans and researchers quickly spotted that the date on the photograph was incorrect, and appeared to have been taken on the 8th of September – the day after the shooting had taken place. While in all likelihood the camera was just set to the wrong date in error, some believed the photo had been “set up” to circulate to the media following the rapper’s “death”.

Furthermore it was also pointed out that there didn’t appear to be any keys in the ignition of the car. There were automatic-start cars in 1996, albeit not as widespread as they are now, but to some this was further proof that the photo was staged.^[6]

4 No Bulletproof Vest The Night He Was Shot

Since his shooting in New York several years earlier, Shakur had become increasingly paranoid. He had suspected Biggie Smalls and people close to him to have been behind the shooting on the east coast, and was increasingly convinced that people wanted him dead. So much so that he had taken to wearing a bullet proof vest everywhere he went.

However on this evening, with the “East Coast-West Coast War” in full swing, and despite being in a very public place, he suddenly decided not to wear one. It was rumoured by some that Knight had told the rapper to remove his vest because “it was hot” inside the arena where the Tyson-Seldon fight was being contested – there is said to be footage of this conversation although it certainly doesn’t appear to be widely available. There also appears to be confusion as to whether the rapper had a bulletproof vest on at all that evening, with some sources that Knight and others close to Shakur had tried to insist he wear one that evening but he declined.^[7]

3The Makaveli Conspiracy

Tupac was known to be a huge fan of Italian renaissance man Machiavelli, and was particularly enthralled by his line, “To fool your enemies, fake your death.” For his last album, “The Don Killuminati – The 7 Day Theory” Tupac changed his on-stage moniker to Makaveli and, as he had done in many of his songs before, spoke of how he would fake his own death and then return to enact his vengeance on those that had wronged him.

When Biggie Smalls was himself gunned down only six months later, conspiracy theories began to circulate that perhaps Shakur was making good on his promise. Incidentally, Smalls’ death also remains unsolved.^[8]

2 Tupac Is Alive and Well, and Living In Cuba

This particular theory would be regarded as complete nonsense by even the most enthusiastic conspiracy theorists, particularly the claims that he was “seen” partying with Rihanna recently, were it not for the fact that the rapper does have a genuine connection to the country of Cuba.

His aunt, Assata Shakur, was a political activist and former Black Liberation Army member. She had fled to Cuba in 1979 following her conviction for the 1977 murder of a New Jersey State Trooper and sought political asylum there. Given Shakur’s political awareness, he almost certainly would have been very much aware of his aunt’s situation and possibly her whereabouts.

As Cuba is one of the few countries that the United States (at the time) had no access to, it is an ideal place for anyone who is looking to disappear.^[9]

1 Scores Of “New” Songs Released After His Death

Since his death there has been a litany of new material released by the rapper. This has fuelled speculation from some that Tupac is alive and well and recording new material from afar. It is true that a wealth of new material has seen the light of day in the years following Shakur’s death. What’s more is that these new releases have arguably netted as much profit, if not more, than the rapper managed to while he was alive.

While the theory sounds plausible, the fact is that Tupac was well known for being a seriously hard worker in the studio, sometimes recording several songs in a session – sessions that could last for days at a time. It is not at all beyond the realms of possibility that he would have had hundreds of unreleased tracks waiting in the wings when he died. His estate and any royalties from his music were in the control of his mother, Afeni, until her death in early 2016.^[10]

About The Author: Marcus Lowth—writer at Me Time For The Mind—http://www.metimeforthemind.com/
Me Time For The Mind on Facebook—https://www.facebook.com/MeTimeForTheMind/

The subject of visual effects in movies often comes up nowadays in the context of complaints and for an understandable reason. We’ve gotten used to CGI and 3D graphics so much that their blatant inclusion can often feel cheap. VFX artists themselves often believe that the sign of a job well done is when people don’t notice or discuss it, which is quite unfortunate after so much work is put into something we take for granted.

The past was a very different time, however. For as much as we complain about fake-looking CGI and ridiculous effects, in the past, 3D graphics were either entirely unconvincing and difficult to use for most things or downright didn’t exist. The idea of convincing effects at this time was one that could only exist alongside a healthy dose of suspension of disbelief. Yet, they aged remarkably well, seldom looking bad despite not looking realistic. As these techniques are nothing if not very creative and interesting, let’s examine the ten most notable ones today.

Related: 10 Startling CGI Moments In TV And Movie Scenes

10 Puppets

Puppets in film aren’t what typically come to mind when we think of special effects, at least ones that are supposed to be convincing. Known mostly for stylized filmmaking usage, such as The Dark Crystal, puppets are actually a lot more versatile than one would assume! While they’ve fallen out of favor since CGI became the standard, alongside most entries on this list, puppetry was instrumental to some of the most iconic effects and characters in film history.

From the original Star Wars trilogy’s Yoda to multiple shots of dinosaurs, including the T-Rex in Jurassic Park and even the Pale Man of Pan’s Labyrinth, a film from the early 2000s, this technique can clearly achieve a lot more than The Muppets, given enough resources and directing talent.

The control of master puppeteers, the usability and unique, textured look of well-made puppets, and the actual, physical presence of a tangible object combine to create something that has the potential of being a lot more immersive and convincing than old children’s shows would have you believe.^[1]

9 Green/Blue Screen

Green screens, and by extension blue screens, are considered a staple of modern film. It’s common to see jokes about movies nowadays filmed on wholly green sets, an idea that’s not entirely baseless, given how prevalent this technology has become in the past decade. What many people don’t seem to discuss, however, is just how long it has been around. They certainly started to reach their peak in the 2010s, but chroma key screens have actually been used in films for nearly a century!

Their usage was already very similar in the 1930s to what it is now, a technique used to layer two or more picture elements on top of each other. Even before green and blue screens, however, double exposure was used in photography as early as the 1860s, and in films by 1903, in Edwin S. Porter’s The Great Train Robbery. By the ’30s, blue screen technology—yes, specifically blue screen technology, as green wouldn’t become the norm for a number of years—had gone through a number of significant advancements and started seeing usage in films such as 1933’s King Kong. And it had already modernized and was soaring in popularity by the original Star Wars trilogy.

The color of the chroma key screen used may have shifted from blue to green, both specifically prized due to how far away they are from most human skin tones. Still, this technique that’s contemporarily assumed to be the most iconic element of modern filmmaking has, in reality, been just about the same for the history of the motion picture as a whole.^[2]

8 Forced Perspective

This is possibly the most deceptively simple technique we’ll look at today. Forced perspective has been around literally as long as photography has, or possibly even longer, as it’s not unthinkable that painters way before the existence of film would utilize this effect just the same. The idea is really very simple; things that are farther away from our view appear to be smaller, and things that are closer, larger.

That really is all there is to it, in a way. The usage, however, is much more nuanced and widespread than that brief description suggests. From the short stature of The Lord of the Rings’ hobbits compared to the tall Gandalf and all the way to the 1959 Disney film Darby O’Gill and the Little People, forced perspective has been used for decades, if not centuries, made convincing by carefully crafted sets and simple optical trickery. It’s a really ingenious way of selling size differences without any real effects work necessary.

The technique isn’t limited to the contrast between large and little people, either. Combined with other practical effects such as miniatures, props, and even puppetry, with the right setup, it may let a giant destroy a city or grab the moon, all without using a simple technique of modern, digital filmmaking. While it may not be as frequently used today, it remains a clever and effective tool in the repertoire of effects artists.^[3]

7 Paintings

Another example of a technique that’s rarely considered in the context of special effects, paintings have been used extensively throughout the history of film, without most of us even realizing it as we watched. More than just fine museum art or a fun pastime, real-life paintings have been responsible for a lot of the most iconic movie backgrounds of all time. With artists working on them meticulously and doing such a fantastic job, few even recognize their work as being there.

The most well-known usage of paintings as effects again comes from Star Wars, a movie that pioneered nearly every modern effects technique we take for granted. Paintings, in a way, are no exception. Even in the current digital age, matte shots are incredibly popular; the only thing that’s changed is the medium. From acrylic paint on glass to 3D renders and digital paintings, this old technique simply evolved, only losing the incredible, real-world paintings in the process.

The famous Industrial Light & Magic company behind films such as Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars wasn’t the first to use them, either. The legendary Georges Méliès, a person whose work we’ll familiarize ourselves with much more a little further down, was already using paintings as backgrounds in the very early 1900s.^[4]

6 Costumes

Fashion has influenced movies, undoubtedly. Stunning clothing isn’t exactly faking the fantastical, however, but thankfully that’s not what we’re discussing today. Before CGI could make all sorts of monsters and creatures come to life, that task was often delegated to costume artists and actors wearing their work.

While they may not always be the most convincing, they retain a charm that ages a lot more gracefully than CGI often does. Even aside from a wide variety of cheesy films with costumes of odd creatures we may expect, actors wearing intricately crafted suits were responsible for the creature effects of a variety of iconic films.

Notable examples are Ishirō Honda’s Godzilla and even the xenomorph of the Alien, a shockingly tall actor, Bolaji Badejo, helping the fearsome, now deeply iconic creature come to life. Elaborate creature costumes in blockbuster films may be cheesy today, but their legacy is undeniable.^[5]

5 Miniatures

Another element that’s perhaps not taken too seriously most of the time, miniatures have contributed to a lot more than just tabletop games and display cabinets. Small figurines combined with forced perspective have, in fact, been the backbone of the appearances of many older films that we take for granted today.

Georges Méliès, mentioned earlier in the list, is arguably the director credited for pioneering a massive amount of filmmaking techniques still used decades or even a century after the time of his works.

Miniatures were essential to the look of his widely known film, A Trip to the Moon, from 1902, a movie famous for being—at the time—a mind-blowing showcase of early special effects. The film’s use of miniatures, among other effects, led to them being used in the likes of 2001: A Space Odyssey’s space station and Star Wars’ spaceships.^[6]

4 Rotoscoping

The process of tracing over images, notably frames of film, also known as rotoscoping, is another modern staple that’s been around for a very long time. What makes it especially interesting is that it was one of the first techniques that allowed an artist to directly change and interact with film footage.

Before the digital age, a frame of film footage would be projected onto a piece of glass and then traced over manually. This technique was used for the animation of early Disney films such as Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, and Fantasia, but even, famously, for Star Wars’ lightsabers and alongside the primitive CGI of Tron.

It wasn’t until the 1990s that rotoscoping would become a digital process, an essential tool from the late 19th century that revolutionized film forever.^[7]

3 Stop Motion

Stop motion techniques are still used today as a relatively niche form of animation. Entire films can be constructed with the simple but painstakingly time-consuming task of manually adjusting models frame by frame, taking a picture after each adjustment, and combining it to create moving footage.

Even with the amount of manual labor and artistic skill required, stop motion animation is a very approachable and timeless art. So it’s no surprise that it was used for a variety of special effects before it was replaced by CGI.

Perhaps the most famous example of stop motion animation as special effects is the Terminator of, well, The Terminator. While it’s not the smoothest, the technique has only improved since then, and it certainly sold the effect of a robotically moving, menacing machine very well.^[8]

2 Animatronics

An old, impressive, and flashy technique that may look better than CGI even today is animatronics. These effects have left a brilliant mark on blockbuster movies as a whole, and there are fans who call for their usage over 3D renders even today.

Using scientifically and artistically crafted, complex robots that actually move in real-time is certainly impressive to even imagine. Still, the reality of what the immensely skilled people creating them have been able to achieve surpasses even that image.

This effect was another element that sold Jurassic Park’s visuals so well that it looks great even today. Animatronic dinosaurs were used very purposefully during the movie’s creation. No list of animatronics could be complete without mentioning John Carpenter’s The Thing from 1982, however. The creature effects of that film are terrifying, visceral, and brilliantly crafted. It may now be 40 years old, but the film’s fans fell in love with the style and look and haven’t let go since. The Thing’s modern remake was a comparative failure, and few believe that the CGI visuals even came close to the shocking atmosphere of the original.^[9]

1 Creative Resourcefulness

A list of the most impressive and creative effect techniques couldn’t be complete without simply praising humanity’s ingenuity as a whole. The reality is that every impressive film and effect is made great by the creativity behind it, no matter the technique used. And some are so specific and resourceful that no specific label would fit them anyway.

From the amazingly engineered, real-life rotating set of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey through the aforementioned filming of The Lord of the Rings that used simple perspective to seamlessly sell different fantastical humanoids, creativity was the foundation. It’s even evident in the already mentioned but unelaborated horror of The Thing that used everything from makeup to sculptures and even mayonnaise and strawberry jam that, in the end, landed its creator, Rob Bottin, in a hospital due to exhaustion. Not surprisingly, the list could simply go on and on.

As amazing as predetermined techniques can be, film effects are made complete by the artistic, brilliant, resourceful creativity of the people behind them. Using obscure items, everyday objects, truly anything at their disposal, they create incredible representations of things that don’t even exist.^[10]