"Have you no respect for the dead?" she scolded him.He presented her with what she called a "worthless trinket," a small box that he claimed he had unearthed on a dig in Thebes - it was the collapsed key used to lock Imhotep""s sarcophagus (with a coffin inside).When the hatch was opened, three white space-suited astronauts emerged.When they removed their helmets, General Winthrop (Harry Lauter) in charge was astonished by the sight of three apes: archaeologist Cornelius (Roddy McDowall) and his wife, vet and animal psychologist Zira (Kim Hunter), and their ""genius"" colleague Milo (Sal Mineo)."]Finally, Mrs.Rittenhouse welcomes him to her "poor home." He eyes her palatial residence and considers it not so bad, but then reconsiders and likens it to a cheap hotel:Wait a minute.Her blank stares and dreamy countenance from her tormented youth were reflected in an old family photography, possibly pointing toward sexual violations from her father or another older male figure in her childhood room.Hundreds of birds (gulls, ravens, and crows) were trained for use in some of the scenes, while mechanical birds and animations were employed for others.