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Hi folks. You may or may not know but part of my day job is as a professional special effects make up artist. I have just created a new set of appliances that we are selling that depict the Joker style scarring as worn by Heath Ledger in the last Batman film. Here is a link to the "how to" video that I have just put together for these. If you like make up FX and that kind of lark you should enjoy this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kb6Q4WSmNtw

Thats cool as hell. Even before the Joker effect those scars look nasty. Very cool video!

Thanks very much.

The appliances are equally meant as a stand-alone prosthetic effect as well as the Joker.

We sell LOADS of appliances, off the shelf, not only for halloween type make ups but also for casualty simulation and film/TV use.

I'm glad you put this up, but I have a question... How did the makeup effects artists do Jack Nichloson's Joker smile in the first Batman film?.. It's a query that has been on my mind since the movie came out.

Happy Thoughts,
Paul Pacific

It was a similar approach but with bigger appliances made from foam latex. I also seem to remember that they used a dental device that JN wore that didn't show from the outside but had wires pushing the corners of his mouth outward a little bit to make the opening of his mouth wider... either that or they were fitted onto his face and then covered with the appliances.

Hi Tom

my daughter thought that this was very very cool. She's studying theatrical makeup and design at Warwickshire College.

I thought that it was awesome

Great video. I used a stack of your appliances about a year ago for a lecture on sfx/props/makeup at a local school up here in Elgin. The kids loved them - ended up staying on for a couple of extra hours applying bullet hits and cut throats/wrists (goodness knows what their parents thought when they got home!). Your nice, thick, blood worked a treat.

Looking at your website makes me want to get back into it the business again.... (Just when I thought I was out!! Bah!!). Great stuff Tom.

Thanks, Tom.

Tom Lauten wrote:It was a similar approach but with bigger appliances made from foam latex. I also seem to remember that they used a dental device that JN wore that didn't show from the outside but had wires pushing the corners of his mouth outward a little bit to make the opening of his mouth wider... either that or they were fitted onto his face and then covered with the appliances.

Hi Tom.

I didnt know you did this sort of thing. I used to dabble a bit myself in in the horror side of make up, and is something i have always been interested in. I also didnt know that premade appliances were available nowadays - I used the old method of building up the latex in layers, very slow process.

The wire thing you mention for Jack Nicholsons Joker sounds like a variation of Lon Chaneys device he made for (the now lost) London After Midnight. He also had wire 'springs' for his eyes which made them open wide. Very uncomfortable.

I am also a huge fan of Jack Pierce, who as you will know, was the brains behind many classic monster make-ups of the 1930s

jim

Lon Chaney is and always will be a hero of mine along with my "mentor" (and I'm proud to say my friend) Dick Smith. Both were/are such innovators who set the bar very high in terms of quality character make up design and innovative technical methods. Neither draw a hard line between the two things. It's like with magic, the most impressive stuff is a good balance of method and presentation.

Jack Pierce created SUCH iconic characters... what a legacy, all the Universal greats; Frankenstein's monster, Dracula, The Wolfman, The Mummy AND the dude worked in a suit and tie! Class!

If you like this kind of thing and want to see a FANTASTIC book on the history of make up FX and ALL of the most influential artists up until the early 80's check out this book...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Making-Monster- ... 0517528622

... it was permanantly on loan to me out of my school library for 3 years! I cherish my copy!

Pierce's makeup for The Mummy is one of my all time favourites - despite the fact it only receives a few minutes of screen time. The atmosphere in that film is incredible - Karloff is equally creepy with or without makeup! (I also have a soft spot for Christopher Lee's very physical Mummy in the Hammer version).

You know Dick Smith!!! I'm green with envy.... I used to study photos of his workshop and creations in cinefex/starlog/etc with a magnifying glass trying to pick up info on materials and tiny sculpting details... My copy of Dick Smith's Do-It-Yourself Monster Make-Up is covered in gelatine, spirit gum and rmgp. Happy days.

Karloff is equally creepy with or without makeup

Nah.. My mentor knew him a bit.Apparently he was a dear man....And He liked his magic you know.

And he used to keep in contact with British magicians going out to hollywood. His favorite tipple, was Bass Beer, and more than one magician would take some out for him.

Thanks for that Tom, will be putting that book on my to buy list.

Flashman, i agree about the atmosphere in the Mummy. I think the Universal Horrors as a whole are full of atmosphere, something which seems to be lacking in most modern day horrors. It seems to be harder to achieve when colour is used.

jim

I worked with Dick on a project called Starman in 1984 and on Poltergeist 3 some years after. I also did a few jobs he recommended me for. He is a "diamond geezer" for sure and a true master of his art. Never a more sharing artist. Ed French gave me an original (1960's) copy of Dick's Monster Make Up Handbook and I have kept in as good a condition as I can.

I have heard Karloff was into magic and was a truely sweet chap. A lot of actors were into magic back in the day, like Karloff and Orson Wells. It was just one of those hobbys that some people did.