(Hollywood, CA) --- On February 16, 2003, Jack Pierce will receive the lifetime achievement award for makeup by the Hollywood Makeup Artists Union, Local 706. The award is the first nomination that Pierce (1889-1968) has received by his peers since he won a Hollywood Filmograph award in 1932 for his makeup work on his favorite actor, Boris Karloff, for The Mummy.


Statement by the Nominating Author


As we look back upon the great cinematic pioneers of the 20th century, we must account for a true genius and landmark makeup artist, Jack Pierce, the legendary monster maker who worked in the 1930s and 1940s at Universal Studios during their classic horror period. His work helped create icons of Boris Karloff, Béla Lugosi, Lon Chaney, Jr. and the monster movie genre itself.

Pierce's story has equal amounts of triumph and tragedy. After immigrating to the United States from Greece at the turn of the century, Pierce tried his hand at baseball, unsuccessfully trying out for a semi-professional team in California after achieving some notoriety as a shortstop in Chicago. He next worked in the fledgling motion picture industry in the 1910s and 1920s, trying his hand at a variety of jobs ranging from early nickelodeon manager to stuntman to assistant cameraman. Pierce eventually drifted from acting to makeup, first working at Fox Studios in the late 1920s, then at Universal on the last of the silent films made at the stu dio. His fortune was cemented when Carl Laemmle Jr., made head of production by his father, decided to produce film versions of the classic horror novels. During the 17 years from 1930-1947, Pierce created some of cinema history's most distinguished screen characters, from Frankenstein and The Bride to The Mummy and The Wolf Man. His reign at Universal ended after WWII when the studio changed philosophies and replaced many of their department heads. Pierce worked on a variety of independent film and television projects during the final twenty years of his life. He died in virtual obscurity in 1968.


With vignettes from throughout his life, told by Jack Pierce himself as the show's narrator, the special theatrical tribute, THE MAN BEHIND THE MONSTERS illustrated his greatest work as a product of his genius as a make up artist, his colleagues and the unique creative period of time in which they all worked. The docu-drama helped to acknowledge the great cinema craftspeople who laid the foundation for current moviemaking. The DVD from the event, orchestrated by dozens of top Hollywood makeup artists, propmakers, costume designers, and assorted personnel is currently available at www.jackpierce.com .


--- Scott Essman February 1, 2003