Greg Cannom, a five-time Oscar-winning makeup and prosthetics artist celebrated for the incredible transformations of Robin Williams in “Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993) and Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), died on May 3 at the age of 73.
Cannom’s death was announced by his former mentor and longtime collaborator Rick Baker. The two famously worked together on several projects, including Michael Jackson’s 1982 “Thriller” music video and the 1977 science-fiction film “The Incredible Melting Man.”
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The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 706 Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild also announced Cannom’s passing in a poignant message on Facebook on Thursday.
A GoFundMe page launched for expenses said he experienced health challenges for two years, including “severe shingles, a staph infection, sepsis and heart failure.”
Born in Los Angeles, Cannom was mystified by the world of motion pictures from a young age, finding a particular interest in horror films. He even called himself a “monster geek.”
It wasn’t until he attended Cypress College in Orange County when he began his training in stage makeup, learning the ins and outs while working on around 200 plays. By age 25, Cannom had landed a job as Baker’s assistant, the artist best known for his work in “Star Wars.” Their first project together was the 1978 “It’s Alive sequel, It Lives Again,” creating baby monster prosthetics.
Cannom and Baker later brought to life many legendary characters, including Jim Carrey’s green alter-ego in “The Mask” (1994) and Gloria Stuart’s 101-year-old persona in “Titanic” (1997).
Indeed, turning Stuart into a 101-year-old lady in “Titanic” was nothing like the aghast characters he’d constructed before. Yet, it was projects like this that helped solidify his reputation as an irrevocable makeup architect that could not only produce the inconceivable, but master realistic visions, too.
Cannom also transformed brother duo Marlon and Shawn Wayans into white female twins with blond hair in 2004’s “White Chicks” and reconstructed Danny DeVito’s hands to look like penguin feet in 1992’s “Batman Returns.”
For more complicated jobs, Cannom would enlist up to 20 assistants to help him handle intricate facial molds. He advised on every detail and every facial expression, pointing out tiny changes that build an entirely new visage.
Cannom later landed a job on the film “Vice,” as a character makeup designer — the project that secured him his final Oscar for Best Makeup and Hairstyling in 2019.
WWD has contacted the Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild and Baker for comments.
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