Rick Baker
Richard A. Baker (born December 8, 1950) is a retired American special make-up effects creator and actor, mostly known for his creature effects and designs. Baker won the Academy Award for Best Makeup a record seven times from a record eleven nominations, beginning when he won the inaugural award for the 1981 film An American Werewolf in London. As a teen, Baker began creating artificial body parts in his own kitchen. He also appeared briefly in the fan production The Night Turkey, a one-hour, black-and-white video parody of The Night Stalker directed by William Malone. Baker's first professional job was as an assistant to prosthetic makeup effects veteran Dick Smith on the 1973 film The Exorcist. While working on The Exorcist, Baker was hired by director Larry Cohen to design and create a mutant infant for Cohen's 1974 film It's Alive. Baker received the inaugural Academy Award for Best Makeup for his work on An American Werewolf in London. He also created the werewolf creature Michael Jackson transforms into in the music video Thriller. Subsequently, Baker has been nominated for the Best Makeup Oscar ten more times, winning on seven occasions, both records in his field. Baker claims that his work on Harry and the Hendersons is one of his proudest achievements.[8] On October 3, 2009, he received the Jack Pierce – Lifetime Achievement Award title of the Chiller-Eyegore Awards.[9] He was awarded a Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Academy of Art University San Francisco in 2008. He also contributes commentaries to the web series Trailers from Hell for trailers about horror and science fiction films. Baker received the 2485th star of the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 30, 2012. The star is located in front of the Guinness World Records Museum. Baker announced his retirement on May 28, 2015: "First of all, the CG stuff definitely took away the animatronics part of what I do. It's also starting to take away the makeup part. The time is right, I am 64 years old, and the business is crazy right now. I like to do things right, and they wanted cheap and fast. That is not what I want to do, so I just decided it is basically time to get out. I would consider designing and consulting on something, but I don't think I will have a huge working studio anymore."
Known for
Costume & Make-UpBirthday
December 8, 1950Gender
MaleKnown Movie Credits
123Place of birth
Binghamton, New York, USAAlso known as
Richard A. Baker, Richard BakerCast credits
Men in Black II
MIB Passport Control AgentThe 'Frankenstein' Files: How Hollywood Made a Monster
SelfShe's Alive! Creating 'The Bride of Frankenstein'
SelfIt's Alive: The True Story of Frankenstein
SelfInto the Night
Drug DealerThe Thing with Two Heads
GorillaThe Sci-Fi Boys
SelfMaking Michael Jackson's Thriller
SelfMonster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man'
SelfMonsterland
SelfHe Who Made Monsters: The Life and Art of Jack Pierce
SelfThe Road to 'Dracula'
SelfPure in Heart: The Life and Legacy of Lon Chaney, Jr.
SelfVideodrome: Forging the New Flesh
SelfThe Kentucky Fried Movie
Dino (segment "A.M. Today") (as Richard A. Baker)Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex
HimselfCharlie Gemora: Uncredited
HimselfKing Cohen: The Wild World of Filmmaker Larry Cohen
SelfCrew credits
Gremlins 2: The New Batch
Special Effects, Creature Design, Special Effects SupervisorMighty Joe Young
Special Effects, Makeup ArtistIt Lives Again
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistThe Thing with Two Heads
Special EffectsGhosts
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistSchlock
Makeup Artist, Special EffectsOctaman
Costume DesignTanya's Island
Special EffectsEd Wood
Makeup DesignerThe Ring
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistMatinee
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistThe Fury
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistSquirm
Makeup DesignerComing to America
Makeup Effects, Makeup ArtistTrack of the Moon Beast
Makeup ArtistVideodrome
Makeup Effects DesignerMaleficent
Makeup ArtistThe Wolfman
Makeup Effects Designer, Special Effects Makeup ArtistAltered States
Special Effects Makeup Artist, Makeup ArtistGhost Story
Special Effects Makeup Artist, Makeup ArtistNorbit
Makeup Artist