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Since the earliest days of Hollywood, movie fans have been enthralled by the transformations made by actors when they don makeup to become out-of-this-world characters. In those early days, a makeup artist had to be as much a scientist as an actor, experimenting with materials not nearly as sophisticated as we have today. The first true makeup magician was Lon Chaney Sr., often called the "man of a thousand faces." Doing all his own work, Chaney used materials such as fish skin, mortician's wax, and grease paint to accent his facial features for different parts. At one point, he even cut off the tips of cigar holders and inserted them into his nose to appear more authentic for a character role. One of the most important makeup artists, Max Factor, was also a chemist. He developed makeup that would not melt under the hot lights. In 1914 he invented "Supreme Grease Paint" that helped reduce the glare of the makeup under the harsh lighting on the set. In 1937 he developed Pancake makeup, which not only became the industry standard for use in color films, but revolutionized the entire cosmetics industry. Jack Pierce and Maurice Seiderman were two famous makeup artists who worked in the 1930s and revolutionized the movie business. Both men studied human anatomy in an effort to make their non-human characters more lifelike. In Frankenstein, Pierce transformed Boris Karloff into the mummy and the monster, and he turned Bela Legosi into the menacing Count Dracula. Seiderman perfected the human aging process so well that he successfully created 37 distinct looks for Orson Wells in Citizen Kane. Whereas their predecessors used wax as their primary makeup ingredient, both Pierce and Seiderman had the advantage of working with latex rubber, invented in 1929. Latex had many advantages over wax because it didn't crack and could be applied in thin coats to make the skin more lifelike. Even though things have come a long way since the days of Lon Chaney Sr., the one constant that all makeup artists use is time. To create the most lifelike characters, layer after layer of makeup is applied; each layer must be allowed to dry before applying the next. During the filming of Elephant Man, actor John Hurt needed 13 different appliances and eight hours in the makeup room to prepare for each day's shoot.

