ABOVE: Greg Nelson touches up Roxann Dawson for STAR TREK VOYAGER.
NOTE: All photos on this page are copyright Mark Shostrom. Tech stuff: the black-and-white photos above were shot on Agfa Scala 200 reversal (slide) film, Pentax ME Super, usually with a 28mm or 50mm lens.
Star Trek musings...
My most extensive, long term work with actors was on STAR TREK VOYAGER, which I worked on for the pilot and first three seasons - 68 episodes. I was actually the first makeup artist hired by Michael Westmore for this show. He had me designing and sculpting characters three months before any actors had been cast or set construction had started for the pilot. I had been working with Michael on and off for several months prior to this on both DEEP SPACE NINE and the film GENERATIONS. Michael once told me he hired me because I had two strong portfolios, one for makeup and one for sculpture. I'm pretty sure he offered me a permanent spot on Voyager, however, for a reason that had nothing to do with artistry: seeing how I interacted with DS9 cast and guest cast members. There had been frequent clashes on that show with makeup artists and actors, often involving the latter creating behind-the-scenes sparks or ingratiating themselves with actors so they themselves could protect their coveted staff jobs and appear irreplaceable. When Michael saw that I was attentive and worked calmly with actors without stirring up drama, he hired me more frequently - which ultimately led to a staff spot on Voyager.
(ABOVE: Garrett Wang and Robert Beltran doing their Lawrence of Arabia impersonations at lunch)
I had worked non-union for 14 years and now was suddenly exposed to the almost leisurely pace of union features - while at the same time adjusting to the frenetic pace of series television. The former could be two camera set-ups per day; the latter might be 30. I was the one Michael brought in to do many guest stars on DEEP SPACE. For each guest actor, the first time doing their prosthetic makeup was always the first day of filming. Michael was great about scheduling ample time for this. Too ample once - he gave me a 1:30 a.m. call time. But not one to shirk responsibility, Michael was there at 1:30 as well.
I’ve lost track of the number of actors I've made up for the two Trek shows and the film. Hundreds. It was always a daily combination of prosthetic makeups and straight/corrective makeups. On VOYAGER I had my usual cast to make up - Tim Russ as Tuvok and Garrett Wang as Harry Kim - but I'd often do Robert Picardo and Robert Duncan McNeill if my main actors were not in that day. I joked with Picardo that he was 'the man with the rubber face' because of the expressions he would make while I covered his five o'clock shadow. I was dying to put rubber on his face and he was well aware of this. The man who wore so much rubber for Rob Bottin, and all I got to do in three years with him was straight makeup?!
Kate Mulgrew (Captain Janeway) and Robert Beltran were usually Michael Westmore's characters to make up, but when Michael was gone at the end of the night - or if we were on location (he didn't go to location because of his responsibilities at Pararmount overseeing the entire series) - Greg Nelson, Tina Kalliongis or I would take them over. Greg and I would toss a coin for Kate, as we usually had many makeups by then to deal with (usually one but often two characters) plus supervising the makeups the day checkers were doing. Robert Beltran (Chakotay) was always my makeup on location, hand laid sideburns and hand painted forehead tattoo. Roxann Biggs (who played B'Elanna Torres) was always Greg's makeup. But because I had watched Greg apply her complex prosthetic and beauty makeup (flawlessly executed by Greg) so many times up close, and because Greg trusted me and my ability, I was the only backup Roxann was really comfortable with when Greg was not there. It also helped Roxann's confidence because she knew I had sculpted the prosthetic. Making up Roxanne happened only a few times during three years. There were about six occasions when Greg had terrible migraines and I would get the call to come in for Roxann. The first time was a bit nerve wracking, but when Roxann saw that I was meticulous and on top of it, things went just fine. She was great to work with.
On top of the regular cast, we would always have one or more guest cast actors as well. They might be prosthetic, they might be beauty. Greg, Tina, Scott and I were responsible for them all. When the number of actors out-weighed us, Michael would bring in day check artists, anywhere from one or two to a dozen if needed. Michael also had Scott Wheeler and I assigned permanently to sculpt the guest cast makeups for the upcoming shows. We were lucky to get a week of prep time for this - it was usually about four days. Network TV baby. No time to waste. That meant when Scott and I were done with our makeups, we would turn them over to Tina, Greg or day check artists brought in just for this. Then Scott and I would head upstairs to start sculpting the characters for the next episode.
Scheduling makeup and sculpting duties was dependent on whose ‘actor heavy’ show it was. If it was a Tuvok episode, I would still make up Tim, but Tina Hoffman would cover him on set while I went upstairs to sculpt for the next episode. If none of my actors were in for a few days, I would come in only to sculpt. The same for Scott. Michael was good about delegating the right sculpture to the right person. After all, Scott and I each had different sculptural styles. Often the simple factor of time would intervene and Scott and I would have to divide a makeup and quickly sculpt our mutual parts of it - while at the same time making it look cohesive. On Garrett’s old age makeup for THE THAW, I did the T-zone: forehead, nose, mouth, chin, eyes - while Scott sculpted the cheeks and neck. But we swapped sculptures and worked on each other’s as I recall, to make sure the final sculpture and makeup would not look like it was created by different hands. For Robert Duncan McNeill in THRESHOLD there was no time to swap; Scott and I just sculpted like mad and looked at each other’s work to make sure the designs would meld together and the appliances would overlap properly. Now why did I use the word 'meld' instead of 'blend,' 'match' or 'fit?' Hmmm... I cannot imagine why.
Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds
This last part has nothing to do with makeup, but I cannot think about my three years at Paramount Studios without remembering Lucy. This is hard to write and I am already teary-eyed thinking about it. But here goes... the story of a very special soul who came into my life one pre-dawn morning at Paramount.
To best picture the setting, watch SUNSET BLVD. The Paramount connection is that my boss Michael Westmore's office was in the room where William Holden and Nancy Olsen write their secret screenplay at night in that film. The makeup and hair trailers for VOYAGER were directly below that room. Seeing as the structures have not changed since 1950, the photos below illustrate it perfectly.
The makeup and hair trailers would be at the lower left foreground in this photo.
Michael Westmore's office 35 years before he moved in. William Holden lights a smoke while Nancy Olsen types their secret screenplay.
One night I had a dream. In it, I got a grey and white kitten. I woke up the next morning with no memory of the dream whatsoever. I drove to Paramount, got there around 6 a.m. Being winter, it was still dark. One of the hairdressers, Barbara Minster, opened the hair trailer door as I arrived with my Starbucks. She excitedly said, "Mark, I found two kittens! They need a home." The dream raced back into my head. I looked at Barbara and asked, "Is one of them grey and white?" Barbara got a strange look on her face. "How in the world did you know that?" she exclaimed. I put my coffee down and entered the trailer to meet a black kitten and a grey and white one. I sat on the floor. The black kitty ignored me. The grey and white one crawled onto my lap and immediately went to sleep. I remember it was 05 December 1995. I remember the shirt I was wearing. Funny how the heart holds onto such details.
I took the kitty home that night. Because my two older cats, Iris and Iggy, might get jealous, I knew enough to slowly introduce them to the new addition. The grey and white kitten stayed in my bedroom so Iris and Iggy could smell her underneath the door, play the 'paw game,' and get used to each other that way.
By Christmas, I'd had my new kitty for several weeks and was struggling to find the right name for her. With a 'Got Milk?' mustache and a white outline of the state of Texas on her belly, she had character and personality. At the time, the Beatles Anthology had recently come out, and I happened to also buy a new CD of Elton John's Captain Fantastic with extra songs. Both featured new versions of "Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds." In an instant, I knew that was it. I even signed her full name on vet forms for her check ups; not just Lucy, but 'Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds.' Needless to say, none of the vets or animal techs ever forgot her name.
Lucy and I spent many wonderful years together. Her favourite activity was to lie on my chest, cross her front paws, and emit a short "Eyu..." as if to tell me she had found her spot. She was one of those special angelic beings that - if you are lucky - comes into your life sometimes... the kind you appreciate most when they are gone.
At age 10 1/2, she developed a growth. I felt it one day and had a biopsy done. This was my first experience in life with cancer. Lucy's biopsy noted the cancer type as 'possibility of return after surgery: 95%.' I had surgery done. My vet, Dr. Liz, again warned me it was likely the cancer would return. I considered chemo for Lucy but thought that it would be too much for her tiny body. Several months later, I felt a little bump on Lucy's chest. I took her in again. The tumor had come back, but it was not just one. There were five tumors, spread inside her torso in a star pattern. I asked Dr. Liz what to do. She said Lucy and I had maybe a month left together; to take care of her, watch her, and Lucy would let me know in her own way when it was time.
Exactly four months later, on Easter night, 2006, Lucy let me know. It was one of the roughest nights in my life and I will not recount it here. I would rather remember Lucy with the love I still have for her.
Two of my cats who passed on have come to me in vivid dreams. In old age, they were greyed, bodies winding down. In the dreams - more real than real - they were young again, with shining hair, vibrantly alive - and right in my face, super close. My feeling is that they were telling me they are all right.
It's been 18 years but Lucy has not come to me in a vivid dream yet. I'm still hoping. There are some things I want to tell her I didn't get a chance to properly say.
Lucy keeps watch on things from the fireplace mantle.