Celebrity Masks

[Sir Masksalot]

Heading off our "A" list of latex luminaries is the DPS Karloff Frankenstein
seen on this famous Decca Records album, a monsterkid favorite >



Following its appearance, the mask settled in for an exclusive engagement at the Ackermansion where it was seen (and handled) by thousands of visiting fans over several decades.

     

Upon liquidation of Mr Ackerman's archive the mask changed hands at least three separate times, undergoing some rather shoddy restoration work along the way.



I last saw it up close in 2015, encased behind glass at Don Con L.A. >



There'll be more entries to this thread in coming days. For now, report your own sightings
from the star-studded society of celebrity masks.

[Mike Scott]

I'd love to have that original Metaluna Mutant mask! 

[Sir Masksalot]

Determined not to be upstaged by Karloff the Uncanny, Glenn the Strange will now photobomb this thread with images related to his appearance on the IHoDPS book cover >

     

Reproduced in magazine articles, on banners, fliers, and even a tablecloth,
not everyone may know that this Daniel Horne artwork was modeled after an actual DP mask >



It's the second of our celebrity masks, a custom finished casting of the "Calendar" Frankenstein >



These never-before-seen headshots are now making their premiere at The UMA >



Book, mask, and hands later appeared live in person (?) at a public art gallery in 2016.
The city screamed in terror!



This creepy cover ghoul remains with the book's author way up north in Canada.
It may never go out on tour again but I'll be back soon enough with another
celebrity mask, this time from deepest darkest Africa!

[Dr.Terror]

Good stuff. 



This next 9ne is just my opinion.

Here is the catalog /promo pic for the "Universal Horrors"  Glenn.



Ii believe Forry owned this exact copy.



Years later this Glenn was sold from Forry's collection.   I'd bet it's the same mask.  Albeit with a different finish.

[Sir Masksalot]

catalog /promo pic for the "Universal Horrors"  Glenn

Oooooo good entry, Dr Terror, although you have to wonder
how many V.I.P.s it slept with to make the list ...




For those of us who collect rubber monster masks, few circumstances can match the thrill
of scoring a catalog-used prototype. It's rare but it does happen, as was the case with
the Twilight Series Super Gorilla by Distortions Unlimited >



New York's Frankenshrine somehow acquired it back in the 1980s and shared photographs
of the fresh new score with envious peers >



Now held by the Crimson Ghost Mask Room, here's the same mask decades later. That it looks
virtually the same is testament to the care that only dedicated collectors can provide >



Feel free to nominate any other masks you know of for our Hall of Fame.

[Sir Masksalot]

If any of the 1966 Calendar-used masks were to suddenly resurface in this day and age,
it would no doubt make waves throughout the collecting world as well as qualify for
immediate superstar status here in my post. The sad reality is all but one seem to be
forever lost to posterity. Only the Metaluna Mutant is known to have survived although
not in its original colors >

     

The twelve DPS masks photographed for the 2016 DonCon calendar all remain lovingly
ensconced in private collections across the country. I guess the project itself hasn't
"matured" enough to rate any of the masks as celebrities yet. If I had to choose just one
to feature in this post it would be Mummy 5,000 B.C., pictured on the cover page >



It's a verified first edition from January 1976, its original finish unaltered to this day.
As with all the extant celebrity masks in this thread it's been foam-filled, ensuring
many more years of shelf life. Without that inner support, most of the iconic vintage
masks known to fandom would've withered or fallen to pieces by now ... how like
a real mummy in that regard!

 

[Sir Masksalot]

Unimart Monster Daze ~ Part I of III

It's the live show that inspired Don Con fifty years later
and was referred to by author Lee Lambert as "arguably
the pinnacle" of the monsterkid generation.



Its stage decor included ten foam-filled and classically finished
DPS masks of the Universal Monsters, arranged in vertical
cabinets resembling film strips.



Of those ten, I've personally seen half of them outside of old photographs
but have since lost track of two. Among the known three is a magnificent
"Calendar" Phantom, still in displayable condition, its original finish intact >



Its owner, a life-long collector of fine monster masks, brought it to Don Con in 2015 where it served as a direct link to the 1965 show as well as providing nostalgic photo opps all weekend >

     

[Sir Masksalot]

Unimart Monster Daze ~ Part II

Another prop head salvaged from 1965's show was The Mummy,
found gathering dust and bugs at a Hollywood memorabilia shop
in the 1970s. Its original finish exactly matched the technique
Verne Langdon once described when he began incorporating
fuller's earth into his Mummy paintjobs at Don Post Studios >

[Sir Masksalot]

Unimart Monster Daze ~ Part III

In more recent times, a foam-filled DPS Creature from Universal's
movie mold entered the mask collecting community. It was tentatively
identified as the Unimart original based on its presence in Hollywood
at the time of the other prop heads and by its absent back fin, trimmed
off so as to fit inside the cabinet onstage. Rather the worse for wear
after nearly sixty years, its current owner is undecided as to whether
or not to have its crumbling areas restored. I hope he doesn't.
Somehow, the ravages of time wear well on monsters.

[Sir Masksalot]

Perhaps the finest existing "group celebrity" in maskdom is "The DonCon Ten", first presented at 2015's Don Post Studios tribute convention >

     

All ten are foam-filled castings of the PatNewman/Universal versions (not reissues),
custom finished to match the originals from 1965's Unimart Monster Daze >



Seen and admired by all who attended DonCon as well as countless thousands
over social media, the ten remain all together and in perfect condition today.



To me they represent decades of nostalgia, the same masks I used to gaze at
in monster magazines and magic shops as a kid. Hopefully they'll be around
another fifty years or so, that some future generation of monsterkid will have
"a gold standard" to emulate.

[FRANKENSTEIN455]

Thank you Sir for the interesting thread and photographs on celebrity masks.  I have always been in love with the Don Post Karloff Frankenstein mask from the 'Evening with Karloff album.  Often I would sit memorized by that album photo and as a young lad.  It was one of the few color shots of the Don Post Karloff Frankenstein mask available when I was a kid.  It is amazing seeing its long history. It looked giant and incredibly detailed & finished when it was used for the album and later placed in Forry's collection.


These are a couple of other celebrity Frankenstein masks that I have always been curious about.  I think they would at least sort of fit into celebrity mask status. I always wondered about the back story of the Don Post Frankenstein mask that was used at the Magic Castle. Was this a special addition mask or just a production mask? I always thought it looked incredible and also very large and beautifully finished. I would often fantasize about this particular mask as well when young.



 




The other mask that I always loved was the Dick Smith Karloff Frankenstein. I have seen many of the recasts but they often have lost some of the beauty of the original piece. The original mask so accurately captured Karloff's essence. I read somewhere that the original mask used the actor's own ears - if I recall correctly.  That is kind of evident in the photo with Boris Karloff from the "Saturday Evening Post" photos. Mr. Karloff had rather pronounced ears.  However later on the mask appeared to have actual ears sculpted in which were more correctly sized to Boris Karloff's ears.









These two Frankenstein masks have always been a couple of my all-time favorites.  They still to this day remain two of the most accurate sculptures and masks of the classic monster in my humble opinion.  Thanks again Sir Masksalot and Dr.Terror for all the great photos and interesting discussion. 

[Sir Masksalot]

'Great reply, F'455, with two outstanding masks.
I wonder if those photo shoots took place on the same day. Mr Karloff
seems to be wearing the same necktie during both. I have no idea where
that first mask is now, the one worn at The Magic Castle event. The mask
photographed for "Look" magazine now resides in the Silver Screen Movie
Museum. I should've remembered to include it in my "A" list.

[FRANKENSTEIN455]

Thanks so much - The Dick Smith Frankenstein has always been a favorite of mine.  That picture with Sara Karloff is a classic.  It is nice to see such a historic mask is in good hands.  It is still one of the coolest Frankenstein masks ever.

I was wondering if there is any history on the "Cool Yule" Frankenstein? He's also another of my all-time favorites. Is his whereabouts known today?  I would often dream of getting a beauty like him as a kid. In the original photos ... I always thought he almost looked to be a clay sculpture.  However, I do not think  he was.  But did they add some clay around the eyes?

It was such a great time period for Don Post Studios masks.  Thanks again Sir for all the cool photos and interesting history.

[Josh]

Here is a mask I acquired last year that has achieved some renown: This is the "Calendar" Mad Doctor mask that was photographed both for Dr Lady's book and Lee Lambert's Don Post book.

[Sir Masksalot]

 

any history on the "Cool Yule" Frankenstein?

The only other time I saw it outside that Monster World portrait was in this vintage pic.
We think the lady with it is Jackie "Robin" Ward, a popular singer of the time. Maybe
she knows where the mask is now ...

the "Calendar" Mad Doctor mask that was photographed both for Dr Lady's book and Lee Lambert's Don Post book.

I always liked the finish on that MD, very distinctive and scruffy-looking enough nowadays 
to capture the character of the imprisoned Dr Niemann even more. Thanks for this latest
celebrity mask sighting, Josh.