Rick Baker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rick Baker
Baker in 2015
Born	Richard Alan Baker (1950-12-08) December 8, 1950 (age 74) Binghamton, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	Academy of Art University (BA)
Occupation	Special make-up effects artist actor
Years active	1967–2018
Spouse(s)	Elaine Baker ​ ​ (m. 1974; div. 1984)​ Silvia Abascal ​ (m. 1987)​
Children	2

Richard Alan Baker (born December 8, 1950), known as Rick Baker, is a retired American artist. He is famous for creating amazing special make-up effects. He also acted in some films.

Rick Baker is best known for designing and making creatures for movies. He has won the Academy Award for Best Makeup seven times. This is a record! His first win was for the 1981 horror comedy film An American Werewolf in London.

Rick Baker's Early Life

Rick Baker was born in Binghamton, New York. His mother, Doris, worked at a bank. His father, Ralph B. Baker, was a professional artist. When Rick was less than one year old, his family moved to Covina, California.

Rick Baker's Amazing Career

When Rick Baker was a teenager, he started making fake body parts. He did this right in his own kitchen! He also appeared in a fan-made video called The Night Turkey. This video was a funny parody of a 1972 film.

One of Rick Baker's first professional jobs was helping Dick Smith. Dick Smith was a well-known make-up effects artist. They worked together on the 1973 film The Exorcist. While working on The Exorcist, Rick Baker was hired for another movie. Director Larry Cohen hired him to create a mutant baby for the 1974 film It's Alive.

Winning Awards for Makeup Effects

At the 54th Academy Awards, Rick Baker won the very first Academy Award for Best Makeup. He won for his work on An American Werewolf in London (1981). After that, he was nominated ten more times and won seven times. These are both records in his field!

Rick Baker also created the amazing werecat creature. This creature was seen when Michael Jackson transforms in the music video Thriller (1983).

Rick Baker at the 37th Saturn Awards in 2011

In 2008, Rick Baker received an honorary degree. It was a Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Academy of Art University. This university is in San Francisco. Rick Baker also shares his thoughts on horror and science fiction movie trailers. He does this for a web series called Trailers from Hell.

Rick Baker says his work on Harry and the Hendersons (1987) is one of his proudest achievements. He won his second Oscar for this film. On October 3, 2009, he received the Jack Pierce Lifetime Achievement Award.

On November 30, 2012, Rick Baker received his own star. It was the 2485th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His star is located in front of the Guinness World Records Museum.

Retirement from Film Work

On May 28, 2015, Rick Baker announced he was retiring. He explained that CG (computer-generated images) had changed the business. CG started to replace the need for physical animatronics and even makeup. He felt the time was right to leave. He was 64 years old, and the film business was changing fast. He liked to do things perfectly, but studios wanted things done cheaply and quickly. He decided it was time to step away from having a big working studio. He said he might still design or consult on projects.

In 2018, DC Comics asked Rick Baker to create a collectible display bust. His daughter Veronica worked for DC at the time. He agreed, but only if he had complete creative freedom. DC accepted his terms. With help from his mold maker, Rob Freitas, Rick Baker created a bust of The Joker.

Rick Baker's Acting Roles

Rick Baker played the main role in the 1976 remake of King Kong. He was first hired to make an ape suit. This suit was for scenes where a huge mechanical Kong was too hard to use. But the mechanical Kong had problems. So, Rick Baker ended up playing Kong for almost the entire movie! In the 2005 remake of King Kong, he had a small role. He played a pilot and gunner who shot down Kong, along with director Peter Jackson.

Rick Baker's Personal Life

Rick Baker is married. He was married before to Elaine Melba Parkyn for ten years. He met his second wife, Silvia Abascal, who is a hairstylist. They met while working on the film Into the Night (1985). Rick and Silvia have two daughters. Veronica was born in 1989, and Rebecca was born in 1993.

Selected Filmography

Awards and Nominations

Rick Baker has won many awards for his incredible work.

Academy Awards

BAFTA Awards

Saturn Awards

Other Recognitions

• 2485th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
• Time Machine Award at the 2015 Sitges Film Festival
• Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Academy of Art University
• Jack Pierce Lifetime Achievement Award
• Inducted into the Monster Kid Hall of Fame at the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards
• Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974)

See also

• Prosthetic makeup
• Special effect