domingo, 31 de enero de 2016

Hollywood's Westmore family? They're like the Barrymores, but makeup artists


Hollywood has had more than its share of dynasties such as the Barrymores (actors John, Ethel, Lionel and Drew) and the Hustons (actors Walter, Anjelica and Jack and director John). And then there are the Westmores.
Though not household names to the public, for nearly a century members of the family have been preeminent makeup artists who have worked on legendary films and popular TV series.
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George Westmore, a British hairdresser and wig maker who was Winston Churchill's barber, established the first makeup department in Hollywood in 1917. Six of his sons — Monte, Perc, Ern, Wally, Bud and Frank — followed in their father's footsteps.
Initially, Oscar and nine-time Emmy Award-winning Michael Westmore didn't want to go into the family business. The son of Monte Westmore, who was Rudolph Valentino's makeup artist and also provided the makeup for such films as "Gone With the Wind," Michael Westmore was an art history major at UC Santa Barbara with dreams of going into archaeology and museum work.
"I was planning to go to Berkeley after I graduated from Santa Barbara," said the 77-year-old Westmore, relaxing in the living room of his expansive and quirky Encino house filled with such diverse decor as posters of his films, carousel horses, his Emmys — he won for such "Star Trek" series as "The Next Generation," "Deep Space Nine" and "Voyager" — and his Oscar for 1985's "Mask."
But when Westmore was trying to decide on a master's degree, things began to look bleak. "I didn't speak any foreign language, so I couldn't do anything in Europe except maybe England and America. I wasn't interested in American art."

Star Trek:First Contact

Then he received a call from his Uncle Bud, who worked at Universal on such films as the sci-fi favorite "Creature From the Black Lagoon" inquiring if he would like to be an apprentice at the studio makeup department. "I really wasn't interested," said Westmore. "I wanted to graduate and enjoyed going to school."
So Bud Westmore sweetened the deal. He would wait a year so his nephew could graduate from college. "In the back of my mind, I kept saying if I don't like it, I'll go back to school."
He never did.
Westmore started at Universal on Jan. 30, 1961, where he was mentored not only by his uncle but John Chambers ("Planet of the Apes"), whom John Goodman played in 2012's "Argo," on the 1963 John Huston film "The List of Adrian Messenger."
And now Westmore is a mentor on "Face Off," SyFy's reality competition series in which special effects makeup artists must accomplish elaborate weekly challenges. The series, which began its 10th season this month, is also hosted by his daughter actress McKenzie Westmore ("Passions," "All My Children").
Every week, Westmore checks in with the participants in the early stages of the challenges, critiques their work and offers suggestions.
Even before the season begins, Westmore gives a one-hour class for the contestants. "They all come in with different degrees [of experience]. I talk about mold making and sculpting because there are major mistakes that new people make. I made all of those mistakes."
McKenzie Westmore, who worked as a makeup model for her father and appeared in shows he was working on such as "Star Trek: Enterprise," said that her father initially went in for a meeting to be a regular judge on the show.
"He asked the producers if they had a host for the show," she said via email. "They hadn't at the time, so my dad mentioned me, saying that my background is not just as an actress but with a knowledge of this industry having grown up around it and by my father's side. A few seasons into the series is when they decided to bring my father in as the show's mentor."
Working together has been a dream job for both of them. "I get to spend more time with my father than I ever had before," said Westmore. "He traveled so much when I was younger on so many different locations to have this time with him now on 'Face Off' is priceless."
Michael Westmore spent 18 months working with Martin Scorsese on his 1980 masterpiece "Raging Bull" starring Robert De Niro in his Oscar-winning role as boxer Jake LaMotta. Westmore provided the realistic, innovative makeup that made the boxing sequences so visceral.
"With 'Raging Bull,' I had tubes that came across the front of the face to the nose so blood would spurt out of the nose," said Westmore. "I even had boxing gloves rigged with tubes, so blood would come out of the boxing gloves as they went by the face."
And he had to adjust the makeup after De Niro gained weight to play the older LaMotta. "I had to make the nose bigger and flatter with more scars on it," Westmore said.
In the scene when the older LaMotta is in his dressing room reflecting on his past, Westmore and hairstylist Jean Reilly manually thinned the actor's hair.
"We took his hair and combed a whole line of it forward," noted Westmore. "With Jean on one side and me on the other, we went in and we cut every other hair. And then we would comb back down another layer and cut every other hair, so when you see the thinning hair on him it's not a bald cap or a wig, it's really his hair."

viernes, 29 de enero de 2016


Entertainment Tonight Goes Behind the Scenes of Beyond

Entertainment Tonight visited the Star Trek Beyond set during production of the upcoming adventure, and they've started airing segments from that visit in recent weeks. In case you missed it, here's a 2-minute piece that features brief interviews with Chris Pine, John Cho and Karl Urban, as well as quick clips of Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg and Zoe Saldana, plus director Justin Lin.

Viewers will also get a good glimpse of the bridge and hear minor revelations spilled, including the fact that Sulu has a young daughter. We can only presume that the daughter is Demora Sulu, whom moviegoers saw on the Enterprise-B in Star Trek Generations.


Star Trek Beyond will open on July 22.
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jueves, 28 de enero de 2016

 How the World was Warped



Without a question Warped is the definitive guide to the lost eighth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. I say that with 100% conviction.

Never in my life have I read such made up,  crackers stories as I read in this book -  and that's kind of the point.

Warped is the brainchild of Mike McMahon,  creator of the @TNG_s8 Twitter account which has taken the ball and quite literally sped off into the distance with it never to be seen again.  Warped follows the hurriedly made and never released final final season of Picard and crew. Made on a fraction of a shoestring budget we get to explore every area of the series in some of the most bizarre episodes never made.

McMahon has created the ultimate spoof companion detailing not just 26 stories as if they were real episodes but also covers bloopers and background material to flesh out the "reality"  of the situation.

I did approach the book with some skepticism as to how this would manage to translate from the Twitter limit of 140 characters into a full blown 250+ page book but the end product exceeded my expectations and then some.

McMahon has truly dug into the foundations of The Next Generation and observed the nuances which made the characters -  or at least kept cropping up in the show -  and has used them just as the writers of The Next Generation did, creating stories around them. This however is a bit different and nowhere near as serious. Picard's terrible luck with turbolifts comes back to haunt him, the buddying of Geordi and Data is in full swing and Beverly just can't find enough desks to bang her fist on. Thing is once you've read them here in their enhanced and more noticeable form you'll see the seven seasons of the show in a slightly different way. Each character has their unique characteristics which are played on with each story but there's even more.

The plots themselves are cleverly thought out, swaying into car-crash B movie territory with over the top sci-fi premises with a severe helping of humour thrown in it really is no holds barred as the series veers into facepalm central -  but hey, it was like this to ensure there would be no ninth season(!!!). McMahon hasn't just successfully written an "episode guide" but has taken advantage of a tested book formula to play out other aspects of the season's supposed production.

While stories of combining crew members, Barclay deaths and Q interruptions are great it's actually made all the better for the additional material outside of the A and B plots provided. Dropping in notes regarding "real"  Borg with their own herder required for one episode or an overabundance of juvenile crew in another thanks to Bring Your Child to Work Day made this a book I couldn't put down for days. Every episode had something different that made me laugh and made the wife wonder how I could find anything to do with Star Trek funny. Honestly there are some really hilarious sections in here, my favourites being from the highlight episode,  Barclay's Day. I won't ruin it but all. I can say is Space Snakes.

Cleverly there are even errors and in-jokes dotted through the book which fans will love. There are a couple at the expense of Voyager which are very on point as well as referencing back to previous episodes from the show, even  being able to make fun of some of the real sillier moments such as the Exocomps from The Quality of Life or Geordi's poor luck with the ladies. Deciding to write this from a production perspective detailing the shoddy - purposefully shoddy - work on season eight, the author has created an hilariously believable experience which is fortunately maintained over all 26 synopses. 

Some of the lists dropped into the episodes are laugh out loud funny; alternate Tasha's (they turn up all the time y'know), oddball space pirates and many more. I think it's one of those books I couold go back to just to highlight those more eccentric points of the series. McMahon has managed to get every situation just ridiculous enough that it suits the characters we know from The Next Generation perfectly yet doesn't destroy the "real"  Star Trek universe if you get where I'm going.

It's a book that absolutely shows the author's love and understanding of the series to a great extent indeed to a point where he has more than competently poked fun at the show and succeeded in producing something extremely readable, entertaining and more than worthy of sitting alongside the other official series companions.

Every story has something different, a new character nuance that's exploited and while it's not a factual book about the series it's absolutely worth getting hold of because it will, I guarantee, entertain you at every page turn. Now just go and buy it.

Seven's Individuality


Voyager is Seven of Nines Collective - Heres a treat for all of you Seven of Nine fans out there!


Jeri was born Jeri Lynn Zimmerman on February 22nd  1968 in Munich, Germany. You know who I'm blogging about! Doesn't she look beautiful?


On June 15th, 1991 she married Jack Ryan, an investment banker-turned politician from Illinois and broke the hearts of several million nerdlings in the process. The Ryan's had a son, Alex, in 1994 and divorced in 1999.



During Star Trek Voyager's seven seasons, I pretended Seven was all mine as she explored the boundaries of her human individuality.



 Seeing her all wrapped up like that makes a severe impression on a guy but Jeri paid the price for wearing those tight costumes and fainted four times until executives got the specifications just right.



 I guess one of them had his own special designs on Jeri. Sigh.... Still, no harm in wishful thinking...


Following 1999, Seven became romantically involved with Voyager executive producer Brannon Braga.


The two lived together with Ryan's son, but their relationship has since ended.



For a brief period geeks momentarily came out of mourning until our hopes were totally dashed again with news of yet another marriage.


 On 8 February 2005, Ryan and her current husband, French Chef Christophe Eme, opened a restaurant called "Ortolan" which is located on West 3rd Street in Los Angeles, California.


Jeri announced that she was engaged to be married in July 2006 to Eme, and they married on 16 June the following year.



The couple's first child, a daughter Gisele, was born on 2 March 2008. Jeri Ryan resides in an area of Los Angeles, California with her husband chef Christophe Eme, her son Alex and daughter Gisele.



Dream long and Prosper, trekkers and trekkies. Remember Resistance is Futile! You will be absorbed! QED.

Spacerguys Top 100 Sci-Fi Robots


This week I've shortlisted 100 Science Fiction Robots in showbusiness. Most of these iconic robots' originated from various science fiction movies and tv shows. A few others featured in fantasy musicals, cartoons and comic Sci-Fi spoofs like Galaxina, the Wizard of Oz, Futurama and International Man of Mystery.

Technically speaking the Terminator played by Arnold Schwarzenegger is neither a robot nor an android. In simple Sci-Fi terms hes just your average killer cyborg disguised with living flesh covering an indestructible exo-skeleton. So sit back and enjoy the fun. A couple of evil robots and computer entities mimicking human qualities are here too but why Locutus Of Borg at no.46? Needless to say I'm a trekker.


How does your geek feel about the sequencing of these Robots, Androids and Cyborgs? By the late 1970's and 80's Star Wars, Asimov's Three Robotic Laws and Robocop's Prime Directives were well known. Our robot pals have become like family intrinsically rooted in modern society. They no longer have to look like us to be lovable. R2-D2 and the USS Enterprise NCC 1701 bridge speak to us in whistles and beeps. I hope you've been listening closely, they have more personality than many a humanoid robot.

Perhaps by 2100 the friendliest living thing on planet Earth will be an immortal robotic mind filled with human memories!















Whos that friendly, beaming face hugging R2-D2?  What is the fourth law of robotics?

Which Sci-Fi ROBOT is your favorite?

What caused Sarek's and Spock's major disagreement?

















What decision caused a rift between Spock and his father, Sarek, that lasted for 18 years?

1. In 2267 Spock's marriage ceremony was ruined owing to human weakness which severed his telepathic bond with T'Pring and granted a vulcan called Stonn the opportunity to steal his girlfriend away from him.

2. Spock joined his USS Enterprise NCC-1701 friends to communicate with V'Ger instead of accomplishing the Vulcan ritual of Kolinahr intended to purge all remaining emotions in the pursuit of pure logical reasoning.

3. In 2249 Spock chose to apply to Starfleet Academy instead of staying on his Vulcan home world to study at the Science Academy of higher learning. The Institute cast a slur on Mr Spock's half breed human heritage which insulted the green blooded Vulcan's feelings.

4. In 2363 Spock secretly traveled to Romulus on a personal mission to educate Romulans about the Romulan/Vulcan Unification. Spock's disappearance caused great consternation among Federation authorities about a defection.

5. Spock's father Sarek married at least three times. His first wife was a Vulcan princess with whom he had a son named Sybok. Next up was Spock's mother Amanda Grayson, a sweet Earthling woman whom Spock desperately tried to save from the dying planet Vulcan. He took Amanda's death badly and publicly opposed Sarek's position during the Cardassian Wars giving his father's third wife, Perrin reason to harbour resentment towards Spock. Spock left for Romulus during Sarek's Bendii Syndrome illness without even saying goodbye.

6. None of the above.


3. In 2249 Spock chose to apply to Starfleet Academy rather than remain on his Vulcan home world and study at the Science Academy of higher learning. The Institute cast a slur on Mr Spock's half breed human heritage which insulted the green blooded Vulcan's feelings.

Locutus of Borg


L is for Locutus of Borg but who is he? In Star Trek TNG's Best of Both Worlds, Picard's Enterprise-D crew get their butts kicked in a battle with the big scary Borg. Victorious, trek's cybernetic baddies beam off the Federation's Galaxy class fortress with their prized possession, Captain Picard. How could this be happenning, I hear you ask. Well to be honest, TNG's Best of Both Worlds left many of us gobsmacked on stardate 44001.4 It was spine chillingly thrilling watching Picard become Locutus of Borg. However, many of us still couldn't accept Starfleet's finest diplomat was now the enemy, a walking and talking Borg.

 'I am Locutus of Borg. Resistance is futile. Your life as it has been is over. From now on, you will service us.'

 How did you react when Commander Riker gave the order?

 'Mr Worf.....fire.'

 JUSTIN LIN STAR TREK BEYOND INTERVIEW


Star Trek Beyond Will Mix Things Up in Its Plot, Jumping Forward in Time! is the latest scoop to hit the trekkie sphere over at Master Herald.‎ Star Trek Beyond Won't Be A Traditional Kirk-Spock Adventure according to cinemablend. Almost everyone knows William Shatner is not in the movie. To keep everything on track, heres Director Justin Lin's "INSIDER VIEW" on ‘Star Trek Beyond’ Criticisms:



“We Are Trying to Be Bold and Take Risks” was Posted by Peter Sciretta over at Slashfilm recently. Heres a few quotes from J. Linn who explains why trek's trailer was mind boggling.... to be kind.

 Justin Lin Quote 1

 Well, its a minute and a half, you know… And again, there were other versions that were much more traditional and I can see where maybe the hardcore fans could probably see that as, “Oh.” But with trailers you’re putting a two-hour movie into a minute and a half, and the one thing I wanted to make sure is that it hopefully represents that we are trying to be bold and take risks, whether we are successful or not, I don’t know. That was something I was excited to do and with collaborators like Simon [Pegg] and Doug [Jung], passion for the franchise will be there regardless. So however it’s presented, yeah it’s a minute and a half, and my challenge to everyone making the trailer is about saying “let’s not go off course, I’m not afraid to share — share it, I feel like we have the goods in a two-hour run and you really do get to know the characters and hopefully the journey is great. I love it and the cast did an amazing job and the crew… and the inside baseball version of the creation of this Trek was pretty condensed in how you usually make a movie of this size. And I wanted us to be bold, I wanted us to take chances and hopefully in a minute and a half we are able to convey that.

miércoles, 27 de enero de 2016



Se anuncia la convención Star Trek: Mission New York por el 50 aniversario de la franquicia


Para celebrar el aniversario 50 de la franquicia, ReedPOP (la compañía responsable de organizar Comic-Con de Nueva York) ha anunciado una convención de tres días llamada Star Trek: Mission New York. De acuerdo con The Hollywood Reporter, el evento se llevará a cabo del 2 al 4 de septiembre, en el Javits Center de la Ciudad de Nueva York.
El vicepresidente global de ReedPOP, Lance Fensterman, dijo que Star Trek: Mission New York "será un evento único para fans, como algo nunca antes visto". Él agregó que éste permitirá que los fans "vayan más allá de los panels y de las firmas de autógrafos, mientras que se adentran en el universo de Star Trek".
Cabe decir que, tal como destaca THR, el aniversario real de Star Trek es el 8 de septiembre, que fue el día en el que el primer episodio salió al aire en 1966,
Típicamente, la "gran" convención de la franquicia es Star Trek Las Vegas de Creation Entertainment. El evento se desarrollará tan sólo un mes antes del de ReedPOP de este año, por lo que será interesante ver si Star Trek: Mission New York puede superar al show de Las Vegas.
ReedPOP sugirió que anunciará más detalles acerca de la convención "en las próximas semanas", así que te despegues de IGN LATAM para enterarte de más detalles.

martes, 26 de enero de 2016

Star Trek: Mission New York Event Set for Sept. 2-4



Save the date: September 2-4, 2016. That’s when fans from around the world will gather in New York City, birthplace of the first-ever Star Trek convention, for Star Trek: Mission New York. The three-day 50th anniversary event, presented by CBS Consumer Products and ReedPop, will feature a galaxy of activities for Trek aficionados to enjoy, including interactive exhibits, celebrity guests, panels, screenings, exclusive merchandise and more.

Star Trek fans set the gold standard of what these type of experiential events are all about, truly establishing this industry that we’ve been so proud to be a part of,” said Lance Fensterman, Global Senior Vice President of ReedPOP. “Star Trek: Mission New York will be a completely unique fan event unlike anything seen before, giving them the chance to go beyond panels and autograph signings, and immerse themselves in the Star Trek universe.”

Additional information about Star Trek: Mission New York – including ticket sales, hotel information and exhibitors – will be revealed in the coming weeks. Keep an eye on StarTrek.com for ongoing coverage, and also be sure to visit www.StarTrekMissions.com and the Star Trek: Mission New York social media pages (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram).

lunes, 25 de enero de 2016

 Mezco's second Star Trek action figure is Sulu

Mezco have announced their second Star Trek action figure in their One:12 range, and in a refreshing bucking of expectations it is not Kirk! Expected in June or July, Mr Sulu will be joining the previously announced Spock figure in this series.


Like Spock, this highly detailed figure will come with an insignia display base, and feature no less than twenty-eight points of articulation. He will have a fabric uniform, and a good selection of props, including a sword! He will also have a load of different hands ready to strike various poses, and two heads to give different expressions. Continue below for a close look at all those details:









In other Star Trek action figure news, at the other end of the fabric clothed scale, Diamond Select Toys are currently reissuing and expanding their retro cloth range. The most recently announced characters to return are Uhura and Mugato, who should also be arriving this summer.