Cornelius Makes an Appearence

There is an event that I haven’t participated in since the
late 1980s and early 1990s and that is a comic convention
costume contest. Now I have never graced the stage myself
physically, but the make up that I had a hand in creating has.

This year, at the San Francisco WonderCon 2008, a make up
that has been recreated numerous times in the past will make
a rare appearance – Cornelius of the 1968 feature film
“The Planet of the Apes”.

That’s right, my good friend Dan Morgan will be performing his
glorious Roddy McDowall impression in full make up and costume.
Which, by the way, was made from the same bolts of material that
the original McDowall costume was made from in the film.

I’ll soon be sculpting an entirely new prosthetic once again after
over decade. This time though, the prosthetics won’t be made from
foam latex as they have been since John Chambers, the make up
artist that developed it, created the make up for the films. Instead
we’ll be using Platsil Gel 10 Silicone.

Stay tuned for pictures of the process. Meanwhile here are some
studies of the character based on dvd captures.