A RECIPE FOR BLOOD

Have you ever wanted to make stage blood for your next DYI monster movie? I used to make it with Karo syrup and red food coloring; what a mess, but it tasted good!

Recipes vary widely, even among the pros. But back when budgets were tighter than a -- well, you know what, the makeup artist often had to come up with some cheap -- but realistic looking -- claret-colored plasma.

Makeup master Emile Lavigne not only made his own concoction but wrote it down and named it a "family recipe"! Lavigne was the makeup artist for over 100 movies and TV shows during his career, including THE WIZARD OF OZ, ABBOT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, WORLD WITHOUT END, THE DISEMBODIED, QUEEN OF OUTER SPACE, THE ATOMIC SUBMARINE and THE HYPNOTIC EYE.

Seen below are some sketches he did of a clown makeup and the blood recipe (he used Karo syrup, too!), along with a couple of snapshots of what appear to be the finished product (no blood added). A strange combination, but hey, when you're taking notes, you gotta write 'em down when the inspiration hits.

See more of Emile Lavigne's makeup work HERE.

ABBOTT & COSTELLO'S MONSTER MASKS

At about 55:35 of Universal's classic (and I really do mean classic) horror comedy, ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN (1948), we see the boys trying on their masks for the masquerade party. Lou's looks like a Mr. Hyde character, but Bud's is definitely a werewolf mask, which, of course, doesn't sit too easily with the person they're showing it off to -- Larry Talbot!

We may be under the assumption that the masks are made of rubber, but we can plainly see that they are quite rigid when worn. That's because the material is really papier mache. They were made by makeup artist, Emile Lavigne, who also helped to apply the makeup to Chaney's Wolfman, Glenn Strange's Frankenstein monster, and Lugosi's Dracula (I think by this time Lugosi acquiesced to having someone else apply his makeup).

The makeup crew for A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN was star-studded: Bud Westmore was at the helm (naturally), and Lavigne and Jack Kevan assisted. Carmen Dirigo, who also worked with Jack Pierce, tended to the hair and wigs. I suspect that with two supremely capable talents like Lavigne and Kevan, Westmore -- as he did in CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON -- mainly supervised. Lavigne and Kevan nevertheless went uncredited.

Incredibly, the two masks survived the years and were sold at auction in 2007 for a combined total of nearly $20,000. Lavigne held on to them as keepsakes until his death in 1990, when his family assumed his estate.

I can't end this post without mentioning that, after Bud and Lou show their masks to Talbot, the dialogue leads into one of the funniest lines ever in a horror comedy film:

Talbot: I know you think I'm crazy but, in a half an hour the moon will rise and ... I'll turn into a wolf.
Lou: Yeah, you and 20 million other guys!

YAKETY YAK HAIR!

Hello, Monsterologists. Today's offering is an unusual exhibit of monster makeup history. Depicted is a swatch of hair woven into a mesh screen that was used by talented makeup artist, Emile Lavigne, to transform Lon Chaney, Jr. into the Wolf Man for the film, ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN. While described as "fur", the hair is most probably Yak hair which, and, once it was known for its superior quality and work-ability, was preferred over conventional wool crepe hair.

Accompanying the sample are two original photos of Mr. Lavigne at work on Mr. Chaney. The lot sold at auction for $2,031.50 in 2007.