Stuart Freeborn

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Stuart Freeborn
Born (1914-09-05)5 September 1914
Leytonstone, London, England
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London, England
Nationality British
Occupation Make-up artist
Known for Star Wars
Spouse(s) Kay (3 children)

Stuart Freeborn (5 September 1914 – 5 February 2013) was an English motion picture make-up artist.[1] He has been referred to as the "grandfather of modern make-up design"[2] and is perhaps best known for his work on the original Star Wars trilogy, most notably the design and fabrication of Yoda.[3][4][5][6]

Career

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"Stuart was already a makeup legend when he started on Star Wars. He brought with him not only decades of experience, but boundless creative energy. His artistry and craftsmanship will live on forever in the characters he created. His Star Wars creatures may be reinterpreted in new forms by new generations, but at their heart, they continue to be what Stuart created for the original films.“

 —Star Wars creator George Lucas.[7]

Freeborn's earliest work in the film industry was designing the hair and make-up worn by Alec Guinness, while at Denham Studios[8] as Fagin in Oliver Twist. Freeborn's most famous work is creating the make-up for all of the characters in the Star Wars trilogy, including Chewbacca and Yoda; he based Yoda on his own face and partly on Albert Einstein.[1][3][4][5] He oversaw the design of the original Jabba the Hutt puppet used in Return of the Jedi, as well as the creation of the Ewoks.[9][10]

Freeborn was also the make-up artist on Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, where he created the humans/apes for the "Dawn of Man" sequence. He worked on Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove, handling Peter Sellers' multiple lead roles. He also worked with Sellers in several other films, including Heavens Above!, Mr. Topaze, "The Mouse that Roared", and Soft Beds, Hard Battles and he was the make-up visual supervisor in the Superman films.[11]

His wife Kay assisted her husband on several occasions; their son Graham was also a prolific make-up artist before his death in 1986.

In the Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace DVD, in one of the web documentaries, he was awarded a statue by the team at Lucasfilm.

Personal life

Freeborn died on 5 February 2013 at the age of 98 in London.[12] His wife Kay died in 2012. Freeborn's three sons - Roger, Ray and Graham - also died before him.[4]

Selected filmography

References

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  3. 3.0 3.1 "British make-up artist Stuart Freeborn, who created Yoda, dies aged 98". The Times. Retrieved 7 February 2013
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Stuart Freeborn, Yoda's maker, dies".The Guardian. 7 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
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  7. "Yoda, Chewbacca 'Star Wars' makeup artist Stuart Freeborn dead at 98". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 7 February 2013
  8. "Live supplement". Daily Mail. 24 June 2012
  9. "Star Wars Make-Up Artist Stuart Freeborn Dies". Sky News. Retrieved 8 February 2013
  10. "Makeup master Stuart Freeborn of 'Star Wars' dead at age 98". CNN. Retrieved 8 February 2013
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External links

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