Michael Westmore, Academy Award®and Emmy®-winning make-up artist, will be honored with the Vanguard Award at the 11th Annual Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Awards (MUAHS, IATSE Local 706). The gala will be held on Sunday, February 18, 2024.
Westmore’s illustrious career spans over five decades and has left an indelible mark on the entertainment industry. From the breathtaking beauty of Elizabeth Taylor to the bloody Rocky series, to the Romulans in Star Trek, Westmore’s artistry has captivated audiences and set the standard for make-up and hair styling in film and television. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has honored him with four nominations and an Oscar® in 1986 for his artistry on the film Mask. He has received a record 45 Emmy nominations, bringing home nine statuettes.
“IATSE Local 706 is excited and thrilled to honor Michael Westmore with the Vanguard Award,” said Karen J. Westerfield, business rep, IATSE Local 706. “His contributions and expertise to our industry are unparalleled. His unwavering encouragement and guidance to elevate our members, along with the Westmore Legacy, will continue to inspire future generations of make-up artists and hair stylists. We are truly honored to celebrate his achievements and incredible talent. We recognize him as the Man, the Myth, the Mentor…Michael Westmore.”
The Vanguard Award is presented to an individual who has made significant contributions to the make-up and hair styling industry and has left a lasting impact on the craft.
Westmore has been making up the stars for film and television for over 50 years. He has handled everything from the Rocky and Rambo films to creating the Sleestaks in Land of the Lost, and many of the alien looks for the various Star Trek series that followed the original. He is a member of the renowned Westmore family. Since 1917, almost every major studio has had a Westmore supervising their make-up departments, including his father, Monte Westmore, on Gone with the Wind.
Michael Westmore notably transformed Sylvester Stallone into Rocky Balboa for the Rocky film series, and Robert DeNiro into Jake LaMotta for Raging Bull, among many other makeup miracles. Westmore created hundreds of alien characters for over 18 years and more than 600 episodes of Star Trek in all its iterations, from The Next Generation to Enterprise. Westmore’s talent as a make-up artist became legendary for creating memorable disguises for Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis, Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum and Frank Sinatra for the 1963 film The List of Adrian Messenger. Westmore later went on to become the preferred make-up man for Bobby Darin and Elizabeth Taylor, and worked on such movies and TV shows as The Munsters, Rosemary’s Baby, Eleanor and Franklin, New York, New York and Blade Runner, among others.
Later he turned his attention to writing articles and books on cosmetics and their application, including his latest book, “Makeup Man: From Rocky to Star Trek, The Amazing Creations of Hollywood’s Michael Westmore.” Today, Westmore serves as an on-camera mentor for the Syfy channel make-up reality show Face Off, which is hosted by his actress daughter McKenzie.
As previously announced, Kevin Haney, Oscar and Emmy-winning make-up artist best known for his work on Driving Miss Daisy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Hocus Pocus 2, and Ora T. Green, Emmy-nominated hair stylist known for her work on Star Trek: Nemesis, Blade and Good Times, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Awards. Producers of this year’s MUAHS Awards are IngleDodd Media and Erick Weiss of Honeysweet Creative.
