
Richard A. Baker (born December 8, 1950) is a retired American special make-up effects creator and actor, mostly known for his creature effects and designs. Baker won the Academy Award for Best Makeup a record seven times from a record eleven nominations, beginning when he won the inaugural award for the 1981 film An American Werewolf in London. As a teen, Baker began creating artificial body parts in his own kitchen. He also appeared briefly in the fan production The Night Turkey, a one-hour, black-and-white video parody of The Night Stalker directed by William Malone. Baker's first professional job was as an assistant to prosthetic makeup effects veteran Dick Smith on the 1973 film The Exorcist. While working on The Exorcist, Baker was hired by director Larry Cohen to design and create a mutant infant for Cohen's 1974 film It's Alive. Baker received the inaugural Academy Award for Best Makeup for his work on An American Werewolf in London. He also created the werewolf creature Michael Jackson transforms into in the music video Thriller. Subsequently, Baker has been nominated for the Best Makeup Oscar ten more times, winning on seven occasions, both records in his field. Baker claims that his work on Harry and the Hendersons is one of his proudest achievements.[8] On October 3, 2009, he received the Jack Pierce – Lifetime Achievement Award title of the Chiller-Eyegore Awards.[9] He was awarded a Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Academy of Art University San Francisco in 2008. He also contributes commentaries to the web series Trailers from Hell for trailers about horror and science fiction films. Baker received the 2485th star of the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 30, 2012. The star is located in front of the Guinness World Records Museum. Baker announced his retirement on May 28, 2015: "First of all, the CG stuff definitely took away the animatronics part of what I do. It's also starting to take away the makeup part. The time is right, I am 64 years old, and the business is crazy right now. I like to do things right, and they wanted cheap and fast. That is not what I want to do, so I just decided it is basically time to get out. I would consider designing and consulting on something, but I don't think I will have a huge working studio anymore."

Making Michael Jackson's Thriller

It's Alive: The True Story of Frankenstein

He Who Made Monsters: The Life and Art of Jack Pierce

The Making of Men in Black

Michael Jackson's Thriller

AGFA Mystery Mixtape #1

Ray Harryhausen: The Early Years Collection

The 'Frankenstein' Files: How Hollywood Made a Monster

She's Alive! Creating 'The Bride of Frankenstein'

The Perfect Scary Movie

The Road to 'Dracula'

The Making of David Cronenberg's Videodrome

Ed Wood: Making Bela

Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex

Face Off

The Wolf Man: From Ancient Curse to Modern Myth

Mummy Dearest: A Horror Tradition Unearthed

The Sci-Fi Boys

The Art of Imagination: A Tribute to Oz

Pure in Heart: The Life and Legacy of Lon Chaney, Jr.

The Beast Inside: Creating 'Wolf'

Unchained Reaction

The Making of Captain EO

Monster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man'

Making Apes: The Artists Who Changed Film

Culto al terror

Face Off: Game Face

グリンチ

Beware the Moon: Remembering 'An American Werewolf in London'

眠れぬ夜のために

Monsterland

Videodrome: Forging the New Flesh

メン・イン・ブラック 3

King Cohen: The Wild World of Filmmaker Larry Cohen

メン・イン・ブラック 2

キング・コング

Fangoria's Weekend of Horrors

V/H/S/Halloween

ケンタッキー・フライド・ムービー

DC Daily

ウルフマン

PLANET OF THE APES/猿の惑星

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

Metamorphosis of 'Men in Black'

The Thing with Two Heads

A Tribute to the Wizard of Oz

Tales Beyond Madness

MonsterKids: The Impact of Things That Go Bump In The Night

RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”

Fear and Love: The Story of The Exorcist

Old Time Radio: Your Move

Charlie Gemora: Uncredited

Birth Pains

Keep the Gaslight Burning

House of Wax: Unlike Anything You've Seen Before!

Rick Baker: Alien Maker

Working with a Master: John Landis

Old Time Radio: Dance With Me

Masters of Illusion: The Wizards of Special Effects

The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault

Old Time Radio: The Specter of Christmas

The Night Turkey