Nick Maley is a special effects

make-up artist A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other similar productions inc ...

known for his work on Yoda in the ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

'' film series. He has worked on a total of 53 films including

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

Highlander Highlander may refer to: Regional cultures * Gorals (lit. ''Highlanders''), a culture in southern Poland and northern Slovakia * Hill people, who live in hills and mountains * Merina people, an ethnic group from the central plateau of Madagascar ...

, and

Krull Krull is a surname originating from Prussian nobility. People *Alexander Krull (born 1970), German singer *Annie Krull (1876–1947), German operatic soprano *Germaine Krull (1897–1985), photographer * Hasso Krull (born 1964), Estonian po ...

. He is sometimes referred to as "That Yoda Guy” for his work on the creation of Yoda for Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back. He was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for his work on the 1982 film The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He now operates the “That Yoda Guy Movie Exhibit” (formerly called “Planet Paradise”) on the Dutch side of Sint Maarten in the Caribbean. His museum houses many pieces of movie memorabilia spanning almost nine decades of film. He uses his museum as a front for his non-profit foundation, encouraging kids to follow their dreams.

Biography

Maley became interested in film at an early age. His father was an actor and he watched makeup artists back stage while growing up. In his earlier years, he worked on school plays where he did the makeup for the actors. Some of Maley's earliest work includes the 1970 version of

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

with

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923April 5, 2008) was an American actor and political activist. As a Hollywood star, he appeared in almost 100 films over the course of 60 years. He played Moses in the epic film ''The Ten C ...

. He later met

Stuart Freeborn Stuart Freeborn (5 September 1914 – 5 February 2013) was a British motion picture make-up artist. He has been referred to as the "grandfather of modern make-up design" and is perhaps best known for his work on the original '' Star Wars' ...

who hired Maley for the original Star Wars film, helping make Yoda's head, hands, and feet. Maley also worked with Freeborn and others on various creatures that made up the Cantina scene for the film. He also worked on The Empire Strikes Back, which he described as his favorite movie to work on. He is also a writer, creating the screenplay for the 1981 film

Inseminoid ''Inseminoid'' (titled ''Horror Planet'' in the United States) is a 1981 British Science fiction film, science fiction horror film directed by Norman J. Warren. It stars Judy Geeson, Robin Clarke and Stephanie Beacham, along with Victoria Tenna ...

. He created the script in four days along with his wife Gloria, also supplying the makeup for the characters in the film. Maley is originally from London but moved to

Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean. With a population of 41,486 as of January 2019 on an area of , it encompasses the southern 44% of the divided island of Saint Martin, while the north ...

in 2007 with his wife Gloria, and opening the Planet Paradise movie exhibit. The exhibit features versions of various Star Wars characters and other memorabilia from his work in the film industry. He is also an artist and painter whose works have been featured across 18 different countries in museums and galleries. Maley was honored by

Lucasfilm Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC is an American film and television production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is a business segment of The Walt Disney Company. The studio is best known for creating and producing the ''Star Wars'' and ' ...

in 2016. The same year he also rebuilt a replica Yoda using the same principles as the original.

Select filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maley, Nick Living people Make-up artists Year of birth missing (living people)