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 Prosthetic makeup, prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other simil ...

known for his work on

Yoda Yoda () is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. He is a small, green humanoid alien who is powerful with the Force. He first appeared in the 1980 film '' The Empire Strikes Back'', in which he is voiced and puppeteered by F ...

in the ''

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

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

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

'', '' Highlander'', and '' Krull''. 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 television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

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 or 13 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 Caesar's civil wa ...

'' with

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923 – April 5, 2008) was an American actor. He gained stardom for his leading man roles in numerous Cinema of the United States, Hollywood films including biblical epics, science-fiction f ...

. 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 ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back'') is a 1980 American epic film, epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner from a screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, based o ...

'', 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 horror film directed by Norman J. Warren and starring Judy Geeson, Robin Clarke and Stephanie Beacham, along with Victoria Tennant in one of her ea ...

''. 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 Countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean region of North America. With a population of 58,477 as of June 2023 on an area of , it encompasses ...

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 founded by filmmaker George Lucas in December 10, 1971 in San Rafael, California, and later moved to San Francisco in 2005. It is best known for creating and producing th ...

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)