Thomas Vincent Savini (born November 3, 1946) is an American
prosthetic makeup artist, actor, stunt performer and film director. He
is known for his makeup and special effects work on many films
directed by George A. Romero, including Martin, Dawn of the Dead, Day
of the Dead, Creepshow and Monkey Shines; he also created the special
effects and makeup for many cult classics like Friday the 13th (parts
I and IV), Maniac, The Burning, The Prowler and The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre 2.Savini directed Night of the Living Dead, the 1990 remake
of Romero's 1968 Night of the Living Dead; his other directing work
includes three episodes of the TV show Tales from the Darkside and one
segment in The Theatre Bizarre. As an actor and stuntman, he has
appeared in films such as Martin, Dawn of the Dead, Knightriders, From
Dusk till Dawn, Planet Terror, Machete, Django Unchained and Machete
Kills.Savini was born on November 3, 1946 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
and is of Italian descent. He was raised Catholic and graduated from
Central Catholic High School. As a boy, his inspiration was actor Lon
Chaney, Sr., and Savini attributes his earliest desires to create
makeup effects to Chaney and the film Man of a Thousand Faces.
Experimenting with whatever medium he could find, the young Savini
practiced creating makeup effects on himself, later convincing his
friends to let him practice his craft on them. He also discovered
another passion, acting. Combining his makeup applications and
homemade costumes, he especially enjoyed scaring his friends. Savini
attended Point Park University for three years, before enlisting in
the United States Army. After his tour in Vietnam, he attended
Carnegie-Mellon University, as the first undergraduate to be awarded a
full fellowship in the acting and directing program. He appeared in
stage productions throughout college and continued on stage long after
his tour of duty in Vietnam.Savini served as a combat photographer
during the Vietnam War. In a 2002 interview, he told the Pittsburgh
Post "When I was in Vietnam I was a combat photographer. My job was to
shoot images of damage to machines and to people. Through my lens, I
saw some hideous [stuff]. To cope with it, I guess I tried to think of
it as special effects. Now, as an artist, I just think of creating the
effect within the limitations we have to deal with." He continued to
practice with makeup in Vietnam, often frightening indigenous peasants
by appearing to suddenly transform into a "monster". Using the lens of
his camera, Savini separated himself from the real life horrors of
war; however, all the images still haunted his mind. Savini said his
wartime experiences influenced his eventual style of gory effects: "I
hated that when I watched a war movie and someone dies. Some people
die with one eye open and one eye half-closed, sometimes people die
with smiles on their faces because the jaw is always slack. I
incorporated the feeling of the stuff I saw in Vietnam into my work."
In 1970, while on guard duty, a flare was triggered in the jungle area
Savini was watching. Against military protocol, Savini fired into the
bush without informing his superiors. Other soldiers likewise began
firing until a duck wandered from the bush completely unharmed. Due to
his failure to follow orders, Savini was taken off guard duty from his
bunker on the following evening. That same evening, the bunker came
under attack and several soldiers were wounded or killed. As a result
of this incident, Savini earned the nickname "Duck Slayer" and to this
day will not eat duck.
prosthetic makeup artist, actor, stunt performer and film director. He
is known for his makeup and special effects work on many films
directed by George A. Romero, including Martin, Dawn of the Dead, Day
of the Dead, Creepshow and Monkey Shines; he also created the special
effects and makeup for many cult classics like Friday the 13th (parts
I and IV), Maniac, The Burning, The Prowler and The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre 2.Savini directed Night of the Living Dead, the 1990 remake
of Romero's 1968 Night of the Living Dead; his other directing work
includes three episodes of the TV show Tales from the Darkside and one
segment in The Theatre Bizarre. As an actor and stuntman, he has
appeared in films such as Martin, Dawn of the Dead, Knightriders, From
Dusk till Dawn, Planet Terror, Machete, Django Unchained and Machete
Kills.Savini was born on November 3, 1946 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
and is of Italian descent. He was raised Catholic and graduated from
Central Catholic High School. As a boy, his inspiration was actor Lon
Chaney, Sr., and Savini attributes his earliest desires to create
makeup effects to Chaney and the film Man of a Thousand Faces.
Experimenting with whatever medium he could find, the young Savini
practiced creating makeup effects on himself, later convincing his
friends to let him practice his craft on them. He also discovered
another passion, acting. Combining his makeup applications and
homemade costumes, he especially enjoyed scaring his friends. Savini
attended Point Park University for three years, before enlisting in
the United States Army. After his tour in Vietnam, he attended
Carnegie-Mellon University, as the first undergraduate to be awarded a
full fellowship in the acting and directing program. He appeared in
stage productions throughout college and continued on stage long after
his tour of duty in Vietnam.Savini served as a combat photographer
during the Vietnam War. In a 2002 interview, he told the Pittsburgh
Post "When I was in Vietnam I was a combat photographer. My job was to
shoot images of damage to machines and to people. Through my lens, I
saw some hideous [stuff]. To cope with it, I guess I tried to think of
it as special effects. Now, as an artist, I just think of creating the
effect within the limitations we have to deal with." He continued to
practice with makeup in Vietnam, often frightening indigenous peasants
by appearing to suddenly transform into a "monster". Using the lens of
his camera, Savini separated himself from the real life horrors of
war; however, all the images still haunted his mind. Savini said his
wartime experiences influenced his eventual style of gory effects: "I
hated that when I watched a war movie and someone dies. Some people
die with one eye open and one eye half-closed, sometimes people die
with smiles on their faces because the jaw is always slack. I
incorporated the feeling of the stuff I saw in Vietnam into my work."
In 1970, while on guard duty, a flare was triggered in the jungle area
Savini was watching. Against military protocol, Savini fired into the
bush without informing his superiors. Other soldiers likewise began
firing until a duck wandered from the bush completely unharmed. Due to
his failure to follow orders, Savini was taken off guard duty from his
bunker on the following evening. That same evening, the bunker came
under attack and several soldiers were wounded or killed. As a result
of this incident, Savini earned the nickname "Duck Slayer" and to this
day will not eat duck.
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