"Can you make my nipples pinker?"

 

This true story is dedicated to my friend, Rhae Lynn.

It started with a conversation about the album cover pictured above for Leon Russell's 'Carney', released in 1972. I'm pretty sure I still have this vinyl in my collection.

Our conversation took place at a company I worked at for over 12 years. The business specialized in automotive film production services and our facility included a full-sized photo studio that hosted shoots for both still photography and videos. The shoots were mainly centered around the vehicles from our primary client, a Korean auto manufacturer.

That's where I met Rhae Lynn, who was crewing as a make-up artist for a photo shoot. She stood 5 feet tall, was several years older than me, and we became Green Room friends right away.  She was one of the regulars in a production crew that used our studio throughout the year, and we remained friends after I left the company. 

Sadly, she passed away after a sudden illness in early 2022, but not before we'd begun talks for me to write an autobiography about her lifelong career as a make-up artist. She'd already chosen the title of her book, but since it never happened I use it here in her honor (more about that title later). 

Our rambling talks about her career piqued my interest in the famous make-up artists that inspired her to take up the profession.

Max Factor. Ben Nye. George Westmore (and his sons Monte, Perc, Ern, Wally, Bud and Frank). Jack Dawn. William Tuttle. Jack Pierce. If you've seen any of the classic Hollywood films, you've seen their work, from 'Frankenstein' to 'Planet of the Apes', from 'The Wizard of Oz' to '2001: A Space Odyssey'.

These names (and many more) were the Hollywood legends that gave Rhae Lynn the passion to become a make-up artist. Over the past several years, my wife and I have become big fans of the 'film noir' genre that took place in the 40s and 50s, so now I read the film credits like a treasure map, searching for those names. They matter to me now, too.

Max Factor

According to de Wiki, since make-up was already used in the theater, the early film industry used those same techniques but found them to be sorely lacking. The combination of the crude celluloid film stock used and how the theatrical make-up colors translated onto film wound up looking like grotesque masks. It was Max Factor who developed the more subtle colors and application methods to tone down the looks. Along with his invention of Pancake make-up, his gentle application methods and the higher-quality film stocks being used, his products and methods became the benchmark for everything else that followed in the make-up industry.

George Westmore

It really took off when film stars began to appear off-screen in the same make-up they wore in front of the cameras. When that happened, Pancake make-up became essential for any woman who was conscious of her appearance.

Jack Pierce

When she decided as a teenager to become a make-up artist, Rhae Lynn's family was horrified. They were sure she'd never be able to make a living that way and tried to change her mind, but no dice. She was short and fiery and had made her decision, so a long and successful career was the result of her choice.

In one of our conversations, she admitted it wasn't an easy career choice. At first she felt like a nomad, following production crews around while trying to pierce their insular world, trying to convince someone... ANYONE... that she had the skills. Once she broke through, the job she'd dreamed of became a decades-long grind of location shoots, endless studio days and equally endless periods of waiting by the phone for the next job, the next chance to earn some money and keep going. 

But she loved her chosen profession. 

She especially loved the people she came into contact with: production crew members, location managers and techs, and especially the talent and clients. She told me about working on a young actress in a shlock horror film who would be almost nude while on-camera. After an arduous make-up session, the actress inspected herself in the mirror and asked "Can you make my nipples pinker?" Thus, Rhae Lynn's autobiography title  was born, along with the title of this homage.

The story that resonates most was about the photo shoot for the 'Carney' LP cover.

She was still in her early twenties and just getting her foot into the studio door. She was tapped to do make-up for a photo shoot where the primary tech had to bow out at the last minute. Although still a newbie and not sure what to expect, she gladly took the job.

She arrived on-set and was directed to a small trailer. She stepped inside and came face-to-face with Leon Russell (whom she'd never heard of), a Southern blues rocker and hard-partier. He was slouched in the make-up chair, holding an open can of beer, drunk. She introduced herself and he belched in reply. "Oh Lord", she thought to herself, "What have I gotten myself into?"

She reviewed the production notes for the make-up application and started, but Leon was abusive and obnoxious, burping in her face as she worked and spitting beer at her. She was ready to drop her brushes and run out, but kept calm and kept working on him.

When she was almost done, he shouted "FUCK THIS!!!", jumped out of the chair and stormed into the trailer's tiny bathroom, slamming the door so hard it shook the trailer. She was mortified and began to pack up her gear, certain that she'd be fired for pissing off the talent. She was ready to leave when the bathroom door opened. Leon came out with a big smile and said "Hey... you did a GREAT job, I look FANTASTIC!!" He thanked her and went outside, leaving her dumbfounded.

She told me that's when she knew she could be a real make-up artist.

Leon and the trailer.

I regret not being able to write her autobiography. I can't remember the countless names she dropped of celebrities she'd worked on, their eccentricities and her interaction with them. I missed out on the chance to write her story, but her smiling face and raucous laugh are always with me.

Thanks, Rhae Lynn... for being my friend and cohort, for opening my eyes to your profession, and for being an awesome human being. I'll never forget you.

R.I.P. Rhae Lynn Stitt (19?? - 2022)

RLS imagen, gracias de Facebook, todos las demas fotos, gracias de Google Images; todos las videos, Muchisimas Gracias de YouTube. "We're lost in a masquerade."