RIP: Stan Winston April 7th, 1946 - June 15th, 2008
June 16th, 2008
We’ve been hearing for a while that effects maven Stan Winston was in bad health, but this is still incredibly shocking. On June 15th, 2008, Stan Winston passed away at the age of 62.
Over his long career, Winston was responsible for more movie monsters than I can even name right now, but Predator, The Terminator, Aliens, Pumpkinhead, The Monster Squad and Jurassic Park were just a few of the film his work was featured in. In addition to visual effects, sculpting and creating unforgettable monsters, Winston was also a director, writer and producer.
He will be greatly missed by fans all over the world. Rest in Peace, good sir.
Share your thoughts for his family and friends in the Dread Central forums!
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Artist Renders Childhood FearsIt has been kind of a slow week for those of us behind this article. But we wanted to direct your attention to agentparanoia's photo set of Childhood fears on flickr.com. There's some really creepy imagery there including the picture below which features everyones favorite clown. Keep it tuned here for more updates throughout the week and be sure to check out the rest of the images by clicking the link above or the image.
Thanks for the scares and the inspiration Stan. You will be missed more than you could ever imagine.
Submitted by Uncle Creepy on Tue, 06/17/2008 - 11:04pm.
It truly feels like the end of an era. I feel that with Stan also passes the days of practical suit design, and one of the best minds for monster design since Ray Harryhausen. I am truly heartbroken by this, and my thoughts and prayers are with his family, his friends, and his colleagues.
Between this and the sudden passing of Tim Russert, my world seems a little grayer now.
Rest In Peace, Stan. You've earned your keep.
Submitted by Chainsaw on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 12:57pm.
I'm speechless.
Stan Winston stands right alongside Willis O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen as a GOD amongst creature creators. Also, having come to Hollywood initially to get into acting, he has a healthy dose of Lon Chaney Sr. in him as well. He channeled his dream of being a thespian into the creatures he created. I'm absolutely sure it's a large part of what made them so "human".
This is a major major major blow to the film world. And to fans whose dreams he helped make "reality" through his art.
Submitted by The Butcher on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 12:55pm.
When I read the headline I thought "not THE Stan Winston?!?". Man, didn't even know he was ill. Very sad, wish his family the best.
Submitted by frank_dracman on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 12:37pm.
I'm still in shock about this. Truly one of the modern pioneers of movie monster makeup FX and creature design...I can't believe this.
RIP Stan Winston.
Submitted by Rottenjesus on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 12:05pm.
That news knocked the wind out of my sails... Stan Winston was a guy whose footprints others can (at the moment) only follow in. I agree with Dr. M, Rob Bottin should get back to work and start creating more of those wonderful mind-fuck creations we saw in "The Thing" and "Twilight Zone: The Movie"... and if for no other reason than because Stan stepping in to help him with the FX on "Thing", prevented him from a complete nervous breakdown.
RIP Stan Winston!
Submitted by PelusaMG on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 11:40am.
Along with Bernie Wrightson, Winston's made the memorable monsters. The ones that made your eyes light up and got that "Coooooooooooooooool!" reaction. Maybe it's trite but seeing his creatures in action would make me feel like a kid again. Seeing as my AV is one of his early works maybe it that says in it all.
Submitted by Gus Bjork on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 11:30am.
I've been a lifelong fan of the Stan. He was the first person that got me interested in the art of film production.
This is a truly sad day.
Submitted by Sirand on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 11:08am.
This is crushing news. Stan Winston was the first filmmaker I ever became interested in, and really was the reason I wanted to be a filmmaker myself. I remember watching the Jurassic Park special features on a VHS tape and memorizing the guy who made the dinos by name. He was by far and wide my favorite effects person working, and was one of the most kindred spirits I'd ever met (First celebrity I met at my very first Convention).
He will be missed greatly. I'm going to go watch Aliens, Predator, Jurassic Park, and Pumpkinhead now.
RIP Stan.
Submitted by The Buz on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 11:05am.
Shit. This pretty well blows my day. God bless the man, wherever he is.
... and Rob Bottin had better take this as a cue to get back to work in a big way in order to fill the void. There are plenty of great FX houses around today (KNB being the big one that comes to mind) but, until today, as far as I was concerned, there were really only three 'old masters' still in operation. Now, there are only two (Rick Baker being the other), and Bottin'd rather slap fat suits on Eddie Murphy than create truly badass monsters for us to gawk at. It's a sad day, indeed.
Submitted by Dr Malachi Constant on Mon, 06/16/2008 - 11:20am.