Box of Monsters - Features

We DARE you to read this! Every year around Halloween, Web Master Jimmy (that's me) gets to thinking about just what is the best Halloween related thing that money can buy. Carmel apple dip? Universal Monster patio lights? Nope. It's masks! Big, scary, rubber ones, like the kind you couldn't afford as a kid! Masks rule! And having said that, let's hear from the man who played a key role in resurrecting the Calendar Masks, Darren Perks! BOX of MONSTERS asked Darren, who now operates his own mask company, Dynamic Design International, if he'd talk a little of what it was like to work on what is probably the most famous line of monster masks in history. Not only did he talk... he sent snapshots!

Pictured from left to right are: Evil Wilhelm, one of the main collectors who oversaw the Calendar Mask project, Darren Perks, who was one of Don Post Studios' key sculptors for 3 years, and Don Post Jr. Click any of the pics to see larger, color versions.

Darren writes, "Evil Wilhelm supplied most of the reference masks. He was a huge help and was instrumental in getting the project off the ground, great guy. Another guy who was very important to the re-issue was Dante Renta, who did all the hair work on the prototypes that were later used as reference for the hair people in mass production. He also supplied me with many reference photos and masks."

"These two collectors have awesome collections and along with being extremely important to the project, helped make it even more fun and enjoyable than it already was. I am glad they were involved. It wouldn't have happened without them."

"We made enlarged clay positives from smaller deteriorated latex and polyfoam original versions that were still in existence (very rare)."

"These enlarged versions had the basic form and shape of the originals but were void of intricate detail. It was like looking at a flat and smooth Calendar Mask in clay that lacked wrinkles, texture or any kind of sharp detail."

"I sculpted all of the detail back in, to the point where I matched every wrinkle, pock mark and pore in the exact same location and depth as was once in the original sculpture."

"When you look at the pix (next page), and you see all that tiny detail, none of that was there. The challenging part was matching each tiny portion to its corresponding area. They would stand over me and analyze it until it was perfect."

"The same is true for all of the re-sculpts, but especially the Creature, Glenn Strange Frankenstein, Wolf Man, Mummy. The Mummy was pretty intense, there is so much stuff going on in those wrinkles, I don't think you can even see it all in the photos."

"On the Creature, the original fin was long gone, so I added that, and basically re-invented his entire gill structure from photos and original masks that were rotting and in some cases falling apart. I don't think the original mask had the full fin from the first day of production in the 60's, so they tell me, or the gill detail I put in."

Once the Calendar Mask line was produced, the masks were boxed and sold with little or no ceremony. There was supposed to be a big unveiling party at Don Post Studios, Darren said, but it never happened. "I don't think anyone knew it was going to be as big a deal as it came to be, and I think everyone was a little surprised at the huge response after all these years."

"I loved every minute of re-sculpting those Calendar Masks. It took me back, it was great! People told me how happy they were with the finished pieces and they were grateful that I took the time and cared. That's what it was all about to me, FUN!"

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