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Legendary makeup artist Dick Smith's personal, hand-marked bound script from the productions of Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part II and a pair pf personal, hand-marked bound scripts The Godfather Part III. In Part II, Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) ruthlessly expanded his father Don Vito's (Marlon Brando) criminal enterprise, while in flashback, the plot featured the exploits of the young Vito (Robert De Niro). In Part III, an aged Michael attempted to legitimize his family's business and join their finances with the Vatican while he dealt with rival gangsters and his daughter's love interest.
This lot originates from the collection of Smith, who provided the world-renowned makeup effects for Coppola's The Godfather and Part II but ultimately left the production of Part III before filming wrapped. Surviving materials from his time on the production are therefore extraordinarily rare.
The lot consists of the following:
A 185-page, brass brad-bound second draft script for Part II dated "September 24, 1973," hand-marked "Godfather II" on the spine, and labeled "Dick Smith" on the front and back cover. It features a chronology of the events in the film on its first page, as well as 13 revision pages added to the script. Additionally, the inside cover is hand-marked with Vito's various ages, likely to help Smith keep track of the makeup changes needed for each age.
A 145-page, brass brad-bound second draft script for Part III dated "October 2, 1989", hand-marked "Godfather III - 2nd" along the bottom edge, and labeled "Dick Smith" on the cover. The script features sections hand-marked in highlighter throughout, while pages 131 through 145 - which represent all of Act V - are printed on burgundy paper.
A 127-page, brass brad-bound draft-in-progress script for Part III dated "July 10, 1989" and hand-marked "Dick Smith" on the cover. The script features sections hand-marked in highlighter throughout, a page of handwritten notes regarding certain makeup appliances needed for production, and handwritten tabs on several pages noting scenes which require key makeup appliances, such as when Vincent Mancini (Andy Garcia) shot Mask #1 (Rick Aviles) and Mask #2 (Michael Bowen), when Frederick Keinszig (Helmut Berger) was stabbed, and when Vincent shot Archbishop Gilday (Donal Donnelly).
This lot shows evidence of wear consistent with on-set use, handling, and age. Dimensions: (largest) 11.25" x 8.75" x 1" (28.5 cm x 22.25 cm x 2.5 cm)
Estimate: $1,500 - 3,000
View all lots from THE GODFATHER PART II (1974)/THE GODFATHER PART III (1990)
View all lots from Dick Smith Collection
Regarded as "The Godfather of Makeup," renowned special makeup effects artist and author Richard Emerson Smith, known professionally as Dick Smith, was a pre-med student at Yale University when he encountered the theatrical makeup book Paint, Powder and Makeup that changed the trajectory of his life. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Smith began his illustrious career in television as the first makeup director of WNBC. Entirely self-taught, Smith pioneered the development of prosthetic and practical makeup with techniques that are now considered the standard in film and television, such as making prosthetics in multiple pieces to allow actors full range of facial expression. He is also credited with creating realistic age makeup as an alternative to prosthetics, blending special effects with hidden bladders and squibs, and for innovating the combination of makeup with on-set "practical" effects, as seen in William Friedkin's The Exorcist (1973).
In a time where makeup artists were secretive about their techniques and unions purposely suppressed the sharing of knowledge, Smith proved to be a generous soul, mentoring and training many younger artists who went on to accomplished careers in cinema, including Rick Baker, Mike Marino, Greg Cannom, and many more. Smith went as far as publishing an instructional book in 1965 titled Dick Smith's Do-It-Yourself Monster Make-up Handbook as a special edition of Forrest J. Ackerman's "Famous Monsters of Filmland" series.
With a career that spanned over six decades, Smith is today best known for his work on such classics as Little Big Man (1970), The Godfather (1972), Taxi Driver (1976), Altered States (1980), Scanners (1981), The Hunger (1983), Starman (1984), and Death Becomes Her (1992). In 1985, he won an Academy Award® for Best Makeup for his work on Amadeus, as well as a BAFTA® the following year. He was honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences twice with special tribute ceremonies in 2009 and again in 2011, the latter including an Honorary Academy Award® presented by his most acclaimed protégé, Rick Baker. Smith left an indelible legacy in film and television, represented by a curated collection he carefully maintained throughout his career. Propstore is pleased to present these select artifacts from this legendary artist's personal collection, reflecting a distinguished career spanning decades in Hollywood and beyond.
This item comes with a Propstore Certificate of Authenticity.