I thought it was special blend made just for Spock.
(Crossposted from the Star Trek Phase II Forum)
So, what color is Mister Spock?
Well, we know he has "green" copper-based blood. And we know that very early on, it was contemplated that the character might be a Martian with a reddish hue--just like the reddish sands that cover that planet. However, actual make-up tests revealed that reddish make-up doesn't look "alien;" it simply looks like bad make-up--especially for those with black and white televisions. So it was decided to make him a Vulcanian and go for a greenish, ochre, goldenish color, like--well, not quite like anything except maybe chicken soup. It's actually not an extreme difference from regular human color; it's fairly subtle.
Early on, the color would have to be mixed by hand using the available make-up colors--notably using Max Factor's "Chinese Yellow" pigment. But it would be a pain to custom mix this Vulcanian color each and every day if the show actually became a series; it would need to be mixed exactly the same, consistently, for continuity purposes. Of course,
Star Trek did become a series and for this custom-colored make up,
Star Trek make-up artist Fred Phillips went to The Research Council of Make-up Artists, Inc. (RCMA). This company could (and still does) make custom colors--and then they keep the formulas (something like paint color formulas) on file so they can be produced again later. The RCMA helped to develop all kinds of odd colors—including the strange color for Eddie Munster on
The Munsters.
For us at
Star Trek Phase II, it can be difficult (just as it was for Fred Phillips) to use "regular" make-up to try and recreate an appropriate Vulcan color and apply it all evenly to the actor--whether it's
Phase II's Jeff Quinn, Ben Tolpin, or Brandon Stacy. Fortunately, the original RCMA 1965 color "LN-1" ("Leonard Nimoy #1") for Mister Spock's odd Vulcan coloration is still available--if you know what to search for and you have the money. Here's a shot of my left hand made up (a little too heavily, I think) with some RCMA "LN-1" that I acquired recently--and my right hand its normal pinkish self as a contrast. It's funny: I've seen my photo on a variety of computer monitors now and it never looks the same. Sometimes it appears really washed out and other times it appears super saturated. (I have no idea how it will render on *your* screen.)
And here's a shot of the little LN-1 make-up jars:
Interestingly, just as Kirk's shirt photographs not quite as green as it is in real life, this LN-1 make-up also doesn’t photograph quite as green as it looks to my naked eye.
There's no real commentary here--except to say that recreating the look of 1960s
Star Trek for our fan-based series requires a greater eye to detail than most people probably imagine--right down to using the proper make-up pigments.
(For those of you in L.A., I got my LN-1 make-up from Sig Frends Beauty Supply in North Hollywood on Laurel Canyon right at Magnolia. I don't know if they have any left.)
