Tuesday, September 09, 2008

DISGUISE: IF I WERE IN THE WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAM


Most of these are pictures of the Israeli master of disguise, Dubi Preger. Looking at them makes me wonder, if I were running from the law, or were in a witness protection program, how would I make myself up to avoid being detected?



If this were the seventies or eighties the hip capitalist disguise might be a good option. The long hair covers the ears, making it unnecessary to change them, and people who wear hair like that frequently wear sunglasses, so covering the eyes wouldn't draw much attention.



A simple, easy to do change (above), requiring a life-style change, but one that looks easy to pull off.



Here's (above)another easy one, except it would require painfully sticking a stretcher up the nose every day. The grey beard would would work great with grey contact lenses.



Putty noses (above) change an appearance but you'd have to be an expert at applying them. Even Dubi had trouble pulling it off.



Here (above) Dubi makes up a couple of friends. This (above) is obviously too theatrical but it's not a bad disguise if it could be made to look more natural. The guy looks like someone who wouldn't stand out in a crowd, and the change seems to suit him. It's amazing how even a slight change in hairline can give someone a different look.



Of course you don't want your disguise (above) to be too obvious.



Here's (above) a vending machine disguise that would allow women to elude night-time pursuers. The amazing thing is that this machine fabric is meant to be worn under ordinary clothes, and to be forgotten about when not in use.



This is completely off-topic but I noticed it on a sidebar to Dubi's pictures. This (above) is a hundreds of years old mummy of a revered Japanese monk who, over a period of years, mummified himself while he was still alive. He ate lots of resins, injected them under his skin, bathed in them, etc.



Here's (above) a 5 minute YouTube clip showing all of Lon Chaney's numerous disguises. Beside the Phantom of the Opera I like the London After Midnight one the best.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great post. Hey, could you make a post on outsider artists and their art? I'm curious to know your take on it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outsider_art

Justin said...

I think this is one of the most serious posts you've done. It's great, but I really miss the goofy, funny posts.

pappy d said...

Not the best idea to disguise yourself as a terrorist who bombed the King David Hotel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_David_Hotel_bombing

eyeslikesugar said...

"Looking at these pictures all together I get the impression that the best disguise is one that makes the person look bland, i.e., someone who doesn't stand out from the crowd. I've heard that the best spies usually look like that."


If that's that case, I'd say the top two are your best best. I love posts like this.. I love good costume makeup.

lastangelman said...

Of course, it is best not to be seen at all, for obvious reasons.

BTW, Eddie, fabulous performance in My Best Friend's Wife!

Kudos!!

Anonymous said...

Impressive on a Halloween level, but can he do a convincing fireplug?

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Anon: Once in a while I see some Outsider art that I like but the field is pretty uneven. I like people like Tim Biskup (spelled right?)and Miles Thompson.

Last: Son of a Gun! Kali put her film on the net. I can't look at it objectively because I look so fat in it. Well, the surgery I just had changed all that. I look emmaciated now.

pappy d said...

Geez, Eddie, I hope my flippant comment didn't lead you to self-censor. I wouldn't defame you or your blog for the world. I'm just having trouble adjusting to the "new normal" after so many years of the old normal.

There are plenty of ex-terrorist heads of state. Before President Bush's waiver last July, Nelson Mandela was on the terrorist watch list.

Get well soon!

Austin Papageorge said...

In that Lon Chaney Video, 3:50 looks like you.

Anonymous said...

His costumes and makeup are good but his eyes give him away, guys like Olivier and Sellers were the true masters of disguise.

Whenever you find someone doing something on the internet you can look up a master from 50 years ago who did it 100 times better

Lester Hunt said...

"My Best Friend's Wife" was a delight. I laughed out loud several times. I especially like the use of music -- including the fact that it changed inexplicably every minute or two.

lastangelman said...

Totally off the subject, but I though you might be fascinated by this entry in Wikipedia.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Last: My God!!! That's the gizzliest story I ever heard!!!!

Lester: Thanks, but that ugly, fat person wasn't me. I was the handsome, thin person standing just out of camera range.

pappy d said...

This must happen all the time; people confusing the real you with the characters you portray.

Jenny Lerew said...

"Emaciated", huh? Let's see ! ; )

Jake said...

Hi. I surfed into this blog again and found this Youtube clip interesting. Recently I have become interested (casually) in Tod Browning, the guy who directed "London After Midnight". So this kind of ties in for me.

I think I'll bookmark you and check check back from time to time.