Westmore Family

The Westmore Family were a prominent family in Hollywood make-up. Born in Great Britain, on the Isle of Wight, George Westmore (1879–1931) the first of the Westmore makeup artists, after fighting in the war George opened his first hairdressing salon. He moved to Canterbury and then to Canada and the United States, working as a hairdresser in several cities before settling to Los Angeles in 1917. There he got a job at Selig Studio’s and created the first studio makeup department in history. He then moved to Triangle Studios, overseeing the makeup for stars like Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Lillian and Dorothy Gish, Billie Burke, Norma Talmadge, and Theda Bara. Unfortunately in the 1920’s several unfortunate events lead to his suicide in 1931. He had six sons that later then became heads or assistant heads of makeup departments of major studios, Perc, Ern, Monte, Wally, Bud, and Frank.

Notable films they have done work for include; The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Casablanca and Breakfast at Tiffany's.