We all know Spock’s appearance evolved over the first few years as Gene brought Star Trek to life. And that is quite obvious if you compare the Spock of “The Cage” (top photo) to the Spock of the second pilot, “Where No Man Goes Before” (bottom photo). The person responsible for the new version of Spock in that pilot was not Fred Phillips. He is someone whose name is known but rarely mentioned in discussions of TOS history. Gene Roddenberry fought hard to bring his half alien-half human character of Mr. Spock to the second pilot, despite the network’s distaste for this satanic looking being. However, he finally brought them around to his idea of Spock as the embodiment of the science fiction of the future, one where interplanetary crews would include not just humans but extraterrestrial beings as well. In return, Gene had to make several concessions, one of which was that Mr. Spock’s appearance would be toned down and he would be kept more in the background. So Mr. Spock was going to need a minor makeover. Unfortunately, Fred Phillips was not available. Instead, they turned to another veteran makeup artist, Robert Dawn. Dawn designed a second set of ears, not quite as large as those in the first. He also thinned out the bushy eyebrows but for some reason decided to slant them at a more acute angle. Dawn also was responsible for Spock’s trademark bowl haircut. The result was a more human looking Spock that won the reluctant approval of the network executives. (But if you saw the article in From the Files of Redshirtgal last Wednesday, you might remember that in the advertising brochure sent to the affiliate stations, Spock’s pointed ears and slanted eyebrows were airbrushed out and given a human shape.) It was Robert Dawn and hair stylist Hazel Keats who gradually whitened Gary Lockwood’s hair at his temples as his character evolved into the powerful being who nearly destroyed Captain Kirk.
Of course, when the second pilot sold and Gene began filling positions for the new series, he did not rehire Robert Dawn but naturally brought Fred Phillips back as the makeup supervisor. But he never suffered from lack of work in the Hollywood makeup industry.
So who was Robert Dawn? He was the son of Jack Dawn, a highly respected and revered makeup artist who was the head of MGM’s makeup department. One of his most famous creations was the appearance of the inhabitants of Oz along with those of the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion.
After serving in World War II as a decorated P-38 fighter pilot, Bob Dawn returned to Hollywood to apprentice under his father at the MGM studios. He also refined his trade under the tutelage of another member of a well known film makeup dynasty, Bud Westmore. Dawn created monster makeup for the films The Creature from the Black Lagoon and This Island Earth during his time with Westmore. His resume before his one stint on Star Trek included performing makeup duties for series such as Leave It to Beaver, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and Wagon Train and films as The King and I and Marnie. He also was the makeup supervisor for the Hitchcock film Psycho.
Ironically, he would work with Leonard Nimoy again in Mission Impossible. Bob Dawn stayed with the makeup department of that series for 143 episodes. And he continued working in Hollywood until 1983, when he did his last job as the makeup supervisor for Christine.
But the Dawn family has two other contributors to Star Trek. Jeff Dawn is the son of Robert Dawn and he has some equally impressive achievements. Jeff has worked with the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator, The Running Man, Total Recall, and Kindergarten Cop are a few), Bruce Willis (True Lies) and Dwayne Johnson ( The Scorpion King, Be Cool). He and Stan Winston together shared the 1992 Oscar for Best Makeup for Terminator 2. As the first (where he is apply the finishing touches to John Schuck‘s Klingon Ambassador Kamarag and second photo show, Jeff worked on Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home along with his uncle (Robert Dawn’s brother) Wes Dawn. These two plus James Lee McCoy were 1987 Saturn Award nominees for that film. Wes also worked on Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
Before we close, let’s take one last look at the changes that were made to Mr. Spock between the first pilot and the end of the regular series.
Fred Phillips’ original makeup for our favorite Vulcan had short, layered hair, pointed ears that were noticeably large, and slanted eyebrows that some have compared to a shaggy caterpillar. Robert Dawn toned down his appearance during his time working as a makeup artist on the second pilot, even though the eyebrows seem to slant more drastically. When Fred Phillips returned as makeup supervisor for the rest of the regular series, he fine tuned the appearance of the smaller ears that Dawn had made. But Robert Dawn’s one contribution to Spock’s appearance that has remained constant over the many iterations of Spock (and other Vulcans) is the signature bowl haircut. Somehow, Mr. Spock would not look like Mr. Spock without it.