Millicent Patrick

Astromonster (on the blog of same name) writes: Conceptual designer/actress Millicent Patrick, in the Universal Studios workshop in 1954, strikes a tender pose with her own creation — The Creature From the Black Lagoon. Patrick — who was an animator at Disney when she wasn’t looking decorative in B-pictures and television during the 50s and early 60s — was totally responsible for the design of the iconic creature. But for a variety of reasons (including, one presumes, sexism) her role was deliberately downplayed by chief Universal makeup artist Bud Westmore, who for half a century received sole credit for the Gill-Man’s conception. In any case, it is, uh, interesting to imagine the reactions of the rest of the male artisans in the Universal art department to the presence of the frankly va-va-voom Ms. Patrick in their midst. Let’s just say it is perhaps no accident that the third, and last, entry in the series was titled The Creature Walks Among Us.

I think she must be some kind of spiritual cousin to my friend Christina Yoder, who was born to make this kind of stuff!

More Patrick photos:

I found Patrick by accident when I was digging for Gill-man's photo, and I also found a couple of cute "behind the movie scenes" photos; Gill and friends making sure their co-star is OK:

And finally finding the love of his life, another finned creature!

The actor in the suit is in fact a cutie, but I am going to borrow his head for a project of my own so I won't post it here.