Quick Facts
Biography
Benjamin Emmet "Ben" Nye, Sr. (January 12, 1907 – February 9, 1986) was a renowned American makeup artist for the Hollywood film industry for over four decades, from the 1930s to the early 1980s. He worked on over five hundred 20th Century Fox films both in and out of Hollywood. Including Gone with the Wind (1939), Miracle on 34th Street (1947), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), The King and I (1956), The Fly (1958), Valley of the Dolls (1967), and Planet of the Apes (1968).
His brother was actor Carroll Nye, best remembered today as Frank Kennedy, Scarlett O'Hara's second husband in Gone with the Wind (1939).
Retirement and death
Nye officially retired in 1967 and created the Ben Nye Makeup Company, which has a distinguished reputation internationally. Nye, Sr. left his son Dana in charge of the company as CEO. Nye's son, Ben, Jr., also works in the film makeup industry.
Nye died on February 9, 1986 in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 79.