Ran across an interesting tidbit a while back that creates a definite discrepancy in the timeline of the original hero between the wrapping of Halloween and the filming of Halloween II.
We’re all widely aware of the highly agreed upon consensus that Debra Hill took the mask home after the first movie wrapped and kept it in a shoe box under her bed for three years where it was exposed to a lot of cigarette smoke which caused the mask to discolor and have more of the yellowish look that we see in part II.
The discrepancy, however, began at Monster Mania Con 17 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, at a Q&A panel with Nick Castle and Tommy Lee Wallace where Castle states that HE had the original mask in his possession for “a couple years” after completing work on Halloween. He says he had the mask on display in his home until right around the time Halloween II was about to begin production. Castle claims Debra Hill called him, looking for the original mask because they could not make a duplicate one close enough to it and no one remembered who had it. Nick Castle confirmed he indeed had it, allowed them to use it for Halloween II, and stated Debra Hill told him he would get it back as soon as the movie wrapped. But, Castle states “I never got it back” which lends credibility to the widely known story that Dick Warlock was allowed to keep the mask after production on Halloween II concluded.
Interesting.
And what’s funny: if Castle is telling the truth, the guy from Ohio who bought the mask from Dick Warlock in 2004 is in possession of stolen property, however unintended the whole thing may have been.
To see the Q&A panel with Nick Castle where he makes these comments, hit the link below and skip to 1:35.
Very interesting topic. I was at that Q N A in jersey back in the gold days of collecting when we were all drooling over h78s and psychos lol I remember him Saying he kept the hero well “the mask” he wore in the movie over his fire place for 3 years… Making it more tan colored then Debra calls him needing it for HII not even asking if he wanted to play Myers … Doesn’t make sense… Also where are the other masks… I’ve hear in Debra’s estate?? Will we ever know.
Maybe they’re both telling the truth. Perhaps Debra Hill took home the Hero mask, and Nick Castle took home one of the other masks. When filming, I never really figured that TLW made the one singular mask. From what I can gather in Kaizu’s thread, TLW converted one mask and made a second as back up, then went out and purchased a third. Perhaps that back-up was the mask that Castle brought home and then gave to Hill to be used in HII as a stunt mask. The reason Castle never got it back was because, as we know, the HII stunt mask was destroyed. My reasoning?
Is Debra Hill a smoker? I know Carpenter is, but I’m not sure if he frequently visited Hill enough between 78 and 80 for the smoke to have that much of an effect on the mask.
Interesting stuff. I always thought the cigarette smoke making the Hero yellow was rubbish. It didn’t need smoke to make it yellow; it was painted with some sort of spray can type of paint, which is obviously not ideal for a rubber mask. Lots of white paint will yellow over time. Heck, even masks painted with the correct latex-based paint will yellow eventually. Look at the old Warlocks and such.
As for who had possession of the Hero right after H1, that’s a more interesting story. It’s possible Nick did have the Hero and Debra owned a stunt mask, or vice versa.
I too, wondered if Castle might’ve just taken one of the stunt masks. But his dialogue actually says “I had the original mask at my house”, etc. That, and his paraphrasing of what Debra Hill said to him during the phone call lends some wonder if his mask was the hero, as Hill seemed pretty determined in her search.
But, I suppose it’s plausible to suggest Castle might’ve just thought he had the hero when it could’ve really been a stunt mask. Perhaps Debra not returning the mask was because they burned it in the fire sequence at the end of H2.
Or, if it really was the hero, maybe Dick asked to keep the mask and someone other than Debra who didn’t know it was Nick’s said “sure, why not?” and that was the end of it.
Wish there was someone who could confirm what happened at one of these panels.
[But, I suppose it’s plausible to suggest Castle might’ve just thought he had the hero when it could’ve really been a stunt mask. Perhaps Debra not returning the mask was because they burned it in the fire sequence at the end of H2.]
IMO judging by Castle’s quote, I think that he did take The Hero home, and maybe the mask burning was “a” stunt mask because Dick Warlock said he kept the mask he wore @ the "03 Haddonfield convention in Pasadena. I doubt Debra knew which mask she had under her bed
It was one of them, but which one?
Great thread btw.
OK- the smoke and shoebox theory is officially shot down after i heard nick castle had it over his fireplace-NOW THATS SOMETHING THAT WOULD CAUSE PAINT TO YELLOW…the rising heat and smoke from the fireplace!
smoke rises…there is no way ENOUGH smoke is going to travel under a bed and INSIDE a shoe box…SOMEONE PLEASE RE-WRITE THE RECORD BOOKS…i thank you!
nick m
I’m assuming Nick took home the mask and Debra asked for it back for H2 and then kept it under the bed everyday after shoot.
You can forget the whole smoking thing. A mask made like that will eventually yellow up no matter what. It was cracking by the time H2 started.
The stunt mask may have been in Debra’s possession after H1. This we’ll never know unless the prop guys for H2 speak up.
always seemed funny 2 me.
