Charles Gemora

Perhaps the most recognizable contribution he made to cinema was the memorable alien menace from The War of the Worlds (1953); the result of a last minute change of plans, Charles and his daughter Diana created the creature in a late night marathon.

Patented many inventions in the 1950's. One of them was for 3-D movies and another for a shower deflector to protect women's hair.

Throughout his stay at Paramount, Charles racked up numerous unaccredited gorilla suit appearances while working on other films like Gunga Din (1939), Around the World in 80 Days (1956), and The Ten Commandments (1956).

Moving from Universal to Paramount in the early 1930's, Charles Gemora continued to work in the makeup and effects department there up until his death in 1961.

While early appearances such as Seven Footprints to Satan (1929) were grotesque and horrific, later films like The Monster and the Girl (1941) were distinguished by gorilla suits that were grounded in reality and performances that were informed by much study at the nearby San Diego Zoo. Gemora was equally adept at comedic roles, racking up credits alongside legends like Laurel and Hardy, Zasu Pitts, Charley Chase, Our Gang, the Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello, and Hope and Crosby.

Stowed away on an American vessel sailing out of the Philippines, a young Charles Gemora arrived in California while the birth of cinema was in full swing. To help earn a little extra cash, Charlie would hang around the Universal entrance offering to sketch portraits. It wasn't long before his natural artistic abilities were noticed and Charles Gemora was working on such films as Phantom Of The Opera (1925) and Noah's Ark (1928) as a sculptor. When Charles began working on creating gorilla suits for film, he realized that with his diminutive stature (5'5") and his commitment to excellence, he could do well to carve himself a niche as a gorilla man. Charles would spend almost 3 decades honing his realistic performance and leading the evolution of suit effects.