Origins Of The Friday the 13th Hockey Mask
The hockey mask might just be the most recognizable icon in horror films and perhaps in all of film, period. Most people recognize the mask as being part of a horror movie and then sometimes say that it is worn by Michael Myers from the film A Nightmare on Elm Street, but hey we guess that is probably around 5-8% of the general movie going population. It is safe to say that Jason Voorhees and the hockey mask still mix in the minds of general film audiences.
Recently, we came across a very informative story about the origins of Jason's hockey mask. At JasonLivesSince1980's blog, the background of which hockey mask the Jason Voorhees hock was based on is explained as well as how it compares to the original, prototype masks worn in the NHL. Below is an excerpt of the history.
From JasonLivesSince1980's Blog
The major differences between the original Plante design and the Jason mask was in fabrication: the Plante mask was made of a sturdy fiberglass resin and was relatively thick: the hockey masks made for Friday the 13th part 3 were pulled in clear acrylic and were very thin and brittle. The Plante mask, which commonly had a back plate to attach the five straps to for extra security, also had padding on the inside so the mask didn't crack your face open like an egg if you were unlucky enough to be hit by a puck. The masks made for the Friday the 13th series were also somewhat more crudely sculpted: the discriminating eye will noticed the uneven forehead, the thumbprint in the lower left portion, mold chipping around the eyes and other anomalies that make the Jason design really unique.
To find out more, make sure to visit the blog story in its entirety!
thats cool.who ever researches this stuff must look real hard.
ReplyDeleteyeah thats a pretty cool find
ReplyDeleteI knew about the different construction of the mask and the different elements used to make it but I didn't know about the little things like the uneven forehead and the thumb print in the lower left portion... Cool read. Thanks JF!
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it, Colin. The credit goes to Jason and his blog. He knows his hockey masks :)
ReplyDeleteJimbo,
ReplyDeleteThere is a large amount of conflicting information coming from individuals who worked on set of Friday the 13th part 3. There is some evidence that the mask was created by FX technician Marty Becker or his shop, not Doug White, but we will probably never know for sure.
The mask seen above is not just a good example of a Plante mask, its actually THE mask that Jacques Plante himself kept in his office for years. .
Anyone who owns a Plante or a direct recast can tell you the surface is smooth and even-- if the Jason mask was a recast, the forehead was somehow reshaped or modified, indicating there was at least some sculpting involved. The eyes sockets also have certain crude indentations and there is a subtle wave effect in the left cheek near the nose. The mask has a lot of unique markings which differentiate it from a Plante.