FREEPORT, Ill. (AP) - Harry Caray is making a stop at The Wagner House on Saturday before heading back to Chicago.
A giant sculpture of Caray, created by Freeport resident Kevin Kirkpatrick, will soon be in the Chicago Sports Museum at Water Tower Place. The museum is owned by the same group that owns Harry Caray’s Italian Steakhouses.
The sculpture looks nearly identical to Caray, aside from the fact that it’s about two and a half times the size of a normal human head. Dutchie Caray, Harry Caray’s widow, gave Kirkpatrick the ultimate stamp of approval.
“I was really excited and nervous to show her because she’s obviously the biggest critic,” Kirkpatrick said. “When she gave the blessing, it was nothing but excitement. She also mentioned that she’s glad I made it that size because if it were a normal size, it would have looked like I just cut off his head.”
Kirkpatrick is a makeup effects artist who has been nominated for two Emmy Awards for his work on TV shows “American Horror Story” and “The Knick.” He’s also worked on films such as “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” and recently worked as the co-department head on the second season of HBO’s “Westworld.”
He spent an average of 12 hours per day for about four months working on the sculpture in Freeport, before hauling it off to Los Angeles to work on as a side project in between shooting for “Westworld.” It took him roughly six and a half months to finish the project.
The sculpture started out as about 400 pounds of clay. Kirkpatrick built an armature, sculpted the clay, and then molded it with the help of friends in Freeport. After it was molded out of fiberglass, the sculpture was cleaned and covered with silicone that mimics real flesh before it was painted.
One of the more difficult things for Kirkpatrick to find was the real white human hair, which was inserted into the silicone and styled to look like Caray’s. The glasses were 3D printed and then followed a similar process to the rest of the sculpture. Kirkpatrick spent about $30,000 on the project, and is hoping to sell the sculpture for $90,000. But for now, it will be on display at the museum.
“It couldn’t have been a more perfect place for it,” Kirkpatrick said. “It’s awesome.”
Throughout the construction process, Kirkpatrick consulted with one of his most inspirational former teachers at Freeport High School, Tim Connors. Kirkpatrick said he asked Connors for his opinions on the sculpture because Connors is such a passionate Cubs and Harry Caray fan.
“It’s larger than life and that’s what’s so wonderful about it,” Connors said. “It’s a labor of love, and he puts that into every project he works on.”
Kirkpatrick fell in love with the magic of makeup effects after discovering a book on the subject at the Pearl City Library when he was about 8 years old. He also established his passion for the Cubs at young age, while hanging out with his grandma, who was a die-hard fan.
“I’ve wanted to do Harry for such a long time, but I just kept putting it off and putting it off,” he said. “When they won the World Series, I was like, ’This is it. It’s finally time.’”
The sculpture will be on display at The Wagner House, 1 E. Spring St., from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday.
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Source: The (Freeport) Journal-Standard
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Information from: The Journal-Standard, http://www.journalstandard.com/jshome.taf
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