The Thing

From 1951's Howard Hawks/Christian Nyby classic "The Thing From Another Planet."

James Arness (who later became famous as Sheriff Matt Dillon on TV's Gunsmoke) was an unknown actor when he was cast as The Thing.

It has been documented that Arness reported to the set two months prior to filming for the development of the make-up design, which took two hours each day to apply. According to AMC TV, makeup artist Lee Greenway went through several revisions of the creature's face. He would test each one by putting the full makeup on Arness and taking him for a drive through Los Angeles. At one point, a woman in the next car screamed and fainted upon seeing the creature. Greenway "knew he had a winner" and used that face in the movie.

Despite the film's subsequent success, Arness was reportedly embarassed by his role as The Thing for the rest of his life and didn't even attend the film's premiere.