Max Factor: The King Of Cosmetics

Max Factor: The King Of Cosmetics
By Michael Rupkalvis

U.S. cosmetics trade has expanded from modest beginnings in the
1920’s into an enormous multi-billion dollar industry. If there
is one individual most responsible for the creation and
popularization of cosmetics throughout America, it would be Max
Factor.

Born the son of Jewish parents in Lodz, Poland in 1877, Max
Faktor was employed at age 8 in a pharmacy and dental office. As
an apprentice he spent long hours mixing various potions and
became imbued with a fascination for the human face and head. As
a young adult then in Moscow, Russia, he established his first
store where he sold cremes, wigs and perfumes. While there, a
theater troupe used some of his makeup while performing before
Russian aristocrats, which led to Max being employed by the
Royal Family as its cosmetics advisor. Max was also engaged by
Russia’s national opera.

In 1904 Max, his wife Lisa and their 3 children left Europe and
emigrated to America, arriving with less than four hundred
dollars to his name, the spelling of which was Americanized into
“Max Factor” during his immigration proceedings. That same year
he worked at the St. Louis World’s Fair selling skin cremes and
perfumes and then moved on to the theater district in Los
Angeles four years later, where Max opened the Max Factor beauty
salon, thinking he might have the opportunity to work in the
newly emerging movie industry in Hollywood.

Some six years later, in 1914, he invented the first of many
creations that would come to be known globally. This initial
invention, greasepaint compressed into a tube, was designed
specifically as a makeup for actors, one that would not crack.
It was Max Factor who coined the term ‘makeup’ to describe his
product.

As a result of this product, many of Hollywood’s top movie
stars began visiting his beauty studio and his reputation was
born. During the following two decades, he was responsible for
the glamorous looks of celebrities such as Jean Harlow, Judy
Garland, Rita Hayworth, Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn and Joan
Crawford, many of whom relied on his services not only for their
movie appearances but in their ‘everyday’ lives.

Then in the 1920’s Max Factor started selling his cosmetics to
consumers, believing that all women should have the opportunity
to look like the stars. In doing so, Max was largely responsible
for the commencement of the cosmetics industry as we know it
today. Many of his Hollywood clients also agreed to appear in
magazine ads to market his cosmetics, and the name Max Factor
soon became known around the globe.

From there Max Factor was responsible for a number of cosmetic
innovations including the first foundation (known as Pan-cake),
which was applied to the face with a silk sponge. Other ‘firsts’
introduced by Max Factor and the company of the same name he
founded were false eyelashes, lip gloss, the eyebrow pencil,
stick makeup, concealer, the mascara wand, water resistant
makeup and many others.

Max Factor died in Beverly Hills in 1938, but the company he
founded continued to grow under the direction of his son, Max
Jr., becoming synonymous with high fashion and glamour. In 1991
the brand name “Max Factor” was sold to Procter & Gamble.

If you are ever in Los Angeles and would like to learn more
about Max Factor and his influence on the cosmetics industry, a
visit to the Max Factor Museum in Hollywood is recommended. The
museum is a restoration of Max Factor’s original salon
containing scores of autographed photos of Hollywood stars,
glamour ads from magazines, an Oscar, presentations of many of
his original creations, 4 makeup rooms for the stars with whom
he worked his magic, a collection of wigs, as well as a theater
where a couple of videos chronicling his life are shown. There
is no charge.

About the Author: The author, Michael Rupkalvis, oversees the
http://www.MineralMakeupShoppe.com website. The web site
involves a new makeup product called Naked Minerals cosmetics,
which is a pressed all-natural mineral makeup that is easy to
apply and does not stain your clothes.

Source: http://www.isnare.com

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