Guillermo del Toro Pays Tribute to Carlo Rambaldi Ahead of Hollywood Walk of Fame Star: 'Magical Master Around the World' (Exclusive)

Guillermo del Toro is paying tribute to Italian special effects master Carlo Rambaldi, who is being honored today with a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Best known for designing the character of the title role in Steven Spielberg's 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,' Rambaldi died in 2012 at the age of 86. He won the Academy Award three times for […]

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Guillermo del Toro is paying tribute to Italian special effects master Carlo Rambaldi, who is being honored today with a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Rambaldi, best known for designing the iconic title character in the movie E.T. "Alien" made by Steven Spielberg, died in 2012 at the age of 86. He won three Academy Awards for his work in special effects, winning Oscars for King Kong (1976), Alien (19839) (19839).

Rambaldi before "E.T." He worked with Spielberg in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind". He subsequently worked with David Lynch on the cult classic Dune. A long list of top directors with whom Rambaldi worked during his illustrious career include: Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Marco Ferri, Mario Bava, Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci, John Huston, Ridley Scott and Oliver Stone.

Rambaldi was born in the village of Vigarano Mainarda, outside the city of Ferrara, in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. The son of a bicycle mechanic, he graduated from the Bologna Academy of Fine Arts in 1951, and although he aspired to be an artist, he was drawn to the art world when he was asked to create a dragon for a low-budget science fiction film in 1956.

Del Toro is known to share a deep passion with Rambaldi for the creatures used in contemporary fantasy and horror cinema created through the artistic use of animatronics.

“Carlo Rambaldi changed the world of special effects, make-up and puppetry,” Del Toro says in a video message shared exclusively with Variety. He brought knowledge and elegance and a great sense of character and design that can only be described as an heir to the art and beauty of the old world, associated with a country with a great theatrical tradition and a great artistic tradition.

Del Toro added: "Without him, it is absolutely impossible to imagine the bold and beautiful work that has been done now and in the last few decades. He is not only an outstanding master of Italian effects, but a master of magic throughout the world."

As previously announced, the Rambaldi Walk of Fame will be held Thursday at 1611 Vine St. in Hollywood, with Cinecittà studio head Antonio Saccone, several members of the Rambaldi family and Matt Winston, son of Stan Winston, the Oscar-winning special effects master who designed the dinosaurs for "Juras," in attendance.

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