Tim McPhate | KissFAQ
Veteran prop maker discusses building the door used for the album cover for KISS’ 1981 concept album “Music From The Elder”
In conjunction with KissFAQ’s month-long NovElder retrospective, Manhattan Model Shop’s Bill Finneran discussed the creative process and construction of the door prop used for the album cover for KISS’ 1981 “Music From The Elder.” This marks the first time in KISStory Finneran has commented on his role on the project.
The following are excerpts from Finneran’s interview with KissFAQ’s Tim McPhate:
Getting involved with the project:
KF: I spoke with Dennis Woloch, who was the art director for “Music From The Elder.” Dennis mentioned he got in touch with you to work on the project. Do you remember anything about your initial conversation?
BF: Yeah, he was a big tall guy. We talked on the phone first and then he came down to the studio and we talked about what he wanted to do. From our point of view, [the job] was very straightforward, in terms of the technical aspects of it. It was like a lot of props we had made. We were not technically involved in doing album covers. It was rare that anyone wanted to make a prop for an album cover. You know, they were almost always location shots with talent. So it was an unusual thing, but we were quite interested in doing it. The techniques we used we had used in other similar projects. The nice thing about our business for all the hundreds of years we’ve been doing it is it’s rare that the same thing comes up twice. The projects are always quite unique. They share certain technical categories with other similar projects but they’re all very different. And this one was the same, it was very different. We never did anything like it again. I don’t think we ever did another album cover, to be honest with you. I can’t think of one.
About “The Elder” door’s construction:
KF: But the actual door is wood, correct?
BF: Yes, it’s wood. It’s white pine wood. It’s soft. Typically a door like that would be made out of a hard wood, like oak or ash. But this was easier for us to manipulate. And we’re not looking for durability, we’re just looking for “a look.”
KF: So the studs on the door, how would those have been beaten in?
BF: Those are actual little nails that have special heads that we made. All those heads, we made a mold and cast the heads. We made one pattern and then made a little rubber mold and cast all those heads. Actually, I think we made about five or six different ones so that they wouldn’t all come out looking exactly the same. And then we made them in gangs of five or six and drilled little holes into the door and inserted the nails and just stuck them in there.
KF: In looking closely at the pattern closely, they seem to be a bit crooked, likely on purpose?
BF: Yeah, right. The art director had brought a certain amount of scrap as reference for us. But we looked at a lot of stuff from our history. Both my partner and I are schooled in visual arts — I was a professor of arts for quite a while — so we had a lot of books that showed famous cathedrals in Europe…places like that that have those kind of big heavy doors.
Now the other thing, the knocker as I recall, I think that wasn’t part of the original job.
The length of the process and the cost of “The Elder” door:
KF: From start to finish, how long did it take to finish the entire door?
BF: I think we probably worked on it for a little more than a week. But the thing is, like almost every project, there’s a certain amount of work and there’s a certain amount of interaction, and then revisions. I started out in life as a fine artist, I made paintings and sculptures. That’s totally driven by your original intent and it was hard for me at first when I went into business with my partner, who actually happens to be my wife. She was doing it a number of years before I was. It was hard for me to come to understand that this is a very collaborative way of making art. It’s not typical of the way we perceive artists to work, you know individually and sort of controlling every aspect of it. So every job that we do, and this job included, there’s a lot of back and forth between the art director and between sometimes other personalities. In this case, I don’t remember anybody else being involved except the art director.
KF: I know we’re going back 30-plus years, but what would have been the final cost for the work on “The Elder’ door?
BF: We might be able to find that out for you, but I would have to ask my partner and that would really piss her off. (laughs) My feeling is that this might have been in the $1,500 to $1,800 [range], something like that.
KF: That’s including all the parts and labor?
BF: Yeah. I would think it was something like that. Around $1,800. In those days I think we were typically making about $4,000 a week, and there were overlaps. Like when we were doing [the door,] there were other jobs in the studio at different stages of development. So that would be my guess.
Full Bill Finneran interview:
http://www.kissfaq.com/novelder/interview_bill_finneran.html
KissFAQ also recently published an updated KISS Album Focus, a feature detailing anything and everything you’d want to know about “Music From The Elder.”
The KISS Album Focus Revisits “Music From The Elder”:
http://www.kissfaq.com/novelder/focus.html
About NovElder:
Through a series of brand-new KissFAQ interviews, original features and related special content, NovElder will shine a spotlight on “Music From The Elder” like never before throughout the month of November. More than 10 hours of interviews were conducted with various individuals who either worked on the project or have a connection of sorts, including professionals who have never told their “Elder story.” These interviews will provide interesting insights and unique perspectives regarding the album’s creative process and this fascinating period in KISStory, in addition to fun anecdotes and personal recollections. A series of topical features will shed more light on KISS’ activity in 1981 and early 1982 and dissect the album further with in-depth musical analysis, biographical information on the album’s participants, a revised KissFAQ Album Focus, and much more. NovElder will also take a look at the climate of the rock genre in 1981 and look at the bloodline of rock concept albums.
The odyssey continues this November at http://www.kissfaq.com/novelder/