According to Ed Winter, the assistant chief of investigations with the coroner’s office, Starr was found dead in his apartment at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 19 on the 2200 block of Lakeshore Avenue. Winter reported that Starr may have died from natural causes, but there was no doctor in attendance when his body was discovered, nor were family records available. Winter said that Starr was found after his door had been broken down; according to neighbors, he had not been seen for a few days.
Starr was the author of Paul Starr on Beauty: Conversations with Thirty Celebrated Women (2005) and had worked in the make-up industry for more than 20 years. He made up scores of A-list actresses and models, including Angelina Jolie, Jessica Alba, Jennifer Garner, Lindsay Lohan, Christy Turlington and Iman; worked for fashion houses including Jean Paul Gaultier and Dolce & Gabbana; did covers for Vogue, Vanity Fair, In Style, W and Harper’s Bazaar; and advertising print work for Chanel, Calvin Klein, Prada and Victoria’s Secret. He also collaborated with influential photographers Herb Ritts, Helmut Newton and Richard Avedon, and worked on music videos for Madonna, David Bowie and Boy George. Starr was the first celebrity make-up artist to represent Estee Lauder’s cosmetic line, and had served as a keynote speaker for the 2006 International Make-Up Artist Trade Show (IMATS) in Los Angeles.
In a 2006 interview with Make-Up Artist magazine, Starr told writer Shannon Levy, “I’ve always tried to maintain and keep my artistic soul, which as a freelance artist meant always being open to any situation, to life’s experiences, and to whatever may happen.â€
An autopsy was tentatively scheduled for Wednesday or Thursday, Winter said.
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-Make-Up Artist magazine staff
