Vail Reese says he’s only marginally interested in the cinematic work of actor Mark Wahlberg (a.k.a. “Marky Mark”). However, this UCSF dermatologist has paid attention to Wahlberg (a former member of the pop sensation New Kids On The Block), who appears half-naked in well-known Calvin Klein advertisements. Photos reveal an accessory nipple on the actor’s chest, a birthmark people are commonly born with but which can nevertheless be awkward or embarrassing.

But by mentioning Wahlberg on his entertaining and educational website “Dermatology in the Cinema,” Reese hopes to demystify the condition, which appears on James Bond’s adversary in “The Man With the Golden Gun”, “so that people don’t have to feel abnormal or uncomfortable.”

Indeed, one of Reese’s biggest peeves with Hollywood is its tendency to associate skin conditions with evil. For instance, he juxtaposes the smooth face of Willem Dafoe (good guy) with the heavily scarred face of Tom Berenger (bad guy) in Oliver Stone’s “Platoon”; shows how albinism and evil are equated in “Village of the Damned,” “Foul Play,” and “Dick Tracy”; and provides ample examples of how alopecia, or hair loss, is associated with badness.

“I can’t help but wonder whether people take that message home subliminally,” Reese says. Reese uses ample images from famous films to make his case for the evil/skin blemish relationship, to discuss skin conditions as they appear on film stars in real life, and to praise realistic depictions of them in film.

Reese remembers how when he was a student at UCSF, the bulbous nose of W.C. Fields became a classic reference — an icon — in literature and conversation to describe adult acne. “It led to me to think, as a film fan, what else was out there.”

The Internet, he adds, is the most “natural medium” in which the topic can be explored in a fun and interesting way. Reese, who updates the website himself, describes his effort as “homespun,” although the impact he is having should not be overlooked. He receives anywhere from 3-10 e-mails a day to his website, including praise and inquiries from makeup and special effects artists in the film industry. “That’s where I get a lot of my new examples from,” he says.

Reese says one trend in Hollywood that bodes well for all filmgoers, if in fact they are influenced by what they see on the silver screen, is the decreasing prevalence of the dark tan and the rise of fair skin as a symbol of beauty. Actresses Drew Barrymore and Winona Ryder are prime examples of beautiful celebrities who shun the long-term harmful effects of the deep tan, unlike Robert Redford.

He recently found out through word of mouth that the stars of television’s Baywatch — admittedly not highbrow culture — at least have the good sense to use tanning lotion. “I think that’s exciting,” he says.

Reese is torn on the question of whether he is more interested in film or the skin conditions that appear in them. But, he says, “not every movie with a skin condition is worth seeing, just look at this summer’s movies.

By Brad Foss

1st appeared 6/24/97