Nicholas Masci

Nick Masci, Accomplished Film Editor and Man of Many Interests, Passes Away at Age 89

He passed away peacefully on October 27, 2020 at Hope Hospice, Fort Myers with his loving family by his side. Nick was a snow bird. He wintered on Sanibel Island, FL, and summered in Morris, CT at his beloved “Camp”. Born in Cliffside Park, New Jersey to Nicholas and Caroline. He is survived by his wife and companion of 37 years, Alice Miller, five children; Frank Masci of Hawthorne, NJ; Joe Masci and his wife Mary Beth of Hopkinton, NH; Nick Masci and wife Liz of Manchester, NH; Carrie Masci of Marco Island, FL; and Christopher Masci and husband Ettore of Plymouth, MA. Nick also leaves behind a brother, Ron Masci, beloved grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins.

Nick served in the Korean War as a sonarman, his finest moment was detecting a mine that saved his destroyer shipmates. His example to serve the country was continued by children and grandchildren. After the war, he used the GI Bill to receive a degree in English and Film Study from Columbia University.

Nick spent the majority of his career at WCBS-TV in New York City. His editing skills earned him an Emmy Award for the documentary “Asian Exodus”, and he was consistently recognized by his peers. His work also included feature films, one of which, “Before the Mountain was Moved”, was nominated for an Academy Award.

Nick raised his family in Wyckoff, New Jersey with his first wife Essie. Nick shared a love of sports and hobbies with his children. As a family man, he is best remembered for coaching soccer, playing tennis, throwing horseshoes, surf-casting and lake fishing, cooking burgers, tinkering with cars, countless hours of family photo shoots, and bicycling. Dinners with their 5 kids often ended with lessons on etiquette but more often with a round of joke telling. He enjoyed sharing his wonderful sense of humor.

Nick’s family is grateful for the compassionate care provided by Hope Hospice. We would be thankful for donations to Hope Healthcare, made to https://donate.hopehcs.org/.

Filmography

Nick Masci was an award winning film editor. His body of work ran the gamut from feature film to outstanding family wedding videos. His honors include:

• “Before the Mountain was Moved”, a 1969 work received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature, a pioneering film about the destruction wrought by West Virginia strip-mining.
• “Forgotten River”, a San Francisco International Film Festival prize winning documentary about Hudson River pollution.
• “A Look the Other Way”, an Ohio State University award winning film that illustrates a poem by fellow New Jersey native, Peter Kane Dufault.
• “Asian Exodus”, an Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Individual Craft 1979. This WCBS-TV (New York City) series documented the plight of Vietnamese Boat People.
• Supervising Film Editor on “Paper Lion”, the 1968 feature film about George Plimpton’s stint with the Detroit Lions. He received Associate Producer credit because the Hollywood film editors would not let him into the union.
• Co-produced “Kittens at Play” with his wife Alice, and “Parrots of Periwinkle Park” Parts I and II after retiring to Sanibel, Florida. His children lament (jokingly) not capitalizing on the YouTube cat craze with Kittens at Play.
• For fun he made “Caridad” while at WCBS-TV in New York about a restaurant he and coworkers visited on their dinner break.
• He also did his son Nick’s wedding, his step-nephew’s reception “The Hunt for Guy Miller”, a vacation to the Canadian Rockies, and his own wedding to Alice in 2001.
• He created 8mm movies in the 1970’s with his children starring alongside other neighborhood kids. The most memorable being “Rusty Gulch” a good guys - bad guys shoot-em-up that starred his son Joe as sheriff.
• Last but certainly not least, he produced many 10-year Birthday Gong Shows including “Boris and Sonya”.
• *You can buy a copy of “Before the Mountain was Moved” on Amazon, but hurry, there’s only one left for $902!