Swiss artist H. R. Giger died yesterday at the age of 74. In the film world, Giger is most famous for being the inspiration for, and the designer of the creature in the Alien franchise. Giger made designs for various other films, including Dune, Species, and Prometheus, but it is for the Alien creature for which he was most known. Giger’s work is disturbing at many levels, as is shown in two images below; his creations really were the stuff of which nightmares are made, which why Alien and Aliens are such an effective blend of horror and science fiction