Some people leave their mark through headlines. Others do it quietly, through the work they create and the lives they touch. Ann Belsky belonged to the second group. She worked behind the camera as a makeup and costume designer in Canadian entertainment, married actor Rick Moranis during Hollywood’s golden era of family comedies, and raised two children before cancer took her life at just 35.
Her story matters not because she chased fame, but because her death changed the course of someone else’s career—and sparked a conversation about what really matters when family needs you most.
Who is Ann Belsky?
Ann Rachel Belsky was a Canadian makeup artist and costume designer who built her career in Toronto’s film and television industry during the 1980s. She married comedian and actor Rick Moranis in 1986, becoming a partner to one of Hollywood’s rising stars during the peak of his success. Together, they had two children before her death from breast cancer in February 1991.
Most people know her name only because of her connection to Moranis. But she carved out her own space in an industry where behind-the-scenes work rarely gets recognition. Her contributions to makeup and costume design helped bring characters to life on screen, even if her name didn’t appear in bold on movie posters.
Early Life and Creative Roots
Details about Ann’s childhood remain scarce. She was born Ann Rachel Belsky in 1956, reportedly in Canada, though the exact location and family background haven’t been widely documented. What’s clear is that she developed an interest in visual arts and design early enough to pursue it professionally.
By her twenties, she had entered the makeup and costume departments of Toronto’s growing film scene. This was the era when Canadian cities started attracting more production work, creating opportunities for local crew members to learn their craft. Ann found her place in that world, working on sets where attention to detail separated amateur work from professional results.
Her path into the industry likely followed the traditional route—starting as an assistant, learning techniques from senior artists, and gradually taking on more responsibility. The work required both artistic skill and practical problem-solving, especially on tight shooting schedules.
Work in Makeup and Costume Design
Ann worked primarily in Toronto’s film and television production scene during the 1980s. While comprehensive credit lists for crew members from that era can be hard to verify, records show she contributed to various projects as a makeup artist and occasionally in costume departments.
The job demanded versatility. One day might involve creating natural looks for contemporary drama. The next could require period-accurate styling or special effects makeup. Costume work added another layer—understanding fabric, color theory, and how clothing communicates character without a single line of dialogue.
Behind-the-scenes roles like Ann’s rarely received the attention given to actors or directors. Crew members showed up before dawn, worked through long days, and often went uncredited in final cuts. But their work shaped what audiences saw on screen. A poorly applied makeup job could break the illusion of a scene. A costume that didn’t fit the character could pull viewers out of the story.
Ann’s colleagues in Toronto’s tight-knit production community would have known her by reputation and work quality. In an industry built on word-of-mouth recommendations, that mattered more than any award.
How Ann and Rick Met
Rick Moranis was already making waves in Canadian comedy when he and Ann met in the early 1980s. He’d gained recognition through SCTV and was transitioning into Hollywood films. She was working steadily in Toronto’s production world. Both were rooted in Canada’s entertainment industry, which created natural opportunities for their paths to cross.
The exact circumstances of their meeting haven’t been publicly detailed—neither was the type to share personal stories with tabloids. What’s known is that they built a relationship while Moranis’s career was taking off. By the mid-1980s, he was starring in films like Ghostbusters and Little Shop of Horrors, traveling frequently for work while Ann continued her own career in Toronto.
Their connection appears to have been grounded in shared creative backgrounds and an understanding of the demands that came with working in film. Both knew the irregular hours, the pressure of deadlines, and the satisfaction of contributing to something larger than themselves.
Married Life and Family
Ann and Rick married in 1986, the same year Strange Brew and Brewster’s Millions had already made him a recognizable face in comedy. The timing put their marriage right in the middle of his busiest period professionally. Over the next few years, they welcomed two children—a daughter named Rachel and a son named Mitchell.
Balancing two careers in entertainment while raising young children presented obvious challenges. Moranis was increasingly in demand for Hollywood projects, which meant time away from home. Ann had her own work commitments in Toronto. Like many couples in the industry, they had to navigate the tension between professional opportunities and family stability.
By most accounts, they made it work through the late 1980s. Moranis’s star continued rising with Honey, I Shrunk the Kids in 1989, which became one of Disney’s biggest hits. Ann maintained her presence in Toronto’s production community while managing the demands of young children.
The family structure they’d built would be tested when Ann received her cancer diagnosis. The disease moved quickly, giving them little time to prepare for what came next.
Illness and the Years After
Ann Belsky was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1990. She died on February 4, 1991, leaving behind Rick and their two young children. She was 35 years old. Memorial records confirm she was laid to rest in a Jewish cemetery in Toronto, where family and friends gathered to remember her life and work.
Her death came suddenly enough that the family had minimal time to adjust. One moment, they were managing the normal chaos of young children and busy careers. Next, Rick was a single father of two kids under ten, trying to process grief while keeping their world stable.
The loss marked a clear dividing line in the Moranis household. Before February 1991, they were a working family with two parents juggling schedules. After everything changed. Rick faced choices that would reshape not just his family’s life, but his entire relationship with the career he’d spent years building.
How Her Loss Affected Rick Moranis’s Life and Career
Rick Moranis stepped away from acting shortly after Ann’s death. He didn’t announce a formal retirement, but the pattern became clear—fewer roles, longer gaps between projects, and eventually, almost complete withdrawal from Hollywood. By the mid-1990s, he’d largely disappeared from screens, focusing instead on raising Rachel and Mitchell.
In interviews years later, Moranis explained the decision simply. His kids needed a parent present, not someone flying to film sets every few months. He couldn’t do both jobs well, so he chose the one that mattered more. People magazine and other outlets have documented how he prioritized school pickups, homework help, and being available when his children needed him.
This wasn’t a sabbatical or a strategic career move. It was a father recognizing that his children had already lost one parent and couldn’t afford to lose the second one to work obligations. The choice cost him professionally—those were years when he could have capitalized on his fame and added to his body of work. But he’s consistently said he doesn’t regret it.
His decision resonated with audiences in a way few celebrity stories do. Here was someone walking away from millions of dollars and cultural relevance because family simply mattered more. That kind of integrity is rare, and it’s rooted entirely in what Ann’s death taught him about priorities.
Legacy: Remembered as an Artist and Mother
Ann Belsky didn’t leave behind a famous body of work or a public legacy that fans celebrate. Her contributions to makeup and costume design remain part of projects that credit dozens of crew members, most forgotten by everyone except those who worked alongside them.
But she left something more important—two children who grew up with one parent’s full attention because the other parent wasn’t there to give it. Rick’s choice to raise them himself honored what Ann would have wanted: stability, presence, and love.
Those who knew her in Toronto’s production community remember a professional who took her craft seriously. She understood that good makeup work is invisible—the audience shouldn’t notice it, they should only see the character. That kind of skill requires both artistic talent and ego-checking humility.
Her story also reminds us that every project on screen depends on people whose names scroll by too quickly to read. Makeup artists, costume designers, set builders, and countless others show up daily to make someone else’s vision work. Ann was one of thousands who did that job well, found love, built a family, and left too soon.
The real legacy lives in what her loss taught one famous person about what matters. Rick Moranis could have hired nannies and kept working. Instead, he chose to be present. That choice, born from grief over losing Ann, tells us more about their relationship than any interview could.
