This art has been taken to new levels for sure!
(...)"Whom ever is navigating these storms and waters with us, we are aboard, and on deck, because alas~ WWG1WGA" ~R
its been around for longer then we realize
TV show "Mission Impossible" The characters used face masks to portray people they had a mission to remove or rescue. You'd see the actor remove the very realistic masks.
Mission: Impossible (TV Series 1966–1973) - IMDb
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060009/
Kobra, übernehmen Sie (TV Series 1966–1973) - IMDb
Kobra, übernehmen Sie: Created by Bruce Geller. With Greg Morris, Peter Lupus, Peter Graves, Barbara Bain. An elite covert operations unit carries out highly sensitive missions subject to official denial in the event of failure, death or capture.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060009/