If cyber criminals had any inkling of how committed Andre Durand can be, they would run and hide offline.
As CEO of Denver-based Ping Identity, Durand built a security firm that earned the business of half the Fortune 100 companies. Ping pooh-poohs passwords in favor of an Internet that knows exactly who you are — and who isn’t you and who shouldn’t get access to your bank account.
He’s passionate about security. And then there’s Halloween.
“He’s super passionate about it,” said Brittany Rowland, one of Ping’s people operations partners — human resources to the rest of us. “It’s his favorite holiday.”
The spider webs and giant tarantulas crept into the Ping visitors reception area in early October. Party planning started weeks earlier, as a fortune teller, DJ and face painter were hired, and a photo booth lined up. For the first time, the company holiday party was off-site, and party planner Rowland added, “It’s required to dress up.”
And Durand? The boss keeps it a secret until party time, but each year he tends to outdo himself.
It started at the 2009 party, after the face painter finished with the children and asked for adults. Durand volunteered and was transformed into The Joker. Ten minutes of free face painting and green in his hair and everyone was talking. What would the boss do next time?
“It was a big accident. But every year, the expectations grew,” Durand said, adding that having a Halloween party came after hearing spouses complain of “another Christmas party to go to.”
The next year, Durand went as The Mad Hatter, as reimagined by film director Tim Burton. He spent four hours and about $30.
His 2011 costume stunned everyone: a green toy Army guy.
“I went all over town buying Army surplus and painted all of it,” he said.
It took him 25 hours, which included painting his face with Army-green vinyl body paint. He even made a stand out of plywood. Total cost: $600.
Everyone loved that one.
“He was so serious that year,” recalled Ian Jaffe, who has worked at Ping for years. “It was the one year where he couldn’t speak because he painted his mouth shut.”
And then there was 2012. Inspired by Burton’s 1996 film “Mars Attacks!” Durand wanted to be a borg — one of the aliens with the giant brains bulging underneath fishbowl helmets. But he couldn’t find a decent reproduction of the alien’s head.
He commissioned a guy in London to make one for $600. Ironically, the brain didn’t arrive until after the party, but he put it to good use at Ping’s next event.
“That took 60 hours, not including the time for the mask to be made. I have no idea how long that took,” he said. “Cost? I’d rather not say.”
Last year, he faced the facts: He spent too much time on his costume. So, he hired Kate McCarthy, a makeup and special-effects costumer from Hollywood who had moved back to Denver, her hometown.
“His assistant found me on . She called me, and I was thinking it was some awesome film job,” McCarthy said. “She told me about Andre, and I thought that was even cooler because this guy loves Halloween more than I do.”
She transformed Durand into Tonto, inspired by last year’s movie “The Lone Ranger.”
And this year? The Big Bad Wolf. McCarthy helped Durand’s whole family, including daughter (Little Red Riding Hood) and wife (“a hip granny from the Renaissance era,” she said).
McCarthy spent an hour Thursday afternoon gluing crepe hair to Durand’s forehead, although they opted for less facial fur. She had already spent three days molding a snout. Plus, they had picked out a “really cool nightgown that came with a lady bonnet,” she said.
McCarthy estimated she spent 20 hours helping the Durands.
“It’s so surprising how far he’s willing to go. From my standpoint, that makes my job fun. It lets me flex my creative muscles,” said McCarthy, who did makeup for the 2010 thriller “Order of Chaos.”
As employees gathered at Blake Street Tavern on Thursday for the party, Durand arrived fashionably late. By then, employees were well into the season and pretty much everyone was dressed up. There were plenty of little Elsas from Disney’s “Frozen,” a family of bees and a beekeeper — even a walking taco.
“This is what it’s all about,” Durand said, posing with his 11-year-old daughter, Parker. “The kids and the families.”
Tamara Chuang: 303-954-1209, tchuang@denverpost.com or
