This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Gage "Munster" Hubbard and Logan Long are both from Utah. They've both been on the Syfy's "Face Off" before. They're both about to appear on the movie makeup competition again.

How they ended up there, however, is where the parallel ends.

"I've wanted to do this since I was 6 years old," said Hubbard, who was born in Ogden, raised in Willard and went to school in Brigham City. "I never thought, 'Oh, I want to be a fireman.' I can't explain it. It's like it was just meant to be."

Long, on the other hand, followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and became a pilot. He spent a decade in the Air National Guard and never thought about show business until — ironically — he saw "Face Off."

"My wife and I binge-watched the first few seasons and then she told me I should apply," said Long, 31, who grew up and resides in Park City. "At that point, all I had done was some masks and sculptures and paintings and stuff. But I figured, 'Why not?'"

"I didn't even know it was an option. I didn't think of it as a career path."

Neither did Hubbard or his parents, who inadvertently opened this door for their son. Young Gage was obsessed with horror films — Freddy and Jason — so his parents brought him an issue of Fangoria magazine to showed how movie makeup was done.

"They did it so I wouldn't be afraid of them anymore," Hubbard said. "It made me not afraid, but it also made me go, 'That's what I want to do!'"

He put himself through makeup school and was working in the movie/TV business when he was asked to appear on Season 1 of "Face Off" in 2011; he made it to the finale and was a runner-up.

Long, on the other hand, was still working as a pilot when he applied — three times — and was eventually cast on Season 8 in 2015; he also made it to the finale and was a runner-up.

"And once that was over, I had a crisis of faith about whether or not I should be a pilot," he said. "It was a tough decision for me and my wife. And telling my dad was a big gulp and swallow.

"I'm thinking it was the right decision at this point, because I stay fairly busy."

Both Utahns have carved out successful careers. They've both worked in Hollywood, in Bollywood — around the world. This is in no small part because of the exposure they got on "Face Off."

"I wouldn't have worked on all these awesome movies if I hadn't been on the show," Hubbard said.

"I owe the show a lot," Long said. "I have a whole, new career."

Which explains why neither of them hesitated when they were invited to compete in Season 11, an all-star edition that premieres Tuesday on Syfy (7 p.m. on DirecTV and Dish; 10 p.m. on Comcast).

"I'd been waiting six years for this phone call," Hubbard said.

Long's only hesitation was that he had a newborn at home. "I have to give my wife a lot of credit because she stepped up," he said. "But we decided it was worth it."

Scott D. Pierce covers TV for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.