Lon Chaney was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and make-up artist…
One of the best character actors in the history of American cinema.
He appeared in over 150 films but is mostly remembered for his performances in silent horror films.
Due to his astounding ability with makeup, he earned the nickname “The Man of a Thousand Faces.”
He debuted as an extra in 1912, acting in both comedies and westerns, directing six of them.
However, it was in 1919 that he truly found his path, and for ten years, he portrayed mutilated, monstrous, and deformed characters…
To better immerse himself in such roles, he subjected himself to dangerous and even painful treatments.
Gifted with great insight and sensitivity,
he perfected the art of cinematic makeup, which until then had consisted of fake mustaches and beards, unlike the makeup used in theater.
He created highly realistic characters,
where the grotesque appearance wasn’t everything,
as they were able to feel as much love and pain as hate and contempt.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923), The Phantom of the Opera (1925), The Phantom of the Castle (1927) are some of his most famous films.
Sadly, he passed away at the young age of 47 in 1930, but his immense professionalism would have likely led him to roles that were later given to Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, his natural “heirs”…
Many of the films starring Chaney have been lost: nearly all of his short films and many features from the 1910s and 1920s, due to the high perishability of the film stock, poor preservation practices, or fires in film studio storage facilities. One of the most notorious lost films featuring the actor is The Phantom of the Castle (1927), the last known copy of which was destroyed in a fire at an MGM storage facility in 1965.
Lon Chaney has often been described as the ultimate shapeshifter, and his contribution to cinema drastically changed and continues to keep the aura of glory surrounding his name alive.
He will always remain in history for his brilliant creativity, acting skills, and strong sense of dedication to the film set and the seventh art, which we all love so deeply.
