Lon Chaney
Chaney displaying his famous makeup kit
One of the greatest actors of the silent film
era, Lon Chaney was notorious for his gift at transforming himself into
whatever a specific role called for. Dubbed "the Man of a Thousand
Faces," Chaney was truly the king of make-up, which he did on his own.
The son of deaf-mute parents, Chaney prided himself on outdoing his make-up
with each movie. He is best known for his roles in the two horror
movies he starred in, The Hunchback of Notre Dame in 1923 and The
Phantom of the Opera in 1925. Both of these films contain scenes
which are still widely known today, even if the movies themselves go generally
unviewed.
L.C. Subject Headings
The following Library of Congress Subject Heading
is for use in searching the on-line catalog for materials pertaining to
Lon Chaney.
Biographies
Anderson, Robert G. Faces, Forms, Films; The Artistry of Lon
Chaney. New York: A.S. Barnes & Co., 1971.
[Davis, 7th floor stacks: PN2287.C48 A8]
Comprised of excellent pictures of the late actor, this is
the biography to consult for a photograhic biography of Lon Chaney.
The illustrations that this book contains are extremely plentiful, and
many of them do not appear in other sources. The biography itself
is good, but not great, so if it is a full description of the life of Lon
Chaney you want, I would highly recommend the book by Michael F. Blake.
This book also contains a short filmography which lists some, but not all,
of Chaney’s movies.
Blake, Michael F. Lon Chaney: The Man Behind the Thousand Faces.
Vestal, N.Y.: Vestal Press, 1993.
[Davis, 7th floor stacks: PN2287.C48 B58 1993]
Michael F. Blake is the official biographer of Lon Chaney;
therefore it should be no surprise that this book far exceeds all others
in portraying the life of this late actor. The pictures contained
in this book are not as extensive as those in Faces, Forms, Films,
but this is really a minimal aspect of the content. This book is
a full length description of Chaney’s life which leaves no important detail
out. For a book that focuses more on Chaney’s films rather than his
life, see Blake’s A Thousand Faces.
Filmographies
Blake, Michael F. A Thousand Faces: Lon Chaney’s Unique Artistry
in Motion Pictures. Vestal, N.Y.: Vestal Press, 1995.
[Duke University, Lilly Library, 791.43028 C456, B636, 1995]
A somewhat updated version to his other Chaney biography, this
book is different in its contents and thus is considered here to be a filmography.
While there is still biographical information, this work focuses much more
heavily on the films Chaney starred in rather than his life. Another
wonderful work by the authority on Lon Chaney, this book does not fail
to delight the reader in the history of some of the greatest silent movies
ever filmed. For another impressive filmography, Blake’s The Films
of Lon Chaney, released in paperback in October 2001, is the perfect
book. However it is not available in the North Carolina Library system.
Essays and Criticism
Sandburg, Carl. The Movies Are: Carl Sandburg's Film Reviews
and Essays, 1920-1928. edited by Arnie Bernstein. Chicago: Lake
Claremont Press, 2000.
[Davis, 7th floor stacks: PN1995 .S335 2000]
In order to understand the implications of a movie on its day
it is important to look at criticism from that time. This book by
Carl Sandburg provides the reader with a look at how a man in the 1920's
viewed the new genre of horror films that debuted during that decade.
With lengthy entries about Chaney and many of the movies he appeared in,
including The Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre
Dame, this will be an interesting read for someone who is looking for
real authroitative criticism. The Movies Are is arranged chronologically
by the date of the written entry, so to find writings related to Chaney
the index would be a good way to search. The introduction is written
by Roger Ebert, one of the most well known film critics in the United States.
World Wide Web Resources
The Lon Chaney Home Page
Truly the best website about this great silent film star, The Lon Chaney
Home Page is maintained by Jon C. Mirsalis (Ph. D.), who not only holds
an incredible collection of Chaney material, but has also written articles
on the actor and has helped in restoring many films for Turner Entertainment.
This site contains a full filmography, great photographs, collections of
posters and lobby cards from the original releases, as well as links to
many other Lon Chaney sites and links to sources about silent films.