Scott Lord Silent Film: Lon Chaney inThe Phantom of the Opera (Jullian, 1925)

Author Mark A. Vieira, in Silent Prototypes, the first chapter of his volume “Hollywood Horror”, almost attributes an entire subgenre of “Gorilla movie”, or “man in a gorilla suit movies” to a 1912 novel written by Gaston Leroux entitled “Balaoo” which was filmed by Fox Studios during 1927, the creature being a “gorilla’s body and half a human head”. The film, which stars the very beautiful Leila Hyams, oddly enough is a lost film, of which the are presumed to be no surviving copies. It is interesting that author William Everson, in his volume Classics of the Horror Film, as early as 1974 wrote that "The Wizard" (six reels), directed by Richard Rossen, was in fact "the most fascinating, elusive and sought after of all 'lost' horror films." Everson includes a still phtotgraph of Edward Lowe being menaced by the ape, almost reminiscient of the many poliferated still photographs of Chaney from "London After Midnight" that seem to makes us feel the film is an apparition rather than the apparition is being filmed. Everson almost chides the studio's projectionist with , "the original film is probably gone beyond recall" and with the film being "sorely missed as a major gap in our knowledge".

Gaston Leroux created the fictional detective Joseph Rouletabile, who appeared in one of the earliest locked room mysteries, “The Mystery of the Yellow Room” (1907) and “The Perfume of the Lady in Black” (1908). Novelist Gaston Leroux had published “The Phantom of the Opera” in 1911.

Author Robert Gordon Anderson, in his volume Faces, forms, films; the artistry of Lon Chaney, chronicles the shooting of "The Phantom of the Opera" as having started in late 1924. "It had taken about ten weeks to do, although another eight months were spent in re-shooting some scenes, which were deleted in the final version."

During his early carrer at Universal Studios, Lon Chaney had most frequently appeared on screen under the direction of either Allan Dwan or Joseph De Grasse. Rupert Julian had not only directed but had also starred with Lon Chaney in the film "The Kaiser, The Beast of Berlin" (seven reels), made by the Universal Film Manufacturing Company during 1918. Apearing in the film with Julian and Chaney were actresses Betty Carpenter, Ruth Clifford and Gretchen Lederer.
Lon Chaney


Lon Chaney

The Hunchback of Notre Dame


Silent Horror