Vintage gelatin silver glossy 8" x 10" studio release photograph of Lon Chaney as "Alonzo" in The Unknown (d. Tod Browning). Eighteen-year-old Joan Crawford was chosen as the female lead, her breakthrough. Chaney's performance in the final scene is a deliriously wrenching coup de grâce. A masterpiece of psychological horror, The Unknown is considered the finest of the ten collaborations of Chaney and Browning, one of the greatest silent films.
Lon Chaney (April 1, 1883 - August 26, 1930)
Lon Chaney (April 1, 1883 - August 28, 1930)
Lon Chaney (April 1, 1883 - August 26, 1930)
Lon Chaney (April 1, 1883 - August 26, 1930)
Lon Chaney showing off his famous make-up kit
Lon Chaney (April 1, 1883 - August 26, 1930)
Norma Shearer, John Gilbert and Lon Chaney in He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
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“Lon Chaney was my introduction to acting. The concentration, the complete absorption he gave to his characterization filled me with such awe I could scarcely speak to him. He demanded a lot of me. A lot of times I was afraid I wasn’t giving him what he wanted to play off, but I guess he thought I was okay … He was giving one of his absolute unique characterizations in this. His arms were strapped to his side. He learned to act without hands, even to hold a cigarette between his toes. He never slipped out of character. Watching him gave me the desire to be a real actress… An era went with him, an era of creative, daring, larger-than-life strivings. I have never, ever forgotten him and the inspiration he provided.” – Joan Crawford Happy Birthday, Lon Chaney
He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
this film
Lon Chaney and Lupe Velez in Where East is East (1929).
Lon Chaney and Conrad Nagel in “London After Midnight” (1927)
