Why I’d Bring Lon Chaney Back From the Dead for One More Film

The Man of a Thousand Faces against Dracula and Frankenstein’s Monster

1920s newspaper promotion (Public domain, edit by author)

When the question of who would I bring back came up, my brain started to run — what if F.W. Murnau were to reappear today, what if Judy Garland had one more film in her, what if Mario Bava had handled a modern-day slasher-fest? It is an interesting thought experiment but the one name that stuck in my mind, above all others, was Lon Chaney. Famed for his ability to slip into any role with chameleon-like skill, Chaney was one of the biggest draws during the silent era. With simple methods he could change his entire appearance, but he was also a highly skilled actor, having learned how to communicate visually thanks to his deaf parents.

Part of MGM’s roster of stars, Chaney resisted the talking craze that swept America at the end of the 1920s, but finally acquiesced and appeared in a sound remake of his own silent film, *The Unholy Three in 1930, showcasing a strong presence and confidence in this new medium. Sadly this would prove his final film, and he would pass away the same year from throat cancer. There are many “what if” questions when it comes to Chaney in the era of sound, with one prominent claim being that he may have appeared in Universal’s [Dracula](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0021814/) *instead of Bela Lugosi.

Chaney with his make-up kit (Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

As for myself, I can’t see him as Dracula. While in the silent era he could change his face and body to suit any role (including the sharklike “vampire” of *London After Midnight), his voice was very strong and American and I’m not sure how he would have worked as Dracula. Although he showed some versatility with his voice in The Unholy Three*, I believe he would have gone on to play the type of strong-headed roles played by James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson. The varied ghoulish characters created in silence may not have worked with sound, but Chaney would have found a career in gangster films and thrillers.

While MGM is not well-known for its horror films, it did dabble in the genre, mainly through Chaney and later Tod Browning. Browning and Chaney likely would have worked together on *Freaks*, with Chaney as one of the able-bodied circus performers or perhaps a manager. So, if we allow Chaney to keep working at MGM, Lugosi and Boris Karloff to rise to fame as Dracula and Frankenstein’s monster, we have the names for an interesting experiment. What I can see happening is Chaney in a sort of Van Helsing role, the scientific hero that saves the day and defeats the monsters.

In the way that *What Ever Happened to Baby Jane played on the “feud” between Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, and the draw of [The Black Cat](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024894/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_the%2520black%2520cat)* being Karloff and Lugosi and their alleged “feud,” what if we had Chaney up against Karloff and Lugosi — the old guard of horror and the new guard facing off in one of Universal’s “monster mash” movies?

Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff in “The Black Cat” (Universal Pictures)

Lon Chaney plays a version of Van Helsing, a sophisticated, intelligent man who understands the dark forces at large in our world. Dracula, having been raised from the dead, is on the loose again and has managed to convince Frankenstein’s monster to join his cause. The pair stalk through a vaguely-European landscape, with Dracula preying on victims while the monster protects him during the day, killing those who get too close.

A young lady falls under Dracula’s spell and he intends to rebuild his harem of wives, but the girl’s father calls in Van Helsing to protect her. Dracula and Van Helsing engage in a battle of wits and strength, but the young girl is carried off to Dracula’s castle. A group take chase and at the castle Van Helsing makes the Monster see how Dracula has manipulated him. Angered at being used in this way, the Monster turns against Dracula and allows Van Helsing to kill him. While I would like for the Monster to have a happy ending, the film rules of the time dictate that he must also perish when Dracula’s castle collapses, having been redeemed. Evil banished, Van Helsing and the young girl return home.

When I imagine this hypothetical film I picture the golden-age of Universal’s horror films — elaborate sets filled with mist and shadow, atmospheres of unease, and suggestions of darker themes than censors would have allowed to be obvious (à la The Black Cat, with its undercurrents of necrophilia).

Chaney’s death was a blow to Hollywood, and it left a hole that has ever quite been filled. Actors such as Doug Jones are spiritual successors to the Man of a Thousand Faces, but there has never been another Lon Chaney. But although most think of him as a horror actor, he was more a master of macabre and unusual than outright horror.

Chaney in his final film, “The Unholy Three,” with Lila Lee (Warner Bros. Entertainment)

His films run the gamut of genres and in every film he unveils more of his skill and artistry — and I would love to see what he would make of the rather tongue-in-cheek casting of him as a hero. Although he portrayed heroes occasionally (*While the City Sleeps as an example), he was better known in the role of anti-hero, or as flawed but somewhat sympathetic men — the deranged Phroso in [West of Zanzibar](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0019563/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_west%2520of%2520zan)* being a good example of this.

But what people seldom give him credit for is his wonderful sense of humour, sprinkling flakes of comedy throughout his roles, even as the Phantom of the Opera — and in the old dark house comedy *The Monster*, he chews the scenery in a very knowing way as the villainous mad doctor. In that film he parodies the kind of work he was associated with, and I have no doubt that he would have brought a knowing humour to a Van Helsing-type character.

Lugosi and Karloff took over for Chaney but could they have worked with him. To see how their styles would have meshed, how their respective backgrounds would have influenced their characters, what Chaney would bring to the role with his long and respected career as a master of the unusual, now as the modern and heroic figure. Chaney wore many faces throughout his career, bringing sensitivity and pathos to parts that otherwise would have been one-note, and I wish we could have seen Chaney’s own face against the faces of those who came after.

Mock-up of Lugosi in “Dracula” (Universal Pictures) with Chaney in “London After Midnight” (Public domain)