So just in case you want to impress your friends and family
this Halloween, here are a dozen facts about the silver screen’s most famous
fright masters:
1)
Lon Chaney was born Leonidas Frank Chaney in
1883 to profoundly deaf parents.
2)
Before he came to Hollywood, Chaney, who loved
the outdoors, worked as a guide escorting tourists up Pike’s Peak.
3)
Chaney was internationally recognized for his
expertise in make-up; he even wrote the Encyclopedia Britannica’s entry on the
subject itself.
4)
Chaney was originally cast to play the part of
Count Dracula in the 1931 film, but his untimely death in 1930 from bronchial
cancer, paved the way for Bela Lugosi.
5)
Bela Legosi was born Bela Lasko in 1882 in
Lugos, Hungary—not far from Transylvania where Bram Stoker’s Dracula lived.
6)
Lugosi successfully played Dracula onstage beginning
in 1927, but Hollywood didn’t want him.
7)
When other actors like Paul Muni and Chester
Morris dropped out of the running; Universal Studios was forced to either give
the part to Lugosi or cancel the film.
8)
After suffering a heart attack, Lugosi died on
August 16, 1956 and was buried in his Dracula get-up—complete with make-up and
cape.
9)
After Lugosi refused the part of Frankenstein
because it was a non-speaking role and required heavy make-up, Boris Karloff
stepped in.
10)
As Frankenstein, Karloff wore 60 pounds of make-up
and accessories, including 18-pound lead-weighted boots, which increased his
height to 7’6” when in costume.
11)
Karloff received fourth billing as the famous
monster and wasn’t even invited to the Hollywood premiere.
12)
Off screen, the gentle Karloff was an avid gardener
who enjoyed poetry.
Happy Hauntings!