The Thousand Faces

Lon Chaney. Now, there was a silent performer for you.

I'm constantly amazed by the way he threw himself into his roles - a legless crime boss, a deformed opera fanatic, a tough Marine drill sergeant, a handicapped criminal. It's so easy, given his gift with makeup, to watch one of his films without realizing that he's even in it. It happened to me just last month: "What... Chaney was in that? What part did he play?"

I've noticed that looking at his eyes and nose help to identify him. Not always, but often.

Nomads of the North is interesting to me for his leading-man casting, the adorable baby animals, and a villain named Bucky. I'm sorry, folks, but a "Bucky" is not a villain. A guy named Bucky would be the butt of every joke in Canada. He would not be a murderous, obsessive fiend. He would avoid bars, avoid the lumber camps, and plant flowers in his mother's garden, while she sat on the front porch with a shotgun, ready and willing to chase away anyone who made fun of her darling boy.

He would not tangle with Chaney.

Chaney's film The Penalty is one of his most startling performances. No unusual facial makeup, but his legs are strapped behind him to simulate a legless character - the realistic nature of it will make your jaw drop, as will his ability to haul himself up a series of pegs in the wall, using only his hands. Douglas Fairbanks must have been envious.

What do I wish? That Chaney had lived much longer, and that we had been able to see him in more talkie roles. The one talking picture that he did make, suffers from the poor sound quality of the day, that made voices so irritating. He'd have been marvelous in a film noir, for example.

But, what we have is very good indeed. I maintain hope that we will, one day, be able to watch all of The Miracle Man and London After Midnight.