Quick pop quiz: What doDracula,Frankenstein’s monster, The Wolf Man, andThe Mummyall have in common? If you said “Universal Studios,” that is indeed one of the things they have in common, as the frightful four make upUniversal’s Classic Monsters. The second thing they have in common may not be so easy, but here’s a clue: an actor named Creighton. Still stuck? You might know him by his stage name:Lon Chaney Jr.Here’s the connection: Chaney Jr. is the only actor who has played all four of Universal’s monster movie icons.
Lon Chaney Jr. Carved His Own Hollywood Path
Creighton Chaney, the son ofFrances Cleveland CreightonandLon Chaney, the Hollywood legend known as the “Man of a Thousand Faces,” was born in February 1906 under traumatic circumstances. As Chaney Jr.himself explains, “I was all black and not breathing when I was born. My father ran out of the house with me and broke a hole in the ice in a nearby lake, and dunked me in time after time until he revived me.” Creighton joined his father on the vaudeville stage by the time he was six months old, exhibiting strength and ability beyond his age.
But Chaney Sr. discouraged Creighton from entering show business, which wasn’t a hard sell; Creighton didn’t want to act, choosing to attend business school. But after the death of his father in 1930,offers to appear in filmsproved too tempting to pass up, and he began his film career quietly, and often uncredited. The first real breakthrough for Creighton — who was being credited as Lon Chaney Jr. by then — came with the 1939 film interpretation ofJohn Steinbeck’sOf Mice and Men, where his hulking stature was a perfect fit for the slow-minded, giant character. His performance was critically acclaimed andOf Mice and Menwould open the door to what would be Chaney Jr.’s definitive role, that of Larry Talbot, a.k.a the titular monster of 1941’sThe Wolf Man.
Lon Chaney Jr. Became the Ultimate Universal Monster Legend
The Wolf Man, likeOf Mice and Men, presented Chaney with a character that played to his strengths. His Larry Talbot is haunted by what he becomes, with a sense of defeat, loss, and panic in his eyes as a man, and pure nightmare fuel as the titular monster. As recounted in theNew York Times, Chaney explains what set the Wolf Man apart from his monstrous peers: “They [the other monsters] all won the audience’s sympathy. The Wolf didn’t want to do all those things. He was forced into them.“The film was a hit and revived the Universal monster movies, a franchise that had grown stagnant after the critical and commercial success of 1935’sBride of Frankenstein.
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The success ofThe Wolf Manturned Chaney in to the new, well, Lon Chaney (Universal even dropped the “Jr.” from his name in the credits), and he became the go-to for monster roles. In 1942, Chaney took over fromBoris Karloffas Frankenstein’s monster forThe Ghost of Frankenstein, and in that same year played the mummy, Kharis, inThe Mummy’s Tomb. With 1943’sSon of Dracula— which actually doesn’t feature the son of Dracula, just Dracula — Chaney Jr. became the only actor to play all four of Universal’s classic monsters. Chaney would revisit both Larry Talbot and Kharis in other films over the next six years, but he wouldn’t approach the heights ofThe Wolf Managain. He would ride out the rest of his career primarily playing monsters and villains in B-grade films, with the occasional appearance in more prominent fare, like 1952’sHigh Noon.
To date, Chaney’s claim to fame has not been matched, but it doesn’t mean there haven’t been other actors who’ve come close. Boris Karloff played two of the four Universal monsters — the original monster inFrankensteinand the titular Imhotep inThe Mummy. He would also play a vampire, but not Dracula, in 1963’sBlack Sabbath.Bela Lugosiplayed Count Dracula in the classic 1931 filmDraculaand Frankenstein’s monster inFrankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, which also stars Chaney. One would have to go overseas to another famed house of horror,Hammer Films, to find another actor that comes close with three of the four film monsters:Christopher Lee. The legendary actor first appeared as The Creature (Frankenstein’s monster) in 1957’sThe Curse of Frankenstein, Count Dracula in 1958’sDracula, and landed a trifecta playing Kharis in 1959’sThe Mummy. Ultimately, however, Chaney remains unmatched in his legacy. It remains to be seen if anyone will ever play all four monsters again, but it seems unlikely as theUniversal Monsters Universehas failed to recapture the magic of those early years.
The Wolf Man
The Wolf Man, released in 1941, follows Larry Talbot, who returns to his family estate after his brother’s death. Upon his arrival, Larry becomes entangled in ominous events after being bitten by a werewolf, setting the stage for exploring themes of identity and fate.
The Wolf Manis currently available to rent or buy on Prime Video in the U.S.
