Trivia Tuesday: Happy Birthday Lon Chaney!

Born in 1883 to deaf/mute parents

Only made one talking picture before his death, a remake of The Unholy Three, a silent film he made in 1925

Signed a legal affidavit declaring that all of the voices he performed in the talking version of The Unholy Three were his voice.

Was the favorite to play Count Dracula in Universal's Dracula, but became terminally ill from lung cancer and died of a throat hemorrhage before production ever began.

His ability to transform himself physically and with makeup earned him the nickname "The Man of a Thousand Faces"

His grave in the Great Mausoleum at Forest lawn Cemetery (Glendale) remains unmarked to this day.

Because his performance in Tell It To The Marines was so convincing, he became the first actor to be granted honorary membership in the Marine Corps. Upon his death, it was arranged for a military chaplain and honor guard to be present at his funeral.

Famous for his various makeup creations, Tell It To the Marines was Chaney's only film in which he wore no makeup at all.

He could only wear the harness he wore to keep his legs behind his back in The Penalty for ten minutes at a time because it was so painful. 

The makeup Chaney created for his role in The Phantom of the Opera was so horrific, it was kept out of any publicity leading up to the premiere for added shock value when it was revealed during the film.