Line #22 Creator/LonChaneyJr


1	[[quoteright:330:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/60d8b870babfc6bb914cac9058c780fe.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:330:''[[Music/WarrenZevon I saw Lon Chaney Junior walking with the Queen...]]'']]
3
4	->''"Nothing is more natural to me than horror."''
5
6	Creighton Tull Chaney (February 10, 1906 – July 12, 1973), better known by his [[StageNames stage name]] of Lon Chaney Jr., was an American character actor best known for his work in numerous Franchise/UniversalHorror monster movies.
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8	Chaney was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Territory, the son of silent movie star Creator/LonChaney. After his parents' marriage ended in divorce, young Creighton lived in a number of different homes and boarding schools until his father remarried and was able to provide a stable home. Creighton worked hard to get out from under the shadow of his father growing up, while the elder Chaney discouraged him from entering show business.
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10	Obviously that didn't work out too well, because after the elder Chaney's death his son started acting in films, beginning with a bit part in the 1932 film ''Girl Crazy''. He appeared under his true name until 1935, when he began to be billed as "Lon Chaney Jr". From 1942 onward he was officially billed as just "Lon Chaney", though the "Jr." was still commonly applied to distinguish him from his father. His first starring role was as Lennie Small in the 1939 film version of ''Film/OfMiceAndMen'', but it was not until his role in ''One Million B.C.'' that Chaney's true calling as a character actor became clear. He was then cast in ''Man-Made Monster'', in a performance that led to an offer to star in ''Film/TheWolfMan1941'', which would lead in turn to his getting typecast as a horror actor for the rest of his life. In addition to his role as cinema's most famous werewolf, Chaney would also portray {{Dracula}}, FrankensteinsMonster, and [[Franchise/TheMummy Kharis the Mummy]], which means he probably played more iconic Universal monsters than any other actor.
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12	Despite this, Chaney carved out a secondary niche as a supporting actor and villain in crime films and westerns, and starred in a series of radio shows. After making 30 films for Universal, he left the studio and worked primarily as a character actor.
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14	Chaney was married to Dorothy Hinckley (with whom he had two sons) from 1928 to 1936 and then to Patsy Beck from 1937 until his death. He died of heart failure at age 67, and his body was donated to science.
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16	Among many horror fans, Chaney is half-jokingly known as "monster royalty". In a meaningful quirk of fate, his father had the distinction of starring in the very first Franchise/UniversalHorror film, ''Film/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame1923'', as well as its follow-up ''Film/ThePhantomOfTheOpera1925'' – arguably making him the ''original'' Universal monster. Conversely, ''The Wolf Man'' was one of the last films to be released in the studio's "classic" cycle of horror movies, and the eponymous Wolf Man was the studio's last new {{recurring character}} to be introduced (unless you count the Film/CreatureFromTheBlackLagoon) – which arguably makes Lon Jr. the ''[[LastOfHisKind last]]'' Universal monster. [[BookEnds Now, that's one hell of a family legacy.]] Both men were honored in 1997 by appearing (as the Phantom of the Opera and the Wolf Man, respectively) in a series of USPS stamps depicting the classic Universal monsters.
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18	He appears as a secondary character in ''Film/ManOfAThousandFaces1957'', a biopic about his father.
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20	----
21	!!Lon Chaney Jr. works with TV Tropes pages:
22	[[foldercontrol]]
23
24	[[folder:Film roles]]
25	* ''Film/UnderseaKingdom'' (1936): Captain Hakur
26	* ''Film/JesseJames'' (1939): James Gang Member
27	* ''Film/UnionPacific'' (1939): Dollarhide
28	* ''Film/OfMiceAndMen'' (1939): Lennie Small
29	* ''Film/{{The Wolf Man\|1941}}'' (1941): Lawrence Talbot
30	** ''Film/FrankensteinMeetsTheWolfMan'' (1943)
31	** ''Film/HouseOfFrankenstein'' (1944)
32	** ''Film/HouseOfDracula'' (1945)
33	** ''Film/AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein'' (1948)
34	* ''Film/TheGhostOfFrankenstein'' (1942): FrankensteinsMonster
35	* ''Film/SonOfDracula'' (1943): [[{{Dracula}} Alucard]]
36	* ''Film/CobraWoman'' (1944): Hava
37	* ''Film/MyFavoriteBrunette'' (1947): Willie
38	* ''Film/BrideOfTheGorilla'' (1951): Commissioner Taro
39	* ''Film/HighNoon'' (1952): Martin Howe
40	* ''Film/{{Passion}}'' (1954): Castro
41	* ''Film/IndestructibleMan'' (1956): Charles 'Butcher' Benton
42	* ''Film/TheCyclops'' (1957): Martin Melville
43	* ''Film/TheDefiantOnes'' (1958): Big Sam
44	* ''Film/TheAlligatorPeople'' (1959): Manon
45	* ''Film/TheDevilsMessenger'' (1961): {{Satan}}
46	* ''Film/JohnnyReno'' (1966): Sheriff Hodges
47	* ''Film/HillbillysInAHauntedHouse'' (1967): Maximillian
48	* ''Film/SpiderBabyOrTheMaddestStoryEverTold'' (1967): Bruno
49	* ''Film/DraculaVsFrankenstein'' (1971): Groton
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Television roles]]
53	* ''Series/TheRedSkeltonShow'' (6 episodes, 1953–59): Various roles
54	* ''Series/WantedDeadOrAlive'' (1 episode, 1959): Sheriff Lon Paulson
55	* ''Series/{{Rawhide}}'' (2 episodes, 1959–63): Jesse Childress[=/=]Rock
56	* ''Series/HaveGunWillTravel'' (2 episodes, 1959–63): William Ceilbleu[=/=]O'Connor
57	* ''Series/{{Bat Masterson\|1958}}'' (1 episode, 1960): Rance Fletcher
58	* ''Series/WagonTrain'' (2 episodes, 1960–61): Louis Roque[=/=]Carstairs
59	* ''Series/Route66'' (3 episodes, 1961–63): Colby[=/=][[AsHimself Lon Chaney]][=/=]Poppa Duplessis
60	* ''Series/TheRifleman'' (1 episode, 1962): Charlie Gordo
61	* ''Series/{{Lawman}}'' (1 episode, 1962): Jesse Bridges
62	* ''Series/TheMonkees'' (1 episode, 1966): Lenny
63	[[/folder]]

Context Creator / LonChaneyJr