:04:06
Take off that ridiculous mask
when you speak to me. Do you hear me?
:04:12
Take it off!
:04:22
The Opera Ghost was the creation
of a Frenchman, Gaston Leroux:
:04:27
lawyer, journalist,
author of many fantastic novels,
:04:30
but none so enduring
as The Phantom of the Opera.
:04:34
First published in 1910,
Phantom became a popular success.
:04:39
It told the story of Erique,
a horribly disfigured musician
:04:42
who dwells in the catacombs
beneath the Paris Opera House,
:04:46
and his unrequited love
for a singer named Christine.
:04:50
When his passion is thwarted,
a reign of terror ensues.
:04:54
A primary inspiration for
Leroux's book was an earlier novel,
:04:58
George Du Maurier's Trilby.
:05:00
It told the story of Svengali,
a maestro of mesmerism,
:05:05
who possesses the soul and voice
of a beautiful young singer.
:05:09
Carl Laemmle,
president of Universal Pictures,
:05:13
bought the film rights
to Phantom for actor Lon Chaney,
:05:16
to follow Chaney's phenomenal success
in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
:05:20
It had all of the elements and the
ingredients for a rip-roaring melodrama.
:05:26
And, of course, the main thing is,
it was a perfect vehicle for Lon Chaney
:05:31
as a follow-up to The Hunchback.
:05:33
Lon Chaney was one
of the finest character actors,
:05:38
and he was notable mainly because
he was such a great artist at make-up.
:05:43
They called him
"The Man of a Thousand Faces".
:05:46
His range was incredible, and, of course,
he was perfect for silent movies,
:05:50
because he could express, in pantomime,
so much without having to speak.
:05:56
Like Hunchback, Phantom
would be a tremendous undertaking
:05:59
for a small company like Universal.