2/6: The Face of Void – The Phantom of the Opera!
One of my earliest childhood “monster memories” is Lon Chaney, Sr. as Phantom of the Opera. In my earlier 13-part segment on influences that led to Void over the years, Lon Chaney, Sr. was #2 on that list. You can link to that post right here:
Void Influences: Lon Chaney, Sr.
While the monstrous face of Chaney’s Phantom filled my young mind, there was an even more frightening version lurking … waiting … for me. Although filmed in 1962, this version (from England’s Hammer Studios) stormed into my life around age 12-13 (early 1970s) and presented a visual image of the Phantom that still haunts me to this day. While legendary Dracula star Christopher Lee was considered to play the lead, the part went to Herbert Lom, who turned in a creepy, masterful performance.
It was this version that led to the final look of my first masked avenger, Jeremiah Bronson, aka The Night Terror, in my 2009 novel, I Know Why the Dogwoods Blush. But the impact of that spooky mask spilled over into the rise of Deacon Void as well.
Proposed comic cover (art by Chris Ivy) depicting Jerry Bronson and ol' Blue. Note the obvious Herbert Lom influence!
With this deadly mask as the exterior, it is impossible to have any indication of the face, expression, or mood of the person lurking behind it. It still creeps me out to this day. And so, to some degree, it is Herbert Lom and his horribly scarred visage, hiding behind the mask of the Phantom of the Opera, who plays a major role in the look and feel of the mysterious London-based investigator we know as … VOID!
I am going to teach you to sing, Christine. I am going to give you a new voice! A voice so wonderful that theatres all over the world will be filled with your admirers. You will be the greatest star the opera has ever known. Greater than the greatest! And when you sing, Christine, you will be singing only… for me.
Herbert Lom, Phantom of the Opera (1962)
Coming September 13, 2011, Void 2.8: Team-Up with Scotland Yard!
Coming September 15, 2011, Part 3/6 of The Face of Void: “Put a bandage on that!”
2 Comments
This use to scare me when I was younger. You always talked about this and Charles Heston. I miss out talks. Eva
More talks coming for sure, Eva. As for the Phantom, he was one of the MANY spooky characters from the old HAMMER FILM STUDIOS of the 70s that tweaked and inspired me as a teenager developing my own stories. And of course, as a kid in the 60s, it was Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney from UNIVERSAL STUDIOS who jump-started my imagination. You’ll see plenty more about all of them as we continue to explore the influences that led to … VOID!