By the Sun's Rays (1914): Lon Chaney

     With a total running time of eleven minutes, By the Sun's Rays (1914) was a typical short Western film of the period. What makes the film stand out, however, is that it is the earliest surviving film starring Lon Chaney... The Man of a Thousand Faces. In the film, Chaney showcases his burgeoning talents with his impressive array of facial expressions, including his classic sinister grin. By the Sun's Rays also proved Chaney's adeptness at playing villains, which would help him in the remainder of his career. 

     Frank Lawler (Lon Chaney) is a clerk for a mining company... 

By the Sun's Rays. 1914: Lon Chaney

     He is also in cahoots with a band of robbers, whom he tips off about the gold shipments leaving the mine... 

By the Sun's Rays. 1914: Lon Chaney

     Tired of getting robbed, the company hires a detective, John Murdock, to figure out where the bandits are getting their information... 

By the Sun's Rays. 1914: Lon Chaney

     All fingers point to Lawler... 

By the Sun's Rays. 1914: Lon Chaney

The Unknown (1927): Lon Chaney, Joan Crawford and Tod Browning

     Shocking during it's time, and still chilling today, not only is The Unknown (1927) one of director Tod Browning's best Silent Horror Films, it is also one of the best and most influential of Lon Chaney's roles. Critics often hail Chaney's performance in The Unknown as one of the greatest ever captured on film, and both Joan Crawford and Burt Lancaster cite his acting as a major inspiration for their craft. The Unknown is also notable for an early performance by a young, scantily-clad Joan Crawford. Browning's empathetic direction and Chaney's emotional style meshed perfectly and created a work that has had a lasting and resounding effect, influencing the other Horror films of the Silent and early Sound eras, and still being sensed in the cinematic works of the present.

     A Circus Freak known as Alonzo the Armless (Lon Chaney) uses his feet to shoot a rifle and throw knives at his assistant, Nanon (Joan Crawford)...

The Unknown. 1927: Joan Crawford and Lon Chaney

     The two have a good rapport, and Alonso lusts after Nanon, but he is hiding a secret...

The Unknown. 1927: Joan Crawford

     Alonso is not really armless. He is a murderous fugitive that binds his arms to his body with a harness to pass himself off as a Freak...

The Unknown. 1927: Lon Chaney

     When his employer (Nanon's father) discovers that he has arms, Alonzo kills him with his bare hands...

The Unknown. 1927: Lon Chaney

     That is just the start of this macabre tale, as Alonzo is willing to do anything, harm anyone, who will either expose him...

The Unknown. 1927: Joan Crawford and Lon Chaney

     or get in the way of his love for Nanon...

The Unknown. 1927: Joan Crawford and Lon Chaney

     So, when Nanon falls in love with the Circus Strongman, naturally, horror ensues...

The Unknown. 1927: Joan Crawford