The Phantom of the Opera (Universal, 1925), Typewritten Early Draft Screenplay with Handwritten Annotat...

Description

The Phantom of the Opera (Universal, 1925), Typewritten Early Draft Screenplay with Handwritten Annotations. Vintage original early and exceedingly rare draft of Universal and Carl Laemmle's silent horror film, The Phantom of the Opera, typewritten on 8.5" x 13" legal-size pulp paper with blue front wrap bound at top with a metallic fastener. Contains over 200-pages (unpaginated) with handwritten annotations in pencil throughout. While the "Scenario By" area on the cover is left blank, the scene text indicates an early draft by Elliot J. Clawson, the original screenwriter and a longtime collaborator of director Rupert Julian. This draft includes a lengthy flashback of the Phantom's (Lon Chaney) backstory, later eliminated, explaining how his disfigured visage was the result of having been sentenced to death "upon an anthill" by a Sultan who began to dislike him. To note, the present draft is incomplete - while it does not appear as if the final pages have been separated or removed, the script ends abruptly during the scene where Raoul (Norman Kerry) and Ledoux (Arthur Edmund Carewe) attempt to rescue Christine (Mary Philbin). The Phantom of the Opera remains one of the most influential horror films of all time, noted for Chaney's gripping performance and for convincing Universal to continue producing horror pictures. Original materials from the project are excessively rare, and the present lot shows age and wear with a separated but present front wrap as well as chips, creases, tears, surface loss, stains, and brittle internal pages, with noticeable foxing, edgewear, and areas of damp staining, primarily affecting the top and bottom portions of the pages. The poster image is for reference only and is not included with this lot. Comes with a COA from Heritage Auctions.

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