The Phantom of the Opera (Universal, 1925, UK), Lon Chaney 10.25" x 8" Original Studio Release Contact ...

Description

The Phantom of the Opera (Universal, 1925, UK), Lon Chaney 10.25" x 8" Original Studio Release Contact Print Photograph by Jack Freulich. PSA/DNA Type 1. Vintage gelatin silver glossy 10.25" x 8" studio release contact print photograph (from 8" x 10" nitrate negative) of Lon Chaney as "The Phantom" in The Phantom of the Opera by Jack Freulich, with editorial masking, and Universal Pictures UK paper caption on the verso. Key set number 4159-353 in India ink on the negative.

The Phantom of the Opera remains one of the most iconic horror films of the silent era, and Lon Chaney's performance and self-applied makeup as the disfigured Phantom became a cornerstone of horror iconography. Jack Freulich's photographs helped define the public's first encounter with the character, amplifying Chaney's terrifying transformation before the film was even released. This contact print, likely produced for British press distribution, represents a direct material link to the film's original promotional apparatus and to one of the most mythologized performances in early American cinema. A chilling and historically resonant artifact from the golden age of silent horror.

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