LON CREIGHTON CHANEY JR. BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Lon Creighton Chaney Jr., born Creighton Tull Chaney on February 10th, 1906 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  His mother, Cleva, was a stage performer who traveled on road shows and his father was a famous actor.  His parents marriage ended in divorce in 1913, following a suicide attempt by his mother. 
 
During Chaney's youth he lived in various homes and boarding schools until 1916, when his father who was now working in the film industry, remarried hazel Hastings and they were able to now provide a stable home environment. 
 
Chaney never knew his mother was alive in his younger years. it was not until 1930, when his father passed that he found out his mother was actually still alive.  Chaney was always interested in the entertainment industry, however his father constantly discouraged him from ever getting involved.   Lon attended business colleges and became successful a Los Angeles Appliance Corporation.   It was not until his father's passing that he was able to pursue his dream. 
 
He began with a role in an un credited film, "Girl Crazy" (1932) where he appeared under his real name Creighton. later on his credits were under Lon Chaney.  His first real step to achieving stardom was in, "Of Mice and Men" (1939).  
 
With Universal Pictures Co, Chaney starred in, "The Wolf Man" (1942) which type cast him for the rest of his life.  The following years, Chaney appeared in mostly horror films replaying the Wolf Man in, "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man", "House of Frankenstein", "House of Dracula" and "Meet Frankenstein".  He also played Frankenstein's monster in, "The Ghost of Frankenstein" and the mummy in, "The Mummy's Tomb", "The Mummy's Ghost",  "The Mummy's Curse" and Dracula in "Son of Dracula".

He continued to work with Universal Pictures starring in a series of phsycological mysteries.  Upon leaving Universal, Chaney had a hard time finding decent roles due to his type cast and he was also struggling with an addiction to alcohol.  He worked on some low budget films, but as his career progressed so did his throat cancer, causing him to have difficulty with lines.  Therefore, he mostly played mute characters or characters with a raspy voice.   Producer Stanley Kramer began casting Chaney in supporting roles in his classics such as, "High Noon" (1952), "Not as a Stranger" (1955) and "The Defiant Ones" (1958) .

He continued his acting career into the 60's with roles on, "The Haunted Palace" and "Welcome to Hard Times" (1967), however none of these films were very good and his primary income was coming from roles on television.   He made guest appearances from everything from, "Wagon Train" to "The Monkey's".
 
His final film, "Dracula vs. Frankenstein" (1971), cast him as a mute zombie named Groton who was Dr. Frankenstein's assistant.
 
He became quite popular with baby boomers, and he was honored by appearing on one of a series of United States postage stamps portraying movie monsters, as the Wolf Man.  

In 1957, Chaney went to Ontario, Canada, to costar in the first ever American-Canadian television production in, "Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans", however the series ended after 39 episodes.

Married twice, first to Dorothy Hinckley from 1928 to 1937 and then to Patsy Beck from 1937 to his passing.   Chaney died in San Clemente, California. on July 12th, 1973.  He had two sons (both deceased), and is survived by a grandson, Ron Chaney,


Filmography
 
1971     Dracula vs. Frankenstein
1971     The Female Bunch
1969     Fireball Jungle
1969     A Stranger in Town
1968     Buckskin
1968     Spider Baby or, The Maddest Story Ever Told
1967     Hillbillys in a Haunted House
1967     Welcome to Hard Times
1967     Dr. Terror's Gallery of Horrors
1966     Pistols 'n' Petticoats
1966     The Monkees
1966     Johnny Reno
1965     Apache Uprising
1965     Town Tamer
1965     Black Spurs
1965     Young Fury
1965     House of the Black Death
1964     Stage to Thunder Rock
1964     Witchcraft
1964     Law of the Lawless
1964     Face of the Screaming Werewolf
1963     The Haunted Palace
1963     Empire
1962     Lawman
1962     The Rifleman
1961     Route 66
1961     Surfside 6
1961     Rebellion in Cuba
1961     The Deputy
1961     Zane Grey Theater
1961     Klondike
1961     Stagecoach West
1961     The Devil's Messenger
1961     The Phantom
1960     Wagon Train
1960     Bat Masterson
1960     Lock Up
1960     La casa del terror
1960     Johnny Ringo
1959     Have Gun - Will Travel
1959     Rawhide
1959     Wanted: Dead or Alive
1959     Adventures in Paradise
1959     The Alligator People
1959     The Texan
1959     G.E. True Theater
1959     The Rough Riders
1959     13 Demon Street
1958     Money, Women and Guns
1958     Target
1958     Tombstone Territory
1958     The Defiant Ones
1957     Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans
1957     The Cyclops
1956     Daniel Boone, Trail Blazer
1956     Pardners
1956     The Black Sleep
1956     Telephone Time
1956     Indestructible Man
1956     Manfish
1955     The Indian Fighter
1955     I Died a Thousand Times
1955     Not as a Stranger
1955     The Silver Star
1955     Big House, U.S.A.
1955     Studio 57
1954     The Red Skelton Hour
1954     Climax!
1954     Cavalcade of America
1954     The Black Pirates
1954     The Whistler
1954     Passion
1954     Casanova's Big Night
1954     The Boy from Oklahoma
1954     Jivaro
1953     A Lion Is in the Streets
1953     Raiders of the Seven Seas
1953     Bandit Island
1952     The Black Castle
1952     Battles of Chief Pontiac
1952     Springfield Rifle
1952     Schlitz Playhouse 
1952     High Noon
1952     Thief of Damascus
1952     Tales of Tomorrow
1951     Flame of Araby
1951     Cosmopolitan Theatre 
1951     Bride of the Gorilla
1951     The Bushwhackers
1951     Behave Yourself!
1951     Only the Valiant
1951     The Colgate Comedy Hour 
1951     Inside Straight
1950     Once a Thief
1950     Captain China
1949     There's a Girl in My Heart
1948     16 Fathoms Deep
1948     Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
1948     The Counterfeiters
1948     Albuquerque
1947     My Favorite Brunette
1945     Pillow of Death
1945     House of Dracula
1945     The Daltons Ride Again
1945     Strange Confession
1945     The Frozen Ghost
1945     Here Come the Co-eds
1944     The Mummy's Curse
1944     House of Frankenstein
1944     Dead Man's Eyes
1944     The Mummy's Ghost
1944     Ghost Catchers
1944     Cobra Woman
1944     Weird Woman
1943     Calling Dr. Death
1943     Son of Dracula
1943     Crazy House
1943     Frontier Badmen
1943     What We Are Fighting For
1943     Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man
1942     Keeping Fit 
1942     The Mummy's Tomb
1942     Eyes of the Underworld
1942     Overland Mail
1942     The Ghost of Frankenstein
1942     North to the Klondike
1941     The Wolf Man
1941     Badlands of Dakota
1941     Riders of Death Valley
1941     San Antonio Rose
1941     Billy the Kid
1941     Too Many Blondes
1941     Man Made Monster
1940     North West Mounted Police
1940     One Million B.C.
1939     Of Mice and Men
1939     Charlie Chan in City in Darkness
1939     Frontier Marshal
1939     Union Pacific
1939     Jesse James
1938     Road Demon
1938     Submarine Patrol
1938     Straight Place and Show
1938     Passport Husband
1938     Speed to Burn
1938     Josette
1938     Alexander's Ragtime Band
1938     Mr. Moto's Gamble
1938     Walking Down Broadway
1938     Sally, Irene and Mary
1938     Happy Landing
1938     City Girl
1937     Love and Hisses
1937     Checkers
1937     Second Honeymoon
1937     Wife, Doctor and Nurse
1937     Life Begins in College
1937     Charlie Chan on Broadway
1937     Thin Ice
1937     One Mile from Heaven
1937     The Lady Escapes
1937     Wild and Woolly
1937     Born Reckless
1937     Slave Ship
1937     Angel's Holiday
1937     This Is My Affair
1937     That I May Live
1937     Secret Agent X-9
1937     Midnight Taxi
1937     Love Is News
1937     Cheyenne Rides Again
1936     The Old Corral
1936     Rose Bowl
1936     Killer at Large
1936     Ace Drummond
1936     Undersea Kingdom
1936     The Singing Cowboy
1935     The Shadow of Silk Lennox
1935     Accent on Youth
1935     Hold 'Em Yale
1935     The Marriage Bargain
1935     A Scream in the Night
1934     Girl o' My Dreams
1934     The Life of Vergie Winters
1934     Sixteen Fathoms Deep
1933     Son of the Border
1933     The Three Musketeers
1933     Scarlet River
1933     Lucky Devils
1932     The Last Frontier
1932     Bird of Paradise
1932     The Black Ghost
1931     The Galloping Ghost
1922     The Trap