Lon Chaney Jr. in The Wolf Man (1941)

The Wolf Man 1941 window card image courtesy Heritage Auction Galleries

Director George Waggner and Universal Pictures brought The Wolf Man to movie theaters in 1941. Lon Chaney Jr. has the hairy title role, with Claude Rains, Warren William, Bela Lugosi and Ralph Bellamy in terrifying support.

Universal Pictures’ The Wolf Man

George Waggner produced and directed The Wolf Man for Universal Pictures. Curt Siodmak penned the literate screenplay, with Charles Previn, Hans J. Salter and Frank Skinner delivering the original music score and Joseph Valentine serving as cinematographer.

Lon Chaney Jr. (The Wolf Man/Larry Talbot) and Claude Rains (Sir John Talbot) head the fine cast. Other players include Warren William (Dr. Lloyd), Ralph Bellamy (Colonel Paul Montford), Patric Knowles (Frank Andrews), Bela Lugosi (Bela), Maria Ouspenskaya (Maleva), Evelyn Ankers (Gwen Conliffe), J.M. Kerrigan (Charles Conliffe), Fay Helm (Jenny Williams), Forrester Harvey (Twiddle), Gibson Gowland (Villager), Doris Lloyd (Mrs. Williams), Jessie Arnold (Gypsy Woman) and Harry Cording (Wykes).

The Wolf Man Filmed in Hollywood

Budgeted at $180,000, The Wolf Man was filmed from October to November 1941, going into the can just a few weeks before the December 7th attack at Pearl Harbor. The movie was shot at Universal Studios in Universal City, California.

Lon Chaney Jr.’s own German Shepherd was drafted into the production, playing the wolf that bites Lawrence Talbot. One of the movie’s principal props was Talbot’s silver wolf’s-head cane, which was made of vulcanized rubber in order to protect the actors and stunt men in case of an accidental strike.

As for Chaney’s wolf man transformation, a key ingredient in the film, this was accomplished via a mask, rubber boots and strategically placed bits of scarce yak hair.

The Wolf Man: Lon Chaney Jr. and Lycanthropy

Larry Talbot journeys from America to England where he claims his share of the ancestral estate. Young Talbot becomes romantically involved with a woman, Gwen Conliffe, meeting her at an antique store where he purchases a silver cane adorned with a wolf’s head.

While in the woods Talbot comes to the rescue of terrified gypsy girl Jenny Williams, who is attacked by a wolf. Talbot beats the animal to death with his new walking stick, but not before being bitten by the beast. The old gypsy woman, Maleva, later informs Talbot that the “wolf” was actually her son, Bela, who suffered from lycanthropy.

Now Talbot is also cursed, turning into a werewolf as dictated by the legend. Angry villagers hunt the new werewolf in their midst, with Talbot’s own father, Sir John, leading the charge.

The Wolf Man Release and Reviews

The Wolf Man opened at New York City’s Rialto Theatre on December 21, 1941.

“…We’d say that most of the budget was spent on Mr. Chaney’s face, which is rather terrifying, resembling as it does a sort of Mr. Hyde badly in need of a shave,” offered Theodore Strauss of The New York Times (12/22/41).

“Young Chaney gives a competent performance both straight and under makeup for the dual role. Script stresses the tenseness of the fabled tale in both action and dialog, with George Waggner piloting in okay manner,” reported Variety.

Film Analysis

It’s amazing what Universal Pictures could accomplish on a small budget back in the 1940s. Through eerie lighting, a fog machine and some simple, homemade special effects/makeup, Universal was able to serve up a minor horror classic like The Wolf Man.

Lon Chaney Jr., with that worn, drooping face only a mother could love, excels in the dual role of Larry Talbot/The Wolf Man. It’s still a gas to watch the old pre-CGI transformation of Chaney, from the clean-shaven, moderately handsome Talbot to the snarling, hell-bent for murder Wolf Man.

One of the film’s real treats is the appearance of Maria Ouspenskaya, who plays the wise, ancient gypsy woman with her usual Old World flair. Madame’s farewell to her son Bela is simple, yet chilling. “The way you walked was thorny, through no fault of your own,” she solemnly intones in her thick East European accent, “but as the rain enters the soil, the river enters the sea, so tears run to a predestined end. Your suffering is over, Bela my son. Now you will find peace.” 

Lon Chaney Jr. (1906-1973) would play the cursed Lawrence Talbot/The Wolf Man in four more films: Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943), House of Frankenstein (1944), House of Dracula (1945) and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948).

The Wolf Man Notes, Movie Memorabilia, DVD

• During filming Evelyn Ankers was rendered unconscious by the artificial fog.
• Horror legends Lon Chaney Jr., Boris Karloff and Peter Lorre played themselves in the classic Route 66 episode “Lizard’s Leg and Owlet’s Wing” (10/26/62), set at a motel just outside Chicago.
• Auction results for original The Wolf Man movie memorabilia, courtesy Heritage Auction Galleries, Dallas, Texas: window card ($4,182.50), half sheet poster ($23,900), title lobby card ($4,780), 1948 Realart reissue one sheet poster ($3,883.75), 1941 8×10 b/w publicity still picturing Chaney and Evelyn Ankers ($358.50).
• On DVD: The Wolf Man – The Legacy Collection (Universal, 2004).

“Even a man who is pure of heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright,” declares Jenny, the young gypsy woman.

Listen to the girl, Larry…