Hollywood: The Oral History

by Jeanine Basinger

HENRY HATHAWAY: To show you how loose the studio was when it came to production and job definitions in those days, I can cite one person: Lon Chaney. Lon Chaney used to come work (and I know ’cause I was a propman then) at six thirty or seven o’clock in the morning. If there was a stage where they had a cabaret with a couple of girls or something, he would choreograph the whole thing himself. He would show ’em the steps and put on a whole little number. He was under contract only as an actor, and he wasn’t paid as much as some of the others, but he would do everybody’s makeup. If somebody needed a beard, he would put it on him. He just loved it, loved to work. He was marvelous with drapes, and if they needed a plush home with fancy drapes, he’d get up on a ladder and go and fix the drapes. He used to come by every morning and say, “What can we do for you?” He had his hand in everything, especially makeup. He loved the choreography, too. It shows how our jobs were so loose that they intermingled, and it was easy to be recognized by somebody if you were willing to work to get a better job. He was getting paid less and wanted to move ahead, but he loved to work, too. He became a real star.