Weird Tales, 1941 - Wikimedia Commons
Unlikely, but the most famous one died here. Lon Chaney Jr., the man who played the title role in “The Wolf Man” (1941), died at his San Clemente home in 1973 at age 67. Although he’d played serious roles such as Lennie in “Of Mice and Men” (1939), the actor was best known for his portrayals of ghouls such as Dracula, the Mummy, Frankenstein’s monster, and especially the hairy Wolfman. But alcoholism killed him, not silver bullets. In a twist reminiscent of an old horror film, Chaney’s liver and lungs were preserved in jars by a medical school (some reports say USC, others UCLA, but we couldn’t confirm either) to demonstrate the power of alcohol and tobacco to horribly transform the human body.
Chris Jepsen is the Answer Man. Have a question? Send it to cjepsen@socal.rr.com.
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