Blind Husbands (1919);
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)

Directed by Erich von Stroheim

Long before “the man you loved to hate” became “the director studios hated to love,” unemployed character actor Erich von Stroheim pitched Universal studio chief Carl Laemmle his original screenplay titled The Pinnacle, which featured a love triangle set among the peaks of the Tyrolean Alps. Captivated, Laemmle wanted to buy the story, but von Stroheim wouldn’t give it to Universal unless he was allowed to direct and star. Laemmle, well known for making important studio decisions based solely on his intuition, green-lit the project (eventually re-titled Blind Husbands) and shooting commenced April 3rd, 1919, on an alpine village set on the Universal backlot.

Much like his friend Rex Ingram (who also made his directorial debut at Universal), von Stroheim had a highly developed pictorial sense and obsession for detail which he used to shape Blind Husbands’ numerous visual possibilities into a story rife with sexual symbolism, while cameraman Ben Reynolds’ exceptional photography perfectly complemented his director’s vision. The small but accomplished cast articulated their roles with poetic clarity, but it is von Stroheim, the actor, who steals the picture. He clearly relished playing the unscrupulous “other man,” although he wisely deflates his womanizing character with jabs of occasional humor—before discrediting him entirely by story’s end.

By the time shooting finished on June 12th, 1919, the budget had ballooned to well over $100,000, and von Stroheim would spend the entire summer editing the vast amount of footage he had accumulated. After viewing the completed picture, Laemmle was certain the studio had something special on its hands, and ordered the advertising department to spend an additional $140,000 to promote the film’s release and its director. Both von Stroheim and Universal had much riding on the success of Blind Husbands, and the risk paid off handsomely. Audiences swarmed to the theatres in droves, and the picture quickly racked up impressive box office numbers worldwide. Critics praised it not as the promising first effort of a novice, but as a fully realized masterpiece by a mature artist—ultimately marking Blind Husbands as one of the greatest film debuts by any director during the silent era.

—Steven K. Hill

Universal Film Mfg Co. Producer: Carl Laemmle. Based on a novel by E. von Stroheim. Screenwriter: E. von Stroheim. Cinematographer: Ben F. Reynolds. Editor: Frank Lawrence, Eleanor Fried. Cast: Sam DeGrasse, Francelia Billington, E. von Stroheim, T. H. Gibson-Gowland, Fay Holderness.

35mm, silent, b/w, 92 min.