Pop Culture Flashback: 'Phantom of the Opera' Lurks into Theaters...Again (August 12)

Although Universal Studios made one Phantom of the Opera movie earlier, the 1943 Technicolor version is the more famous one and one of the most well-respected classic horror movies Universal has ever made. Also important for this day, Hollywood’s first and only Oscar-winning movie was released in theaters 1927.

1943 – ‘Phantom of the Opera’ Came Back for More

The first time that Universal Studios brought the story about The Phantom of the Opera to movie theaters was in 1925. It was just 15 years after the publication of Gaston Leroux’s novel of the same name. The black-and-white silent movie was Universal’s third monster flick after 1913’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and 1923’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

The studio dropped the “The” in the title when Phantom of the Opera was released in theaters on this day in 1943. Not only was the movie filmed in Technicolor, but it also featured music, which makes sense given the subject matter. The musical horror film was loosely based on the novel but still featured the replica interior of Paris’ Opéra Garnier, which was also used in the first film.

Directed by Arthur Lubin, the film starred Nelson Eddy, Susanna Foster and Claude Rains as the Phantom, although he wasn’t the studio’s first choice. Cesar Romero, Boris Karloff, Feodor Chaliapin, Charles Laughton and Broderick Crawford were all considered first. (Can you imagine TV’s Batman’s Joker playing the Phantom?)

Not only was 1943’s Phantom movie a hit, but it was also nominated for four Academy Awards. It is also the only classic Universal monster movie to win an Oscar – two in fact – for Art Direction and Cinematography (it was also nominated for Music Scoring and Sound Recording).

A sequel by the name of The Climax was planned but was ultimately cancelled due to complications with the script and the availability of Rains. However, the studio did produce another film by the name The Climax, only it featured different characters and was not a continuation of the first Phantom film.

Broadway wouldn’t get its Phantom of the Opera until 1986.

OTHER EVENTS THAT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY:

OSCAR WINNER

1927 – The First and Only Oscar-Winning Silent Film

The silent film, Wings opened in theaters on this day. It starred Clara Bow (Paramount’s biggest star at the time), Charles “Buddy” Rogers Richard Arlen and Gary Cooper.

Director William A. Wellman was the only working film director who had World War I combat pilot experience, so he got the job. The production of Wings also employed over 300 pilots and 3,500 infantrymen when filmed at Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas.

The movie became the very first Best Picture recipient at the Academy Awards in 1929. It is also the only silent film to have won an Oscar. The movie was re-released in 2012 and 2017 for the film’s 85th and 90th anniversary.

1928: Mickey Mouse is Copyrighted

Mickey Mouse in "Steamboat Willie" — Mickey Mouse, Pete and Minnie Mouse in *Steamboat Willie (Wikimedia Commons)*

As wonderful as he is, Mickey Mouse was actually created as a replacement for Walt’s first animated icon, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Oswald was created for, Charles Mintz who distributed the character through Universal Studios. Under Walt’s nose, Mintz was able to hire Disney’s artists out from under him and Walt didn’t have a leg to stand on regarding the rights to the Oswald character.

Walt finished his obligation to Mintz and began a new start with animator Ub Iwerks who helped him create a new character called Mickey Mouse. The mouse was copyrighted on this day in 1928. Sadly though, on January 1, 2024, the Steamboat Willie version of Mr. Mouse lost its copyright protection.