CLAUDE RAINS
Born: November 10 1889 Died: May 30 1967
Nationality: British
Short Bio:
Rains was born in extreme poverty in London in a family where all but 2 of the 12 children died of poverty related diseases. He had a heavy accent and speak problems, but worked hard to overcome them and be a successful actor.
Rains was gassed in War World I leaving his blind in one eyes and affecting his vocal chords to give him a more huskier deep voice which became an advantage later in his career. A struggling actor coming to Hollywood, it was Rains’ voice that won him the lead for James Whale’s The Invisible Man in 1933.
Famous Roles:
Rains had a fear of becoming just another stereotyped monster actor like Boris Karloff or Bela Lugosi and instead tried to focus on character acting. The roles he played ranged from King Herod, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Prince John, and Nazis and well as the Phantom. He had four Academy Award nominations for Supporting Actor.
Rains and Phantom: After a long careful decision at Universal to cast their new Phantom, which included suggestions for Lon Chaney Jr., Boris Karloff, and Broderick Crawford, Rains was chosen to play the part being in between contracts at Warner Brothers. He accepted the role with one condition, that his Phantom make-up would fit his standard. He didn’t want to offend returning war veterans who had their own scars and deformities, so Jack Pierce, Universal Monster make-up master had to fit the make-up to Rains’ standards.
Before the movie started shooting, Rains took a month of piano and violin lessons, so he could learn the look and how to play the instruments accurately, even though the music was dubbed.
Other Rains Films
The Invisible Man (1933)
The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1935)
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
Cassablanca (1942)
Notorious (1946)
Caesar and Cleopatra (1946)
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
Trivia
Jessica Rains is his only child
Claude Rains had a totally of 5 (count ‘em) wives
Home
1943 Phantom of the Opera