Supposedly this 1928 film was the inspiration for Bob Kane’s ‘Batman’ villain ‘The Joker’ and Conrad Veidt’s make up sure conjures him up in the stills I’ve seen. Mary Philbin got top billing in this movie, which must have been quite an achievement for an actress back in the 1920’s.
Of course, none of that cuts any ice when you’re selling art so I dumped her for the much hotter Olga Baklanova in this painting. Well, it was the least I could do. Four years later her career hit the skids and she wound up playing a chicken in Freaks!
