Mary Philbin, who was best known for her role as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera, opposite Lon Chaney, was an ethereal beauty of the silent era and lived out her own tragic romance. In a career which spanned from 1922-1929, she appeared in more than 30 films, including both full-length feature films and shorts.
Source: (Pinterest, colorized).
Philbin, who was born in Chicago in 1902, was the daughter of an Irish immigrant. Her father took her to see plays at local theaters, and she studied classical dance, including ballet, as well as the piano and organ. At an early age, she also became friends with Carla Laemmle, and this friendship would come to be one of the most influential for Philbin and would last throughout her life.
Beginnings Of A Mostly Silent Career
She became interested in films early on, and particularly liked the films of Erich von Stroheim. When he was making his film Blind Husbands (1919), he had a contest to find actors and Philbin entered and won. Von Stroheim was impressed by her beauty, as well as her personality, and she was cast in the film. She moved out to California, but her parents, who were strict and who worried about the immorality of the film world, insisted on chaperoning her; they remained with her in California, and Philbin’s mother was with her on set throughout her career.
Things Did Not Go As Planned
With Lon Chaney. Source: (IMDb).
Philbin did not appear in Blind Husbands, the film for which she moved to California, as Von Stroheim replaced her. However, her friend Carla recommended her to her uncle, Carl Laemmle, who owned Universal. Laemmle then gave Philbin her first big role, in The Blazing Trail (1921) Throughout that year, she was cast in six films. At first, she was considered as being in the same league as Mary Pickford and Lillian Gish. In 1922. Von Stroheim, who had originally cast her in Blind Husbands, cast her in Foolish Wives as the little girl on crutches; although it was a bit part, Philbin said she learned about true acting from Von Stroheim, who was a great director. It was said of Philbin that if the directing was good, her acting was as well. That same year, she had the role of Ruth in Human Hearts, and began to be featured on the covers of movie magazines. She got her big break in The Merry-Go-Round (1923) and was the feature girl for a variety of products. At this time, she met Paul Kohner, an agent and producer, and they began to have a secret relationship.
A Star-Crossed Love
In The Phantom of the Opera. Source: (IMDb, colorized).
In 1924, she was cast in The Rose of Paris, which led to her role in The Phantom of the Opera. The film was a huge hit and the biggest money maker of the decade for the studio. She next played the role of Stella Marris/Unity Blake in a remake of Mary Pickford’s Stella Marris. In May,1926, Paul Kohner proposed to Pickford, but they had to keep it secret. After the success of her next role as the blind girl Dea in The Man Who Laughs, Pickford announced her engagement. Although her father and stepmother liked Kohner, her mother was convinced Kohner would try to convert Pickford (Kohner was Jewish and Pickford came from a strict Catholic family). Mary was told she would be disowned if they married, and so she gave him back the ring. He would eventually marry, while she would remain single.
The End Of A Career
In The Man Who Laughs. Source: (IMDb/colorized).
She had a memorable screen presence, as the 1924 edition of Motion Picture Classic said she was “one of the astonishing anomalies of motion pictures...Pat O'Malley once said of her: "If I were superstitious I would think that the spirit of some great tragedienne of a forgotten past slipped into Mary's soul." However, with the end of the silent film era, Philbin’s career also came to an end. Her roles were limited during the advent of the talkie era, and when the Phantom of the Opera was re-released with sound, she dubbed her own voice.
Moving Out Of The Public Eye
In Surrender. Source: (IMDb/colorized).
Just as the talkies began to emerge and transform the film industry, her career tanked at about the same time. After this, she appeared in Drums of Love, and worked on the re-filming of The Phantom of the Opera; she recorded her voice for the re-filming. Her final role was in a talkie, After the Fog (1929). Her voice recorded as squeaky since the early recording equipment was inadequate. With the money she had made during her brief, but productive career, she was able to retire in 1930, and she lived as a recluse for the rest of her life, taking care of her aging parents. Although she did attend church, she made her first public appearance in 1988, at Rudolph Valentino’s memorial service. She also appeared at the Los Angeles opening of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical The Phantom of the Opera. In one final chapter of the tragic story of her romance with Paul Kohner, when he died, it was revealed that he had kept all of Philbin’s love letters, hidden from his family in his desk drawer; she had also never forgotten him, tucking away his letters as well. In 1993, Philbin died of pneumonia.
