#claude rains erik

[strangelittlelad]

So I was thinking about it and-

[luneemeritus]

[aggclarke]

All Phantoms discussing: "No, but I received a kiss from Christine" "I managed to defeat Raoul" "I did more things than you"

Erique Claudin And Erik from the 90s: I at least have hair

[musclegoth666]

Us phantom fans really do be devouring the few crumbs Universal gives us

[night-unfurls-its-splendour]

POTO girlies where u at?

(I know he's not a very well known or popular phantom but lets rep our terrible little man)

Propaganda

Captain Louis Renault (Casablanca) - The best and most iconic character of the entire film, if not the entire movie genre. He is what makes this movie possible and I honestly couldn't imagine it without him. Claude's back must've hurt from absolutely carrying this film and according to records, he finished his filming for Now, Voyager and literally the next day, jumped right into shooting for Casablanca. That's dedication right there. I adore Renault, his stupid mustache, and he has more rizz in that right eyebrow than more people do in their entire bodies. I wouldn't need convincing in order to get an exit visa from him. He oozes charm and has the perfect velvety voice in order to carry out his orders (when he feels like it!) and plays both sides to perfection. I desire him carnally (can I put that here?) and he's such a special character and he's what brought me into the wonderful world of old movies. To me, he'll always be the true King of the Claudes!

Erique Claudin (Phantom of the Opera) - My favorite Phantom! Does it differ wildly from the book? Yes. Do I care? NO! Claudin starts the movie by BREAKING YOUR HEART IN TWO and then after the first act he gets to lean into the creep factor by murdering people who get in the way of him helping his daughter achieve her opera goals. While the father/daughter story was cut from the final film, you can 100% see it in Claude Rains' wonderful performance that this is a man so filled with regret at leaving his infant daughter 20 years ago, that he is willing to do anything to help her succeed…even if she doesn't know that he's the one helping her.

This is the final match up for The King of the Claudes Tournament! Other polls and results can be found here!

Additional Propaganda under the cut!

**Both of these fine Claudes have a lot of propaganda, so we are attaching what we can and making another separate propaganda post to include all submissions, which you can find HERE!**

Captain Louis Renault

I love him. He is a liar, a manipulator, and corrupt beyond the telling. He also has a soft spot a mile wide and a snarkiness that has genuinely become commonly used. He is a wonderful little rat-man and I. Love. Him.

Erique Claudin

This movie is gorgeous and the storytelling is a masterpiece! I don't care what anyone says, this is my favorite adaptation of Phantom and Claude sells it perfectly. He's excellent at toeing the line between a masked mad man and a caring individual and I will be forever fuming about how the father/daughter relationship wasn't official. To me, it will be! He's just the right amount of soft fondness and I was squealing because of how adorable he is when he stammers.

[anithemonsterlover]

hmm call me an Erik apologist all you want, but after thinking it well, i think the complaints people have about "sexy phantoms" and how "adaptations never adapt POTO well, they romanticize the story too much, it's a horror story not a romance" are kinda...unfounded?

Yeah you can make a potential argument about adaptations missing the mark, removing the deformity from Erik (which shapes Erik's whole character), and that...But also...how much is this true, and how much this has been exaggerated by really one or modern interpretations?

And i wonder...is it really? Phantom has had such a number of different adaptations all over the years, from different creative minds, and each of them presented a different view on Erik. Do most of them not adapt the book? Yes (as in no birth deformity, no Daroga, no scorpion or grasshopper, etc etc). Do they really change the main themes and mood presented in the novel, turning it more erotic? Are really all adaptations with a "sexy Erik and cucked Raoul!", as critics state? Heem, let's take a look.

We'll mostly analyze the big film adaptations, since Phantom has been told over and over again in different books, comics, videogames, tv shows, and it would take us A LOT to go through every one (also let's be realistic...we have to analyze the most "well known" Phantom adaptations so to see if the critics' words hold some water. I don't think it would make much sense to point out a Phantom adaptation that has these elements but like...only four people know of it lol)

Lon Chaney...Nope. Erik was still deformed, and the few sympathetic traits he has were erased to give him a boring clichéd "kill the monster" ending, going against what the book stated, where Erik dies of a broken heart and not lynched (curiously, how the same people that go "we must portray the book accurately, not show him sympathetically" don't mind this change, huh)

Claude Rains...Nope. Still ugly, dies by the end. No sexuality. Even the "love triangle" element is changed so that it focuses on Christine and her being annoyed by the two Raouls.

Herbert Lom...Still ugly and dies. This adaptation even cuts his attraction to Christine yet keeps his obsession with music, even cuts down his biggest crimes to lay it on the hands of his sidekick (imo this is probably the most "sympathetic" Phantom, imo, since he's interpreted as an artist who had his art stolen, only wanting to "get back" at the thieves; but nobody talks of him when discussing sympathetic Phantoms)

Phantom of the Paradise...Still ugly, loses, but like Herbert Lom, redeems himself through death.

Maximillian Schell...Ugly, dies by the end.

Cartoon - Ugly, dies, Christine doesn't go with him. This is the most book accurate novel but in another angle, haha (Daroga is here, death's head, abusive mother...not exactly what the smart ass critics want ;)).

Robert Englund...Ugly, loses, doesn't get Christine...In fact I'd claim this is probably the most villainous version of Erik, turning him into more of a Freddy Krueger clone than the complicated character Erik truly is. Really amps up the horror for all those "IT'S A HORROR STORY" smart-ass critics if they're so desperate for an "accurate" version (Erik didn't flay people in the novel, iirc, so, so much for "being accurate to the novel"!)

ALW-verse / the musical / Gerard Butler film / Love Never Dies / Phantom of Manhattan (i'm placing all of this in the same venue because basically, it's really the same universe / canon, ergo we're really talking about the same intrepretation / the same creator). Ugliness is there, but sorta downplayed...This verse often ends with Erik and Christine getting together...yup, this is the one version where the criticism is legit.

Charles Dance / Yeston Kopit musical / Takarazuka (again, same universe, same creator, same interpretation). Possibly the nicest Erik yet, but he's still deformed, and he still doesn't get Christine. He's sympathetic, a little romantic, but I don't think it's on the same league as the sexuality present in Point of no Return's lyrics or Gerard Butler's open puffy shirts.

Susan Kay's novel - This one is interesting because it takes a lot from the musical (i'd argue even more from that than the novel), and then influenced the musical and future iterations of it (this novel amps up the sexy angle A LOT), so I'm not sure to categorize it as its own thing or added to the musical verse. But, still...it follows the plot points from ALW (and elements we see in future installments of ALW's POTO, like the secret child, first appeared in Kay, i think, based on publication dates), yet Erik is still hideous, but his sexuality is present in the novel...as well as his murderous tendencies. This is the one version that combines elements of both horror and sex, imo.

Dario Argento - for fuck's sakes, nobody likes this version, lol, and even the normies don't know of it. BUT ANYWAY, IF WE'RE GONNA MAKE THE COMPARISON....Not deformed, "gets Christine", in a way, but woof this version also amps up the horror and has the most unlikable Erik of them all imo.

And everything else...Do people really care or know about those versions? Wishbone's or the other musicals, or the ass long number of books? Not really...

So really...the number of Phantom adaptations that have a "sexy, romantic" Erik can be chalked up to 2-3...against all the other adaptations that keep the horror elements or have Erik still looking horrible. And the great majority of them keep it in canon with the original ending- ea Erik dies and Christine goes with Raoul (it's really only Kay's novel and LND that have the "sexy Erik cucks Raoul" interpretation...and LND has always always always been mocked and rejected by the fans)

So it's people really throwing a tantrum over the ALW version being popular, really. (And i'm really curious how they don't mind when Erik is turned more villainous, like in Lon Chaney or Robert Englund's version, even though those are also inaccurate to the novel. (Erik wasn't a sexy doomed hero, no, but he also wasn't this Freddy Krueger bastard.) Funny that).

[vintagetvstars]

Hot Vintage TV Men's Bracket - Round 1 - Part 1/2 (Polls 1-99)

Round 1 (All Polls)

Ted Bessell Vs. Dick Van Dyke

Jonathan Frid Vs. William Hartnell

Claude Rains Vs. William Hopper

Eric Idle Vs. Peter Tork

Henry Winkler Vs. Tom Smothers

Martin Kove Vs. Tom Selleck

Jeff Conaway Vs. John de Lancie

Dave Foley Vs. Michael J. Fox

David Hyde Pierce Vs. Tony Shalhoub

Jason Bateman Vs. Rob Lowe

Ted Cassidy Vs. Boris Karloff

Eddie Albert Vs. Russell Johnson

Bobby Sherman Vs. Micky Dolenz

Robin Williams Vs. Fred Grandy

Kevin Smith Vs. Bruce Campbell

Brad Dourif Vs. LeVar Burton

Seth Green Vs. Brandon Quinn

Matthew Perry Vs. Tim Daly

Mike Farrell Vs. Judd Hirsch

Matt Bomer Vs. Timothy Olyphant

Larry Hagman Vs. Kent McCord

Fred Rogers Vs. Bobby Troup

David Cassidy Vs. Luke Halpin

George Takei Vs. Richard Hatch

Ricardo Montalban Vs. John Forsythe

Richard Dean Anderson Vs. Bruce Willis

Anthony Head Vs. Paul McGann

Thorsten Kaye Vs. Michael Horse

Darren E. Burrows Vs. Dana Ashbrook

Adam Brody Vs. Milo Ventimiglia

Adam West Vs. Richard Chamberlain

Randy Boone Vs. Dean Butler

Clint Walker Vs. George Maharis

Erik Estrada Vs. Paul Michael Glaser

Billy Dee Williams Vs. Rock Hudson

Ted Danson Vs. Jameson Parker

Sylvester McCoy Vs. Armin Shimerman

Joe Lando Vs. Spencer Rochfort

Ben Browder Vs. Keith Hamilton Cobb

Richard Ayoade Vs. Kevin McDonald

Patrick McGoohan Vs. Robert Vaughn

Chad Everett Vs. DeForest Kelley

Jon Pertwee Vs. Mark Lenard

Darren McGavin Vs. Peter Falk

Terry Jones Vs. Alan Alda

Michael Tylo Vs. Timothy Dalton

Sean Bean Vs. Valentine Pelka

Ioan Gruffudd Vs. Colin Firth

David Tennant Vs. Robert Carlyle

Jason Priestley Vs. Tom Welling

Martin Milner Vs. James Garner

David Soul Vs. Lee Majors

Derek Jacobi Vs. Andrew Robinson

David Hasselhoff Vs. Stephen Nichols

Jimmy Smits Vs. Hal Linden

Brent Spiner Vs. Ted Raimi

Patrick Troughton Vs. Andreas Katsulas

Miguel Ferrer Vs. Mitch Pileggi

David James Elliot Vs. Andre Braugher

Blair Underwood Vs. Mark-Paul Gosselaar

Don Adams Vs. Cesar Romero

Bob Crane Vs. John Astin

Walter Koenig Vs. Davy Jones

Tom Baker Vs. Jamie Farr

Woody Harrelson Vs. John Schneider

John Goodman Vs. Joseph Marcell

Danny John-Jules Vs. Marc Alaimo

Michael Praed Vs. Kevin Sorbo

Mark McKinney Vs. Colm Meaney

Neil Patrick Harris Vs. David Schwimmer

James Arness Vs. Robert Fuller

Clint Eastwood Vs. Robert Conrad

Jonathan Frakes Vs. Michael Hurst

David Duchovny Vs. Michael T. Weiss

Luke Perry Vs. Jeremy Sisto

Matt LeBlanc Vs. John Stamos

Reece Shearsmith Vs. Alexander Siddig

Eric Close Vs. William Shockley

Daniel Dae Kim Vs. Robert Beltran

Scott Cohen Vs. Scott Patterson

Dick Gautier Vs. Michael Landon

Wayne Rogers Vs. Alejandro Rey

Gerald McRaney Vs. Robert Wagner

Simon Williams Vs. John Cleese

Brian Blessed Vs. James Earl Jones

Noah Wyle Vs. Kyle MacLachlan

James Marsters Vs. Paul Gross

Paolo Montalban Vs. Robert Duncan McNeill

Garrett Wang Vs. Nate Richert

Christian Kane Vs. Michael Vartan

David McCallum Vs. David Selby

Leonard Nimoy Vs. Colin Baker

Randolph Mantooth Vs. Michael Nesmith

Demond Wilson Vs. Tony Danza

Ron Perlman Vs. Mr. T

Ron Glass Vs. Dirk Benedict

John Shea Vs. Michael Ontkean

Jeffrey Combs Vs. Rowan Atkinson

Tim Russ Vs. Bruce Boxleitner

Round 1 Polls 100 - 128

[girl-of-rock-n-roll]

I woke up a few minutes ago and I have thoughts:

I did some digging a few months back, wondering why we didn't get more movies with the boys meeting a famous Universal Monster.

They meet The Invisible Man? Oh DUDE, think of the chaos Alvin would cause if he got his hands on Griffin's formula! (And we'd get to hear someone doing a Claude Rains impression OR a Vincent Price impression, in that case it would most certainly be Maurice LaMarche)

They meet The Phantom of The Opera? Interesting premise, perhaps. Idk how that could work though. I do know I'd want Michael Crawford or Hugh Panaro voicing Erik, The Phantom though. (Musical theatre nerd, here)

If they met Dracula that would have been amazing! I feel like he would have been an actual threat, though. Frankie and Laurence Talbot were sympathetic characters. Dracula... Isn't exactly buddy material. Aw man... That means if we would have potentially seen an animated Renfield based off of Dwight Frye, oh my GOD.

Apparently there was a lawsuit. And The Bagdasarians won, since Universal didn't use the characters outside of the movies they made. Essentially, Universal didn't do other stuff with The Chipmunks, and The Bagdasarians lost money because of this.

Makes you think of the cool stuff that could have happened.

[eludin-realm]

Character Name Ideas (Male)

So I've been browsing through BehindTheName (great resource!) recently and have compiled several name lists. Here are some names, A-Z, that I like. NOTE: If you want to use any of these please verify sources, meanings etc, I just used BehindTheName to browse and find all of these. Under the cut:

A: Austin, Aiden, Adam, Alex, Angus, Anthony, Archie, Argo, Ari, Aric, Arno, Atlas, August, Aurelius, Alexei, Archer, Angelo, Adric, Acarius, Achilou, Alphard, Amelian, Archander B: Bodhi, Bastian, Baz, Beau, Beck, Buck, Basil, Benny, Bentley, Blake, Bowie, Brad, Brady, Brody, Brennan, Brent, Brett, Brycen C: Cab, Cal, Caden, Cáel, Caelan, Caleb, Cameron, Chase, Carlos, Cooper, Carter, Cas, Cash, Cassian, Castiel, Cedric, Cenric, Chance, Chandler, Chaz, Chad, Chester, Chet, Chip, Christian, Cillian, Claude, Cicero, Clint, Cody, Cory, Coy, Cole, Colt, Colton, Colin, Colorado, Colum, Conan, Conrad, Conway, Connor, Cornelius, Creed, Cyneric, Cynric, Cyrano, Cyril, Cyrus, Crestian, Ceric D: Dallas, Damien, Daniel, Darach, Dash, Dax, Dayton, Denver, Derek, Des, Desmond, Devin, Dewey, Dexter, Dietrich, Dion, Dmitri, Dominic, Dorian, Douglas, Draco, Drake, Drew, Dudley, Dustin, Dusty, Dylan, Danièu E: Eadric, Evan, Ethan, Easton, Eddie, Eddy, Einar, Eli, Eilas, Eiljah, Elliott, Elton, Emanuel, Emile, Emmett, Enzo, Erik, Evander, Everett, Ezio F: Faolán, Faron, Ferlin, Felix, Fenrir, Fergus, Finley, Finlay, Finn, Finnian, Finnegan, Flint, Flip, Flynn, Florian, Forrest, Fritz G: Gage, Gabe, Grady, Grant, Gray, Grayson, Gunnar, Gunther, Galahad H: Hale, Harley, Harper, Harvey, Harry, Huey, Hugh, Hunter, Huxley I: Ian, Ianto, Ike, Inigo, Isaac, Isaias, Ivan, Ísak J: Jack, Jacob, Jake, Jason, Jasper, Jax, Jay, Jensen, Jed, Jeremy, Jeremiah, Jesse, Jett, Jimmie, Jonas, Jonas, Jonathan, Jordan, Josh, Julien, Jovian, Jun, Justin, Joseph, Joni, K: Kaden, Kai, Kale, Kane, Kaz, Keane, Keaton, Keith, Kenji, Kenneth, Kent, Kevin, Kieran, Kip, Knox, Kris, Kristian, Kyle, Kay, Kristján, Kristófer L: Lamont, Lance, Landon, Lane, Lars, László, Laurent, Layton, Leander, Leif, Leo, Leonidas, Leopold, Levi, Lewis, Louie, Liam, Liberty, Lincoln, Linc, Linus, Lionel, Logan, Loki, Lucas, Lucian, Lucio, Lucky, Luke, Luther, Lyall, Lycus, Lykos, Lyle, Lyndon, Llewellyn, Landri, Laurian, Lionç M: Major, Manny, Manuel, Marcus, Mason, Matt, Matthew, Matthias, Maverick, Maxim, Memphis, Midas, Mikko, Miles, Mitch, Mordecai, Mordred, Morgan, Macari, Maïus, Maxenci, Micolau, Miro N: Nate, Nathan, Nathaniel, Niall, Nico, Niels, Nik, Noah, Nolan, Niilo, Nikander, Novak, O: Oakley, Octavian, Odin, Orlando, Orrick, Ǫrvar, Othello, Otis, Otto, Ovid, Owain, Owen, Øyvind, Ozzie, Ollie, Oliver, Onni P: Paisley, Palmer, Percival, Percy, Perry, Peyton, Phelan, Phineas, Phoenix, Piers, Pierce, Porter, Presley, Preston, Pacian Q: Quinn, Quincy, Quintin R: Ragnar, Raiden, Ren, Rain, Rainier, Ramos, Ramsey, Ransom, Raul, Ray, Roy, Reagan, Redd, Reese, Rhys, Rhett, Reginald, Remiel, Remy, Ridge, Ridley, Ripley, Rigby, Riggs, Riley, River, Robert, Rocky, Rokas, Roman, Ronan, Ronin, Romeo, Rory, Ross, Ruairí, Rufus, Rusty, Ryder, Ryker, Rylan, Riku, Roni S: Sammie, Sammy, Samuel, Samson, Sanford, Sawyer, Scout, Seán, Seth, Sebastian, Seymour, Shane, Shaun, Shawn, Sheldon, Shiloh, Shun, Sid, Sidney, Silas, Skip, Skipper, Skyler, Slade, Spencer, Spike, Stan, Stanford, Sterling, Stevie, Stijn, Suni, Sylvan, Sylvester T: Tab, Tad, Tanner, Tate, Tennessee, Tero, Terrance, Tevin, Thatcher, Tierno, Tino, Titus, Tobias, Tony, Torin, Trace, Trent, Trenton, Trev, Trevor, Trey, Troy, Tripp, Tristan, Tucker, Turner, Tyler, Ty, Teemu U: Ulric V: Valerius, Valor, Van, Vernon, Vespasian, Vic, Victor, Vico, Vince, Vinny, Vincent W: Wade, Walker, Wallis, Wally, Walt, Wardell, Warwick, Watson, Waylon, Wayne, Wes, Wesley, Weston, Whitley, Wilder, Wiley, William, Wolfe, Wolfgang, Woody, Wulfric, Wyatt, Wynn X: Xander, Xavier Z: Zachary, Zach, Zane, Zeb, Zebediah, Zed, Zeke, Zeph, Zaccai

[blackghostm2oart]

As it is customary I’ve doodled Claude Rains’ Erik (the 1943 one) even tho I haven’t really enjoyed his character.

Without reference

With reference

[tosatisfymystarryheart]

The Zodiac Sign of Phantom/Erik from Phantom of the Opera

PART 1: MY GUESS

If I were to describe the the Phantom/Erik’s character through astrology, I’d put him as a Scorpio Sun Capricorn Moon due to how his passionate and perfectionist nature blends well with his cold and calculating side. Much like the Scorpio-Capricorn combo, we learn that the Phantom is gifted and driven, a musical genius who knows how to secure position in the opera house. Like a Scorpio, he is intense, seductive and deeply feeling; and, like a Capricorn, he is ambitious and pretentious to hide his insecurity.

The Internet’s take on Scorpio Sun Capricorn Moon

[find more on wordpress link]

PART 2: THE FINDINGS

The chart below shows the number of known actors within each zodiac sign who have portrayed the Phantom/Erik in Phantom of the Opera, with a notable example from each zodiac sign. Though some Scorpio suns are Phantoms and some Capricorn moons are Phantoms, it doesn’t seem like Scorpios or Capricorns dominate.

However, mini win! Gerard Butler (of the 2004 Phantom of the Opera film) happens to be a Scorpio Sun Capricorn Moon (even if many would argue that he was poorly cast for the Phantom).

Interestingly, Mercury-ruled signs (Gemini and Virgo) are well-represented among the actors who have played the Phantom. Perhaps Mercury signs are drawn to the Phantom’s bravado and his mental acuity?

[find the chart on the wordpress link]

Other notable Gemini sun/moon actors: Ben Crawford • Claude Rains (The Phantom of the Opera’ (1943) film) • Colm Wilkinson • John Cudia • Mark Jacoby • Peter Jöback • Robert Englund (The Phantom of the Opera’ (1989) film) • Wayne Brady

Other notable Virgo sun/moon actors: John Cudia • Laird Mackintosh • Leslie Cheung (The Phantom Lover (1995)) • William Finley (Phantom of the Paradise’ (1974))

[night-unfurls-its-splendour]

When the Longing Returns (Phantom of the Opera, 2004 Fanfiction) || Erik x Christine

Ch. 2 Author's Notes

Read the Fic here on tumblr or on AO3

◇ Erik strove not to remember the surge of jealous rage that had overtaken him as he had watched the Chagny boy put his dolman around Christine and hold her as she rested her head against his shoulder.

Military fashion is not my area of expertise, but a dolman is the outer jacket part of the uniform that Raoul wears draped over his shoulder for the masquerade.

I can also tell you that it's a Hussar uniform.

Why is Raoul wearing a Hussar uniform when he's not apparently tied to the military in any meaningful way? No clue. Couldn't tell you, you'd have to ask Maria Bjørnsen.

Even more baffling is the fact that Raoul's uniform in the musical is based off of the 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars. That's right, Raoul is wearing a British inspired Hussar uniform.

My best guess is this is a reference to the Raoul of the 1925 Lon Chaney film (played by Norman Kerry), who is the "Debonair lieutenant and Beau Brummel of the Second Chasseurs",

OR to Anatole Garron, one of the Raoul-type characters in the 1943 Claude Rains film (played by Nelson Eddy), who is also an opera singer, and who plays (I think) a Napoleonic Hussar of the 1st Regiment in the main opera set-piece of that film.

My best guess for an in-universe reason for Raoul to be wearing this uniform? Well, it is a costume ball, so ~shrugs~ it's just a costume?

Now at this point I'm sure the burning question on everyone's tongue is 'What is a Hussar or a Chasseur and what is the difference? '

Well, Hussars (Hussards in French) and Chasseurs (or, more properly Chasseurs á Cheval) were both light cavalry. The difference is that Chasseurs á Cheval were also expected to act as infantry if the situation called for it. Both Hussards and Chasseurs á Cheval had dolmans as part of their uniforms.

What I find quite funny about all of this though is the fact that in the book, Raoul is actually a sailor lad.

◇ "I will tell you all, Christine," his even tone trembling a little. "I only ask that you.... that you try to be gentle in your judgement of me."

Leroux Reference: Erik's History

Erik's whole backstory in this chapter is heavily adherent to Erik's life-story in the book as told in the Epilogue and the Persian's narrative.

Erik's birthplace of Rouen, his father's profession as a mason, his running away from home at "an early age"; his traveling to India, being discovered in Russia, being given immense power by the Shah, committing political assassinations, the "Little Sultana's" gladiatorial matches, the torture chamber, and of course the Daroga saving Erik's life from an order of execution following the completion of the trick box palace, are all detailed in the book, though of course I made some embellishments and alterations to fit Erik's characterization in the movie.

◇ "... and my mother [...] gave me a mask so that she would not have to..."

Leroux Reference: Chapter 13, "Apollo's Lyre"

"Why did you want to see me? Oh, Mad Christine, who wanted to see me! When my own father never saw me, and my mother gave me my first mask so that she would not have to!"

◇ "There was always a week in early August when she... was worse than usual... and I came to assume that these bouts must mark when I was born."

I don't put any stock in astrology in real life, but it is useful for choosing character birthdays.

Christine's generally agreed to be a Libra and that's about as bang on as you can get (though I could also see her as a February Pisces, if the Christine in question has the freaky energy of, say, Meredith Braun).

But Erik a character has about five signs that would suit him with equal perfection. He has the pride and flair for drama of a Leo, the aloof, ruthlessness of a Capricorn, the vicious sensuality of a Scorpio, the enigmatic, dark emotionality of a Cancer, and the violent passion of an Aries. How do you pick just one? I decided on Leo for Gerik specifically. Why? I can't say.

And if anyone is curious, Meg is a Sagittarius and Raoul is a Virgo.

◇ Her tears, warm and sweet, dripped onto his skin and trickled under his mask.

She, Christine, the true angel—who had sought after his kisses, when his own mother had never even tolerated them—she was weeping for his sake.

Her blessed tears mingled with his under his mask, and they flowed down to his lips.

Leroux Reference: Chapter 26, "The End of the Ghost's Love Story":

"And I fell at her feet, crying... and I kissed her feet... her little feet, crying [...] and she cried also... the angel cried!

[...]

"I felt her tears dropping onto my forehead--my forehead! They were warm, they were sweet! They flowed under my mask. Her tears! They mingled with my own tears in my eyes and they flowed into my mouth.... Ah! Her tears, on me!"

◇ Masonry, carpentry, joinery, metalwork; whatever I set my hands to seemed to come naturally, and so skilfully.

Carpentry and joinery, while both aspects of the woodworking trade, are separate skills. In this time period especially, carpentry referred to cutting and rough-work (including building construction), while joinery refers to assembly and fine-work.

◇ "I was brought down from Ninji-Novgorod, in Russia..."

Nowadays transliterated as "Nizhny Novgorod"; the sixth largest city in Russia, located on the Volga River in Western Russia. It is an important transport hub, as well as an economic and cultural centre, to this day.

◇ "as an entertainment for the Shah's favourite who was 'withering away' of boredom"

Leroux Reference: The "Little Sultana"

It was thus that his reputation reached the palace at Mazenderan, where the little Sultana was bored to death.

The "Little Sultana" is a vague but brutal female figure that is mentioned by both Erik and the Persian. In Leroux's epilogue she is called "The Shah's Favourite", almost certainly meaning a favourite wife or mistress. According to the Persian, she took delight in watching Erik kill prisoners in gladiatorial matches, and even persuaded him to teach her how to wield the Punjab lasso herself, using it to indiscriminately murder her own ladies in waiting, and occasionally even those of visiting friends.

M. Grant Kellermeyer speculates the "Little Sultana" to whom Leroux alludes to be based on Jeyran Khanom, the seventh wife of Nasser al din Shah, whom he first took as a mistress in around 1850 following a chance encounter during which he apparently fell in love with her on sight. One story of their meeting even asserts that she was one of his mother's servants.

Jeyran was a formidable figure, and enjoyed many masculine pursuits including hunting and shooting, and not even the Khanom (the Dowager) was able to dissuade Nasser from conferring her the title of Forough ol-Saltaneh, or from naming her son the crown prince (though this decision was stuck in political hell for years because of Jeyran's lack of influential bloodlines). She was the Shah's favourite wife until her early death in 1860 at the age of 29.

It's my feeling, however, that, though likely inspired by Jeyran (and also by her successor as the Shah's favourite, the even more formidable Anis al Dalweh, pictured below)

the "Little Sultana" is an entirely fictional character created by Leroux as a device to instil a deep sense of unease and horror in the reader; a monstrous young woman with bloodthirsty proclivities that stoked Erik's own growing disregard for human life at a time when he was particularly susceptible: best not to associate her too strongly with any real historical figure.

I was particularly eager to explore on this character, having recently read (and despised) Susan Kay's novel Phantom, in which this character is presented, not as the Shah's wife or mistress, but (rather incomprehensibly) as his mother.

◇ "By the time I had finished, the Shah had given me a nickname: 'Derb Mekhefa Met'eseb' which, roughly translated, means 'Trapdoor Lover'."

Leroux Reference: "Trap-Door Lover"

We have it from the Persian in Leroux's novel that this was a nickname of Erik's during the "Rosy hours of Mazenderan".

I have long wondered exactly what that would actually be in Persian. I determined that I wanted Erik to actually say it in the language, rather than just the translation, but reverse translating it has proven difficult. With no knowledge of Farsi as a language myself, I resorted to online language converters and translators, and this seems to be the best I can come up with. I believe it more accurately translates as "Hidden Door Fanatic", but I'm sure there are probably huge contextual problems with this attempt at translation. If anyone reading this speaks or has an understanding of Persian language, or knows someone who does who can give me a better translation, please let me know, I want this to be as authentic as possible.

◇'There, now! you are quite the Don Juan I would say. Any woman that ever saw you would be yours forever.

Leroux Reference: Chapter 13, "Apollo's Lyre"

This particularly cruel blow on Erik's self-esteem from the Shah was directly inspired by one of Erik's own comments during the aftermath of his Unmasking by Christine in the book (one of the most genuinely terrifying moments of the novel):

"He burst into a harsh, rumbling, powerful laughter, repeating the words: 'oh you women are so curious!' And then he said, 'Well, are you satisfied? I am a handsome fellow, eh? When a woman sees me, as you have, she becomes mine! She loves me forever! I am a kind of Don Juan in that way, you know!'"

This is the kind of line that sticks with you. This sarcastic comment is a horrible glimpse into just how deep Erik's self-loathing goes.

It occurred to me that, in my story, this may have been something the Shah might have sarcastically said to him that stuck with Erik, and inspired Erik's Don Juan comparison (and the work into which, as Leroux's Christine says, Erik "poured all of his bitter misery"). The betrayal of a tenuous, but much craved-for paternal figure would be deeply scarring to a young Erik, so it's little wonder he would try to turn the Shah's comment back on itself, to reclaim it.

◇"Daroga helped me to escape—I suppose in return for my once having saved his life—but on one condition. 'No more murders.'"

[...]

"I had never believed in making or keeping oaths and agreed to this one without much real intention of putting any stock in it."

Leroux Reference: Chapter 22, "Interesting and Instructive Vicissitudes of a Persian in the Cellars of the Paris Opera":

"Erik, you promised me: no more murders!"

"Have I really committed murders?" He asked, taking on his most amiable expression.

"Ah, you wretch!" I exclaimed. "Have you forgotten the Rosy Hours of Mazenderan?"

"Yes," he sighed. "I prefer to forget them, though I did make the little Sultana laugh."

[...]

"Erik... Erik swear to me..."

"What for?" he interrupted. "You know I never keep my oaths. Oaths are made for catching fools!"

◇ "I had returned to find the Opera Populaire under new management and it was not long before I observed that the new directors, Debienne and Poligny were far less competent than those who had advanced real talent and taste. Not unlike our present management,” he added under his breath. “In addition to that, I soon discovered that Poligny had, for some time, been defrauding Debienne in their private business ventures, among other... shall we say 'indiscretions'. I was fortunate to also discover that he was quite superstitious."

Book Characters!

Debienne and Poligny are the out-going managers of the Opera in the novel; their counterpart in the play would be M. Lefevre.

The lengthy timeline gave me some room to work. I figured Lefevre wouldn't have lasted a full thirteen years under the Opera Ghost's thumb, so I thought it wouldn't hurt to introduce these two as his predecessors.

Exactly what Erik was blackmailing Poligny over (because this detail is true to the book), is never explicitly stated, but it is implied to regard numerous proclivities, both moral and financial:

" 'Poligny was superstitious and Erik knew it. Erik also knew much about the public and private affairs of the opera.'

"When Poligny heard a mysterious voice whispering to him about the use he had made of both his time and his partner's confidence, he did not question it."

◇ "I worked by fits and starts, composing for weeks at a time during which I hardly ate or slept and lived only on my music."

Leroux Reference: Chapter 13, "Apollo's Lyre"

"I sometimes compose for fifteen days and nights together, during which I neither eat nor drink, and live only on music..."

Depeche Mode References, for those looking for them…

◇ “Did he have any choice but to go down on his knees and pray that she would have the strength to forgive all the things that he'd done?”

From "One Caress" off of Songs of Faith and Devotion:

"Well I'm down on my knees again

And I pray to the only one

Who has the strength to bear the pain

To forgive all the things that I've done"

◇ “A moment of silence as Erik gathered his thoughts, steeling himself against the heavy sense of trepidation that threatened, like a disease, to take hold of his tongue.

Doing his level best to shake it away, he said…”

From “Shake the Disease” off of Black Celebration (Deluxe Edition):

"Here is a plea, from my heart to you

Nobody knows me as well as you do

You know how hard it is for me

To shake the disease

That takes hold of my tongue

In situations like these"

[luneemeritus]

[aggclarke]

Imagine that you pay for classes for a person who doesn't even remember your face or name, they steal your songs and leave your face deformed, do you come out as the villain? Yes, Erique Claudin, you are quite unfair.

[hug-me-brutha]

Here are my reviews of the nine Phantom of the Opera adaptations I own on dvd (I have than these digitally but for now I'm just doing my dvds)

Phantom of the opera (1925) - Lon Chaney

Accurate to the book in a lot of ways, good soundtrack and atmosphere, amazing makeup for Erik

The changed ending takes away from the story and the silent movie format doesn't work well with the emphasis on singing

3.5/5

Phantom of the opera (1943) - Claude Raines

Christine just vibes the whole time, fun interactions between the two normal suitors

Less sympathetic Erik, all the names are changed, less horror, weirdly would have worked better if they did their original plan of having Erik be Christine's estranged father

3/5

Phantom of the opera (1983) - Maximilian Schell

Keeps the horror part intact I guess?? Prosthetics good

Everyone has different names, the main plot is changed for the worse and there is no levity, Erik is a creep even before his "transformation"

1/5

Phantom of the opera (1989) - Robert Englund

Good song as Erik's hallmark, good prosthetics, good casting and references to the book

Supernatural elements and changed backstop for Erik lessens sympathy for Erik, somewhat hard to follow plot

2/5 (ignoring my general dislike for medical-related gore)

Phantom of the opera (1990) - Charles Dance

Great cast, keeps the spirit of love and tragedy from the book, all plot changes work well, SO SAD

Why change Raoul to Philippe? Some lip-syncing not so good

4.5/

Phantom of the opera (2004) - Gerard Butler

THE VIBES! THE EMOTIONS! WAAAAAAHHH!

Some of the singing is iffy, having old man Raoul popping up all the time is kinda boring, all the age changes (especially the age at which Erik started teaching Christine) are for the worse

3.5/5

Love never dies (2011) - Ben Lewis

Some songs are pretty good, the cast tried their best?

What is that plot? No, really. What is it? Also. BATHING BEAUTY

2/4

A monster in paris (2011) - Sean Lennon

Great soundtrack, character design (especially Francour) is amazing

VERY loose adaptation, some animation is kinda wonkypretty much no horror

4/5

Phantom of the opera (2011/1986) - Ramin Karimloo

Everything good about the 2004 movie but add in great singing and better pacing

Why replace the Daroga with Mme Giry? Shame it didn't have the original production's set design

4.5/5

I love talking about PotO so feel free to leave your own reviews of the ones you've seen! I'm always up for friendly debate when it comes to phantom adaptations lol

[free-for-all-fics]

Musicals Masterlist

The Phantom of the Opera Gaston Leroux Novel, MazM Visual Novel, and Mystery Legends: Phantom of the Opera Hidden Objects Game:

The Phantom of the Opera and Beauty and the Beast Crossover AU Prompt

Death Upon an Austrian Sonata: A Dana Knightstone Novel AU Prompt

Phantom Manor AU Prompt

Gothic Horror AU Prompt (inspired by Disney’s Phantom Manor/Haunted Mansion and loosely Unforgiven: A Northern Hymn!)

Haunted Mansion AU Prompt

Spookies AU Prompt

Other Phantom of the Opera Adaptations:

Phantom of the Opera 1943 Prompts (Claude Rains as Erique Claudin)

The Phantom of the Opera 1962 Prompts (Herbert Lom as Professor Petrie) coming soon!

The Phantom of the Opera 1989 Prompts (Robert Englund as Erik Destler) coming soon!

The Phantom of the Opera 1990 Miniseries Prompts (Charles Dance as Erik Carriere)

Other Musicals:

Elisabeth Prompts

Hairspray Prompts (coming soon)

Romeo and Juliet Prompts

Tanz der Vampire Prompts (feat. Dracula Musical Crossovers)