Many Selves

The very first film actor to be identified with horror roles was Paul Wegener. A distinguished stage actor, Wegener was fascinated by film and its potential to portray the uncanny and the macabre. Sometimes acting as director and writer as well as performer, Wegener played in a series of fantastic films in the tens, the most famous of which are "The Student of Prague" and "The Golem." His directing career faltered in the twenties but he continued to play mad scientists, monsters and various grotesque characters. The book has detailed essays on 17 of his most significant genre films and includes first hand descriptions of such rarities as "The Lost Shadow, Svengali, Hans Trutz" and "Ramper the Beast Man." In addition to a biography of Wegener, there is also a detailed filmography of all his movies, including the obscure ones he directed in the 1930s.