Book Review--DARK CARNIVAL: The Secret World Of Tod Browning, Hollywood's Master Of The Macabre (Revised Edition)

 

DARK CARNIVAL is the revised edition of a 1995 biography on American film director Tod Browning, written by David J. Skal and Elias Savada. The book was published by the University of Minnesota Press, and I purchased the more affordable paperback version. 

Tod Browning is a name well-known to film geeks and old monster movie lovers. He directed the original THE UNHOLY THREE, THE UNKNOWN, LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT, DRACULA, FREAKS, and many other movies involving the weird, the morbid, and the uncanny. Browning's life was as strange as many of the stories he put onscreen, and even after the first edition of this book came out in the 1990s, bizarre rumors about his personal habits still persist to this day. 

In the years since the first edition of their biography was released, the authors discovered new material and information about their subject. This DARK CARNIVAL doesn't contain what I would call any earth-shattering revelations, but it does shine as much light as possible on an off-beat filmmaker who managed to create some of the darkest visions released during the 1920s-30s era of Hollywood. 

It's amazing that Browning was able to make the films that he did, especially considering he wasn't working on the low-budget margins of the American movie industry. Browning spent most of his career at MGM, a studio proud of its prestigious reputation. DARK CARNIVAL charts how Browning fell in and out of favor from MGM (and Universal) during his checkered years as a director. 

The book also details (as well as it can) Browning's early life, which is where most of the wild rumors about him originate. (The authors point out that a lot of these "facts" about Browning's youthful days working in carnivals and fairs cannot be verified.) The problem with any book or article dealing with Tod Browning is that the man himself never gave what would now be called a complete all-inclusive interview, and his one-on-one interactions with individuals were complicated, to say the least. Browning's alcoholism is also dealt with, an affliction which haunted his life and work constantly. 

Nevertheless, over the years the authors managed to interview a number of folks who either worked with Browning or had personal knowledge of him. The book contains a full filmography of Browning's work, including the movies in which he appeared as an actor. DARK CARNIVAL is heavily illustrated, with full-page photos featuring the likes of Browning, Lon Chaney, and Bela Lugosi. 

As expected, the more notable of Browning's films--his collaborations with Lon Chaney, the 1931 DRACULA, and of course FREAKS--get plenty of coverage. There is also a chapter on how Browning's work has influenced pop culture over the years. One could say that Browning's cinematic output has had far more lasting effect than those of his more mainstream (and more respected) contemporary filmmakers. 

DARK CARNIVAL is the ultimate source when it comes to Tod Browning, yet it must be said that even after I finished reading it, the man was still something of a mystery. If Browning were alive today, fanboys would be crowding all over him, but during his long retirement from Hollywood he wound up basically forgotten (he appears to have spent most of his time by himself drinking beer). The fact that Browning never really opened up about himself and his films makes him all the more intriguing. DARK CARNIVAL is a must for the bookshelf of any classic horror film fan, and it is also a great biography about an early Hollywood figure.