Freaks

Tod Browning (1880–1962) was the helmer of seminal movies like the classic 1931 Dracula starring Bela Lugosi, The Devil Doll and, of course, Freaks. After performing in carnivals and vaudeville circuits for more than a decade and working as an actor for D.W. Griffith and others, he transitioned to directing and screenwriting. Specializing in exotic, crook, bizarre, and mystery melodramas, he had his breakthrough in 1925 with The Unholy Three, a story about a sideshow ventriloquist, midget, and strongman teaming up to commit robberies. His sensibilities later fell out of style in a Hollywood that was increasingly looking for glamour. Miracles for Sale (1939) would become his final feature.