Here are the notable deaths on August 26 throughout the years:

Lon Chaney, Sr. (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) - An American actor during the age of silent films.  He was one of the most versatile and powerful actors of early cinema.  He is best remembered for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and afflicted characters, and his groundbreaking artistry with film makeup.  He is chiefly remembered as a pioneer in such silent horror films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and most notably, The Phantom of the Opera.  His ability to transform himself using self-invented makeup techniques earned him the nickname of “Man of a Thousand Faces.”  During the filming of Thunder in the winter of 1929, Chaney developed pneumonia.  In late 1929 he was diagnosed with bronchial lung cancer.  Despite aggressive treatment, his condition gradually worsened, and seven weeks after the release of the remake of The Unholy Three, he died of a throat hemorrhage.  In 1957, Chaney was the subject of a biopic titled Man of a Thousand Faces, and was portrayed by James Cagney.  Chaney’s son, Lon Chaney, Jr., became a film actor after his father’s death, and is best remembered for roles in horror films, especially The Wolf Man.  The Chaneys appeared on US postage stamps as their signature characters, the Phantom of the Opera and the Wolf Man, with the set completed by Bela Lugosi as Dracula and Boris Karloff as Frankenstein’s monster and The Mummy.  He and his son are mentioned in the Warren Zevon song “Werewolves of London.” (more…)