Claude Rains

This spectacular retelling of Gaston Leroux's immortal horror tale stars Claude Rains as the masked phantom of the Paris opera house - a crazed composer who schemes to make a beautiful young soprano (Susanna Foster) the star of the opera company and wreak revenge on those who stole his music. Nelson Eddy, the heroic baritone, tries to win the affections of Foster as he tracks down the disfigured "monster" who has begin murdering those who resist his mad demands. This lavish production remains a masterpiece not only of the genre, but for all time.

The signature adaptation of H.G. Wells' The Invisible Man stars Claude Rains as a mysterious scientist who discovers a serum that makes him invisible. Covered by bandages and dark glasses, the scientist arrives at a small English village and attempts to hide his amazing discovery. He soon discovers, however, that the same drug which renders him invisible is slowly driving him insane and capable of committing unspeakable acts of terror. Directed by James Whale, the horror classic features groundbreaking special effects by John P.

"Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright." In 1941, The Wolf Man introduced the world to a new Universal movie monster and the mythology of the werewolf was redefined forever. Featuring a heartbreaking performance by Lon Chaney Jr. and groundbreaking make-up by Jack Pierce, this story of a cursed man who transforms into a deadly werewolf when the moon is full has not only become a masterpiece of the horror genre, but of all time.

The dramatic portrait of the famed British officer's journey to the Middle East, Lawrence Of Arabia is one of the most critically acclaimed and beloved films of all time. Assigned to Arabia during World War I, Lawrence courageously unites the warring Arab factions into a strong guerrilla front and leads them to brilliant victories in treacherous desert battlefields, where they eventually defeat the ruling Turkish Empire.

A truly perfect movie, the 1942 Casablanca still wows viewers today, and for good reason. Its unique story of a love triangle set against terribly high stakes in the war against a monster is sophisticated instead of outlandish, intriguing instead of garish. Humphrey Bogart plays the allegedly apolitical club owner in unoccupied French territory that is nevertheless crawling with Nazis; Ingrid Bergman is the lover who mysteriously deserted him in Paris; and Paul Heinreid is her heroic, slightly bewildered husband.

Dashing Errol Flynn is the definitive Robin Hood in the most gloriously swashbuckling version of the legendary story. Warner Brothers reunited Michael Curtiz, their top-action director, with the winning team of Flynn and Olivia de Havilland (Maid Marian) and perennial villain Basil Rathbone as the aristocratic Sir Guy of Gisbourne, and pulled out all stops for the production. It became their costliest film to date, a grandly handsome, glowing Technicolor adventure set to a stirring, Oscar-winning score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold.