The 'real vampire' behind the original Nosferatu: How star's performance in 1922 classic led some to claim he was not acting
He has nearly 50 film credits to his name, but Max Schreck is only remembered for one thing.
In 1922, he appeared as the hook-nosed, claw-handed Count Orlok in Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.
The unofficial (and unauthorised) German adaptation of the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker would prove to be one of the most influential films ever made.
But Schreck's performance and appearance proved so convincing that people at the time - and one mischievous critic three decades afterwards - suggested that he might be a real vampire, or that that the actor may be an invention.
Schreck's insistence on staying in full make-up during breaks in filming and for interviews may have fueled myths that the star was not acting.
It did not help that his name meant 'fright' or 'scare' in German, and that he had been plucked from relative obscurity to take on the role after the first choice for the part rejected it.
Regardless, Nosferatu would spark dozens of further Dracula adaptations. The latest is a re-make of F.W. Murnau's original and stars Bill Skarsgard as Nosferatu.
In his 2012 book Constellation of Genius, author Kevin Jackson said Schreck must be the 'strangest and most hideous leading man in all cinema'.
Nosferatu, which was released in 1922, remains an enduring classic. Max Schreck's turn was an unofficial and unauthorised Dracula adaptation, prompting Bram Stoker's widow to get a court to order its destruction
In what was a loose adapation of Stoker's novel, lead character Count Orlock - played by Max Schreck - was seen in Nosferatu preying on the wife of his estate agent
He went on: 'Revoltingly thin, bald, hook-nosed, claw-nailed, with rodentlike fangs and mad staring eyes, Schreck/Orlok can still cause shudders by his mere appearance.'
In the 1950s, Greek filmmaker Ado Kyrou fuelled the mystery surrounding the film, writing: 'The opening credits name Max Schreck in the part of the vampire but it is well known that this is a deception.
'Who is hiding behind the Nosferatu character? Maybe a vampire in person?'
It was also suggested that the man disguised by heavy make-up was a more respectable actor who was trying to avoid being linked to the film.
Schreck's depiction also established the convention that sunlight is lethal to vampires. Stoker's original creation had no trouble walking around in the day.
Born in Berlin in June 1879, Schreck started his professional life under the tutelage of famous German theatre director Max Reinhardt.
His potential was spotted by Nosferatu's director, F.W. Murnau.
He was selected for the role when first choice Conrad Veidt turned it down.
Rolf Giesen, the author of the book The Nosferatu Story, tells how Schreck was a master of make-up.
In 1922, Max Schreck appeared as the hook-nosed, claw-handed Count Orlok in Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror. He died of a heart attack in 1936 with nearly 50 film credits to his name
He created Orlok's hook nose, heavy eyebrows, and rat-like teeth that were held in place by his upper lip.
The star wore a bald cap that 'cut down near the actor's eyes and left little tufts covering the seam of the join between his pointed ear extensions.'
He also had talon-like fingernails and shoulder pads.
Early reviews for the film were poor and because Nosferatu was an unofficial re-telling of the story that had been made without permission, Stoker's widow sued and a court ruled that all copies should be destroyed.
Thankfully, several survived.
In the decades that followed, the film's popularity was kept alive by references in popular culture - not least Werner Herzog's 1979 remake, Nosferatu the Vampyre, which starred Klaus Kinski as Orlok.
Shadow of the Vampire, released in 2000, picked up on the myths surrounding Nosferatu, by depicting Max Schreck as an actual vampire.
Willem Dafoe - who is now appearing in the new Nosferatu film as the vampire's enemy - stars as Schreck, who really is Count Orlok.
The story of the villainous blood-sucking Count who comes to Britain from Transylvania was written by Bram Stoker and published in 1897, Above: Stoker in 1900; the cover of the first edition
Max Schreck as Count Orlok in Nosferatu, the silent film released in 1922
The character provided the inspiration for several other on-screen creations, including the blood-suckers in Guillermo del Toro's Blade 2, as well as the Pale Man in the director's 2006 film Pan's Labrynth.
Although he is best remembered for his role as Count Orlok, Schreck starred in 47 films during his career. He died of a heart attack on November 26, 1936.
His gravesite became overgrown and was eventually lost, in stark contrast to the appeal of his on-screen creation.
Murnau's career was cut short in March 1931, when he was killed aged just 42 in a car crash along with his 14-year-old servant.
In 2015, his skull was stolen from his grave in Berlin and has not been found since.
It was Bram Stoker's 1897 novel that brought the vampire myth as we know it to life.
Stoker wrote of the imperious Count Dracula, who comes to England from his home in Transylvania so that he can find new victims.
He plagues the Yorkshire seaside town of Whitby before he is hunted down by a group led by Abraham Van Helsing.
Lily-Rose Deep as Ellen Hunter in Nosferatu, which is directed by Robert Eggers
Bill Skarsgard as Nosferatu in the poster for the chilling new film
The novel also stars English solicitor Jonathan Harker, who falls prey to Dracula when he stays at his home.
Stoker's work caused an immediate sensation, and its impact on other fiction and cinema continues to resound.
In June 1897, an early review in the Daily Mail prophetically said: 'The recollection of this weird and ghostly tale will doubtless haunt us for some time to come.'
Nosferatu was followed by Bela Lugosi's turn as the officially sanctioned Dracula in 1931.
Christopher Lee then portrayed the vampire in ten separate productions.
Also a hit was Gary Oldman's Count in Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 film Bram Stoker's Dracula, as was Klaus Kinski's inhabiting of the role in 1979 production Nosferatu the Vampyre.
