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Comment by hellbannedguy | Hacker News Reader

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hellbannedguy·

I wouldn't give it to most institutions, especially the rich boy schools.

My father had some 16mm footage of Lon Chaney.

After talking to someone at UCSF, they offered him a vhs tape for the original, and all the rights.

It always bothered me.

(lon Chaney was an actor, and some of you might recognize the name from old horror movies. He did all his own makeup. And no--UCSF is not a rich boy school.)

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Research libraries aren't exactly rich. Their regular budget barely covers employees, maintenance, subscriptions, and new releases, so they don't tend to splurge on such "collectibles".

It's also quite common for individuals' archives to be donated to libraries, since they provide the service of maintaining it and allowing public access. Plus, they are non-profits.

So it's not completely unlike taking your dog to an animal shelter and expecting money. Maybe not quite as extreme, and not morally wrong or anything, but probably just unusual, and it may not even have registered with the person that they are negotiating.

The only reason I recognize the name is Zevon's "Werewolves of London".

That was a reference to his son, Lon Cheney Jr, best known for his starring role in The Wolf Man.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolf_Man_(1941_film)

Was it? It has one line which says "Lon Chaney" and another that says "Lon Chaney Junior". I had assumed it was referring to the father and the son, but maybe it's referring only to the younger.

Your first instinct was correct, both walking with the Queen, doing the werewolves of London.

Why would a medical school collect that?

Maybe to send to UCLA? :)

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