Of course, it could be true and untrue. Maybe Gertrude the duck...car...actually did give it up for IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, but that history of the car at the studio...I dunno.  Sounds to me like the publicity guy was trying to remember who was at Universal in the silent days, flipped a book open to the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA page and thought, "Lon Chaney...Mary Philbin...Norman Kerry...good enough."

"Some people are born on 3rd base and go through life thinking they hit a triple."