THE HOXTON CREEPER WAS NO CREEP and SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF THE ACROMEGALIC ACTOR

Acromegaly Can Cause Certain Parts of the Body to Grow Even in Adults

I don't know where Dr. Watson went to medical school but in the movie Pearl of Death, he fails to recognize that the so called Hoxton Creeper is actually a man with an obvious case of Acromegaly. In fact he was the actor Rondo Hatton, a sportswriter who developed a case of acromegaly.






Acromegaly happens with the release of too much growth hormone after the bones of the body have closed and thus only certain areas can still become enlarged.
Usually it's because of a pituitary gland problem... According to Wikipedia "Acromegaly distorted the shape of Hatton's head, face, and extremities in a gradual but consistent process. Hatton, who reportedly had been voted the handsomest boy in his class at Hillsborough High School, eventually became severely disfigured by the disease. Because the symptoms developed in adulthood (as is common with the disorder), the disfigurement was incorrectly attributed later by film studio publicity departments to his exposure to a German mustard gas attack during service in World War I. Whether Hatton actually served in combat is unclear, though it has been reported that he served on the Mexican border and in France". See the Wikipedia article on the actor Rondo Hatton.