# Most Evil Eyeglasses in the History of Cinema **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2019, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530 "2019-08-31T20:18:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/21 "2019-09-01T19:27:29Z")
> [@Sefton](#): > > When I think of bespectacled evil, the first name that comes to mind is [Arnold Ernst Toht](https://indianajones.fandom.com/wiki/Arnold_Ernst_Toht). You know what made them super, duper evil? His shaky, evil hand removing them from his face in order to make a point. Why that image stuck with me, I do not know. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/22 "2019-09-01T19:39:25Z")
Also immediately after envisioning Toht’s evil eyeglass removal, I thought of [Armin Zola](https://aux.avclub.com/arnim-zola-1798260063) from The Avengers. Those thin rimmed things are the epitome of evil eye wear. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/23 "2019-09-01T19:46:28Z")
I can’t remember the movie or the character, but wasn’t there an evil female who wore cat’s eye glasses like [these](https://www.zennioptical.com/p/womens-tr-cat-eye-eyeglass-frames/20256?skuId=2025621&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIourWvLGw5AIVF7vsCh032AfaEAQYAyABEgJzlvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/24 "2019-09-01T20:17:57Z")
There are many reasons why Tammany Hall died out as a political organization after 150 years, but one was clearly was the tinted glasses its last leader, [Carmine DeSapio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/79/Carmine_DeSapio.png), wore at all times due to a medical condition. ---
**Author:** ![LC\_Strawhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@LC\_Strawhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LC_Strawhouse)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/25 "2019-09-01T21:06:53Z")
“Clarence” in RoboCop (played by Kurtwood Smith) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/26 "2019-09-01T22:25:42Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > I can’t remember the movie or the character, but wasn’t there an evil female who wore cat’s eye glasses like [these](https://www.zennioptical.com/p/womens-tr-cat-eye-eyeglass-frames/20256?skuId=2025621&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIourWvLGw5AIVF7vsCh032AfaEAQYAyABEgJzlvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)? Perhaps [Scarlett Johansson as Silken Floss](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/bd/b3/e4/bdb3e44c433711735875c962135b3b35.jpg) in _[The Spirit](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spirit_(film))_? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/27 "2019-09-01T22:31:47Z")
Glasses don’t get much creepier than those worn by [Tilda Swinton in Snowpiercer.](https://cdn1.thr.com/sites/default/files/2014/12/tilda_a.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/28 "2019-09-01T23:27:51Z")
> [@Sefton](#): > > When I think of bespectacled evil, the first name that comes to mind is [Arnold Ernst Toht](https://indianajones.fandom.com/wiki/Arnold_Ernst_Toht). Speaking of this character…am I the only one who thinks of him every time I see a pic of “acting” Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney? > **[Mick Mulvaney](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mick_Mulvaney)** > > John Michael "Mick" Mulvaney (born July 21, 1967) is an American politician who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from February 2017 until March 2020, and as acting White House Chief of Staff from January 2019 until March 2020. Prior to his appointments to the Trump administration, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives. > Mulvaney, a Republican, served in the South Carolina General Assembly from 2007 to 2011, first in the House of Representatives and then t... ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2019, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/29 "2019-09-01T23:31:29Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > They were a standard late-‘50s design with hornrims on the top half and underwire below. They are currently the most popular “hipster” glasses in Brooklyn, or were a few years back. They oddly magnified Hunsecker’s malevolence in the movie: Lancaster without glasses wouldn’t be the devil he is with them on his nose. To be accurate, they’re called [combination frames](http://optometristattic.com/combinations.htm), and the eyewire actually goes all the way around the lenses. The plastic parts support the temples, but have nothing to do with keeping the lenses in. I put a lot of lenses in some of those frames back in the 90s, mostly for older people who’d been reusing the same frame since the 50s or 60s. Good quality frames can last a loooong time if they’re taken care of. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/30 "2019-09-02T02:02:48Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Speaking of this character…am I the only one who thinks of him every time I see a pic of “acting” Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney? > > [Mick Mulvaney - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mick_Mulvaney) You’re not the only one. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/31 "2019-09-02T02:48:06Z")
> [@Charlie\_Tan](#): > > Not fiction at all, but I don’t think any fictitious character can ever beat [Augusto Pinochet](https://iconicphotos.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/pinochetjunta.jpg?w=398&h=595) for evil/shades combo. Someone above posted Heinrich Himmler, and I think he’s the #1 choice, but Pinochet is a good #2. To go to the comic world, Dr. Eggman from Sonic the Hedgehog is appropriately evil in eye-fitting glasses…[https://www.anime-planet.com/characters/dr-eggman](https://www.anime-planet.com/characters/dr-eggman) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/32 "2019-09-02T06:07:15Z")
[Kevin](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/sincity/images/2/2f/Kevs.jpg/revision/latest/zoom-crop/width/320/height/320?cb=20140118194703)(Elijah Wood) in _Sin City_ ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/33 "2019-09-02T15:56:46Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > To be accurate, they’re called [combination frames](http://optometristattic.com/combinations.htm), and the eyewire actually goes all the way around the lenses. The plastic parts support the temples, but have nothing to do with keeping the lenses in. I was surprised to see they have their own Wikipedia entry, as “browline” frames, so called because they accentuate the browline. > **[Browline glasses](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browline_glasses)** > > Browline glasses are a style of eyeglass frames where the "bold" upper part holding the lenses resembles eyebrows framing the eyes. They were very popular during the 1950s and 1960s, especially in the United States of America. The glasses were first manufactured by Shuron Ltd in 1947 under the "Ronsir" brand, and quickly emulated by various other manufacturers. The design became the most common style of eyeglasses throughout the 1950s and the early 1960s before it was surpassed in popularity by ... Why an accentuated browline is considered optimal, I don’t understand. I think it would be cooler to call them “Malcolm X glasses.” Or “Hunsecker glasses,” of course. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/34 "2019-09-02T17:51:59Z")
[Lina Wertmuller](https://www.google.com/search?q=lina+wertmuller&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYiZrxzrLkAhVXnp4KHRCOCOwQ_AUIEigC&biw=1006&bih=706#imgrc=_) [Chauffeur](https://www.google.com/search?q=burnt+offerings+chauffeur&rlz=1C1CHBD_enCA835CA835&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYo9XZ0LLkAhUVoZ4KHV5lAhAQ_AUIESgB&biw=1006&bih=706) from _Burnt Offerings_. [Edith Prickley](https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBD_enCA835CA835&biw=1006&bih=706&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=F1BtXYXcHNbT-wSdrqWQBQ&q=edith+prickley&oq=edith+prickley&gs_l=img.3..0l3j0i30j0i5i30j0i24l4.3440.20328..20645...3.0..0.78.424.7......0....1..gws-wiz-img.BCGUP7P2xyI&ved=0ahUKEwjFw-ja07LkAhXW6Z4KHR1XCVIQ4dUDCAY&uact=5) Somewhat boxy-oversized and Elvis Costello-y, [these glasses](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xUynRdzzsM) might look kinda innocuous, but when worn by the pig-lecturer, possibly less so. Robert Fripp-y-looking dude as [Ludovico doctor](https://youtu.be/E51-2B8gHtk?t=125) in _Clockwork Orange_. And, to _e-a-s-i-l-y_ win this thread, though, I give you… [Roat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WoIUWsYzEI) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2019, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530/35 "2019-09-02T21:13:30Z")
Trying to find more evil women with glasses. [Nurse Murch](https://www.findadeathforum.com/showthread.php?20445-Jane-Dornacker) from _The Right Stuff_. Played by Jane Dornacker. One of only two roles listed on IMDb. Died 39 as a traffic reporter in NYC in an on air live helicopter crash. Was in The Tubes. Didn’t normally [look](https://alchetron.com/Jane-Dornacker) that evil. Benay Venuta as Diana Moon Glampers in the Vonnegut-based PBS movie _Between Time and Timbuktu_. Can’t find a pic or anything. Guess it’s too old. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-evil-eyeglasses-in-the-history-of-cinema/839530.md?page=1)