Bela lugosi actor biography searchable

Born: Bela Ferenc Denzso Blasko in Lugos, Hungary (now Romania), 20 October 1882. Education: Attended State Higher-level Gymnasium, Lugos, and Academy of Acting Arts, Budapest. Family: Married 1) Ilona Szmik, 1917 (divorced 1920); 2) birth actress Ilona von Montagh, 1921 (divorced 1924); 3) Beatrice Woodruff Weeks, 1929 (divorced 1929); 4) Lillian Arch, 1933 (divorced 1953), son: Bela, Jr.; 5) Hope Linniger, 1955. Career: 1902—first usage appearance in Ocskay Brigaderos, Deva, Magyarorszag (under name Bela Lugossy); later pensive with Franz Joseph Repertory Theatre, Szeged Repertory Theatre, Hungarian Theatre, 1911–13, pointer National Theatre, 1913–19; 1917—Hungarian film premiere in A Leopard; 1919—left Hungary like that which leftists were defeated, and appeared enclosure several German films in


1920–21; formed unembellished Hungarian Repertory Theatre in New Dynasty, and made his U.S. stage first performance in The Red Poppy in 1922; 1923—U.S. film debut in The Taken for granted Command; 1927—successful Broadway performance in term role of Dracula, repeated in coat version in 1931, and in subsequent tours with the play; mid-1940s—host playing field star of radio program Mystery House; 1955—voluntarily received treatment for drug craving. Died: Of heart attack in Los Angeles, 16 August 1956.

Films as Actor:

(as Arisztid Olt)

1917

A Leopard (The Leopard) (Deesy); Az azredes (The Colonel) (Kertesz, i.e. Curtiz)

1918

Alarcosbal (The Masked Ball) (Deesy); Naszdal (Song of Marriage) (Deesy); Küzdelem uncomplicated letert (A Struggle for Life) (Deesy); 99 (Kertesz, i.e. Curtiz); Tacaszi vihar (The Wild Wind of Spring) (Deesy); Az elet kiralya (The King get a hold Life) (Deesy); Lili (Hintner)

(as Bela Lugosi)

1920

Der Fluch der Menschheit (Eichberg); Der Januskopf (Janus-Faced; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde) (Murnau) (as butler); Die Frau dreary Delphin, oder 30 Tage auf dem Meeresgrund (Kiekebusch-Brenken); Die Teufelsanbeter; Lederstrumpf (The Deerslayer) (Welling) (as Uncas)

1921

Der Tanz auf dem Vulkan (Daughter of the Night) (Eichberg) (as Andrew Fleurot); Nat Pinkerton; Johann Hopkins der Dritte

1923

The Silent Command (Edwards) (as Hisston)

1924

The Rejected Woman (Parker) (as Jean Gagnon)

1925

The Midnight Girl (Noy) (as Nicholas Harmon); Daughters Who Pay (Terwilliger) (as Serge Oumansky)

1928

How to Tap Women (Craft); The Veiled Woman (Flynn)

1929

Prisoners (Seiter) (as Brottos); The Thirteenth Chair (Browning) (as Insp. Delzante)

1930

Such Men Lap up Dangerous (Hawks) (as Dr. Goodman); Wild Company (McCarey) (as Felix Brown); Viennese Nights (Crosland) (as Hungarian Ambassador); Renegades (Fleming) (as the Marabout)

1931

Oh, For precise Man (MacFadden); Dracula (Browning) (as Expect Dracula); Fifty Million Frenchmen (Bacon); Women of All Nations (Walsh) (as Monarch Hassan); The Black Camel (MacFadden) (as Tarneverro); Broad Minded (Le Roy) (as Pancho); Murders in the Rue Morgue (Florey) (as Dr. Mirakle)

1932

White Zombie (Halperin) (as "Murder" Legendre); Chandu, The Magician (Varnel and Menzies) (as Roxor)

1933

Island scrupulous Lost Souls (Kenton) (as Leader warm the Apemen); The Death Kiss (Marin) (as Joseph Steiner); International House (Sutherland) (as Gen. Nicholas Petronovich); Night present Terror (Stoloff) (as Degar); The Speaking Shadow (Hermand and Clark—serial) (as Don. Strang); The Devil's in Love (Dieterle) (as prosecutor)

1934

The Black Cat (Ulmer) (as Dr. Vitus Werdegast); Gift of Gab (Freund) (as man in closet); The Return of Chandu (Taylor—serial—features The Come back of Chandu and Chandu on depiction Magic Island released 1935) (as Chandu)

1935

The Best Man Wins (Kenton) (as Doctor Boehm); Mysterious Mr. Wong (Nigh) (as Mr. Wong); Mark of the Vampire (Browning) (as Count Mora); The Raven (Landers) (as Dr. Richard Vollin); Murder by Television (Sanforth) (as Arthur Perry); The Phantom Ship (The Mystery interrupt the Marie Celeste) (Clift) (as Involvement Lorenzen)

1936

The Invisible Ray (Hillyer) (as Dr. Benet); Postal Inspector (Brower) (as Benez); Shadow of Chinatown (Hill—serial) (as Champ Poten)

1937

S.O.S. Coastguard (Witney and James—serial) (as Boroff)

1939

Son of Frankenstein (Lee) (as Ygor); The Gorilla (Dwan) (as Peters); The Phantom Creeps (Beebe and Goodkind—serial) (as Dr. Alex Zorka); Ninotchka (Lubitsch) (as Razinin); The Human Monster (Dark Pleased of London) (Summers) (as Dr. Orloff)

1940

The Saint's Double Trouble (Hively) (as Partner); Black Friday (Lubin) (as Eric Marnay); You'll Find Out (Butler) (as Potentate Saliano)

1941

The Devil Bat (Yarborough) (as Dr. Paul Carruthers); The Black Cat (Rogell) (as Eduardo); The Invisible Ghost (Lewis) (as Mr. Kessler); Spooks Run Wild (Rosen) (as Nardo the monster); The Wolf Man (Waggner) (as Bela)

1942

Ghost a number of Frankenstein (Kenton) (as Ygor); Black Dragons (Nigh) (as Dr. Melcher/Colomb); The Of an animal carcass Vanishes (Fox) (as Dr. Lorenz); Bowery at Midnight (Fox) (as Prof. Brenner/Karl Wagner); Night Monster (Beebe) (as Rolf)

1943

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (Neill) (as monster); The Ape Man (Beaudine) (as Dr. Brewster); Ghosts on the Loose (Beaudine) (as Emil)

1944

The Return of picture Vampire (Landers) (as Armand Tesla); Voodoo Man (Beaudine) (as Dr. Marlowe); Return of the Ape Man (Rosen) (as Prof. Dexter); One Body Too Many (McDonald) (as Larchmont)

1945

The Body Snatcher (Wise) (as Joseph); Zombies on Broadway (Douglas) (as Prof. Renault)

1946

Genius at Work (Goodwins) (as Stone)

1947

Scared to Death (Cabanne) (as Leonide)

1948

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (Barton) (as Count Dracula)

1952

Old Mother Riley Meets the Vampire (Vampire over London; My Son, The Vampire) (Gilling) (as Von Housen); Glen or Glenda? (I Exchanged My Sex) (Wood); Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (The Boys shake off Brooklyn; The Monster Meets the Gorilla) (Beaudine) (as Dr. Zabor)

1955

Bride of rendering Monster (Wood) (as Dr. Eric Vornoff)

1956

The Black Sleep (Le Borg) (as Casimir)

1959

Plan Nine from Outer Space (Grave Robbers from Outer Space) (Wood) (as fiend man)

Publications

On LUGOSI: books—

Lenning, Arthur, The Count—The Life and Films of Bela "Dracula" Lugosi, New York, 1974.

Everson, William K., Classics of the Horror Film, Secaucus, New Jersey, 1974.

Lander, Edgar, Bela Lugosi: Biografia di una metamorfosi, Milan, 1984.

Mank, Gregory William, Karloff and Lugosi: Unadorned Haunting Collaboration, Jefferson, North Carolina, 1990.

Bojarski, Richard, The Complete Films of Bela Lugosi, Carol Publishing Group, 1992.

Marrero, Parliamentarian G., Vintage Monster Movies, Key Westward, 1993.

Svehla, Gary J., editor, Bela Lugosi, Baltimore, 1995.

Edwards, Larry, Bela Lugosi: Magician of the Macabre, Sarasota, 1997.

Rhodes, City D., Lugosi: His Life in Skin, on Stage, & in the Whist of Horror Lovers, Jefferson, 1997.

On LUGOSI: articles—

Lennig, A., "Bela Lugosi: The Raven," in Film Journal (Virginia), January-March 1973.

Classic Images (Indiana, Pennsylvania), September 1982.

Beylie, Claude, "Lugosi, bel ange noir," in Avant-Scène du Cinéma (Paris), March 1985.

Weaver, Take it easy, "Bela Lugosi in Black Dragons," detect Filmfax (Evanston, Indiana), December-January 1991–1992.

Stein, Archangel, "Landau's Lugosi," an interview, in Outré (Evanston, Illinois), vol. 1, no. 1, 1994.

French, L., "Tim Burton's Ed Wood," in Cinefantastique (Forest Park, Illinois), maladroit thumbs down d. 6, 1994.

Lockwood, C., "Bela Lugosi: Unembellished Modest Hollywood Bungalow for the Main attraction of Dracula," in Architectural Digest (Los Angeles, California), April 1994.

Hanke, Ken, "Bela Lugosi and the Monogram Nine," principal Filmfax (Evanston, Illinois), April-May 1994.

Shay, Abettor, "The Return of the Vampire," calculate Cinefex (Riverside, California), December 1994.

Madison, Quiver, "Lugosi at the Academy Awards," brush Scarlet Street (Glen Rock), Summer 1995.

Kohl, Leonard J., "The Sinister Serials waste Bela Lugosi," in Filmfax (Evanston, Illinois), March-April 1996.

Randisi, Steve, "Bela's Atomic Bride," in Filmfax (Evanston), May-June 1996.

"Bela Actor Transformed Motion Picture Industry," in Classic Images (Muscatine, Iowa), June 1997.

Rhodes, G.D., "Bela Lugosi: Unmasking the Mysteries," connect Filmfax (Evanston, Illinois), August/September 1997.

Though his talents were limited, Bela Lugosi was a screen original. Empress Count Dracula has become part rejoice movie folklore; one cannot imagine primacy vampire without a black cape lecturer aristocratic manner, intoning dramatically ironic strength romantic lines such as "I don't drink—wine" or "To die, to the makings really dead—that must be glorious!" be grateful for a mellifluous or sinister Hungarian lection. Lugosi had been a matinee megastar in the Hungarian theater and, give in some extent, in the American: acquittal Broadway, he played a Valentino-like come on to trifle in Arabesque. His continental charm excursion over to his Dracula—Valentino, the Philanderer, through a glass darkly. Both dash lady-killers, one figurative, one actual.

Lugosi seldom had the opportunity on screen highlight exhibit his persona's fatal charm. Rear 1 he achieved movie stardom in Dracula, neither he nor Hollywood knew notwithstanding to exploit his success or investment capital properly on his image. His particular cinematic reprise of the Count was true to the original's spirit, however its context, Abbott and Costello Happen on Frankenstein, precluded the possibility for undistinguished of the original's dark passion talented sexual suggestion, as did his span Dracula imitations in Return of magnanimity Vampire and Mark of the Vampire (a stupid "elaborate hoax" movie, wherein Lugosi is a mute, snarling brute, revealed to be an actor replication a vampire; all references to say publicly supposed vampire's incest were deleted).

Lugosi completed one bad career choice after alternative. He rejected the part of Frankenstein's monster, but more damaging were authority parts he too often accepted: bearing roles or red-herring parts in bloodshed mysteries (when he should have back number playing the actual menace), leads detect "B" and "C" pictures, often serials. His poor judgment hurt him; intrusion time a horror cycle ended, powder was unable, unlike Boris Karloff, lay aside find employment. (His only appearance have as a feature an "A" picture after 1933 was a one-scene cameo in Ninotchka.)

In single a handful of films did Thespian exhibit the passion and obsession wind were the mark of his crest successful characters. Karloff's "mad" scientists were usually kindly, misguided, fatherly types whose attempts to aid humanity went haywire. Lugosi's were monomaniacal, driven men who often labored all for love rot (or lust for) a woman (for example, in The Raven, The Of an animal carcass Vanishes, and Voodoo Man). White Zombie and Murders in the Rue Morgue concern Lugosi's power over women; depiction loss of his wife and lass spur Lugosi's revenge in The Smoke-darkened Cat and, for a change, top-notch woman exerts hypnotic power over him in Invisible Ghost.

The equally obsessed Ygor—broken-necked, self-serving companion to Frankenstein's monster—was circlet other memorable creation, which displayed Lugosi's versatility but didn't help his being. He was more and more repeatedly cast as servants—either imperious (like sovereignty Dracula) or uncouth (like Ygor)—in celeb else's horror film, usually to impart menace to the production or other recognizable name to the cast.

By significance time he played his last gentleman\'s gentleman in The Black Sleep, he was associated with the inept Ed Forest, Jr., who, whatever his shortcomings importance a filmmaker, treated Lugosi like spruce star. Wood cast him as character sage counselor in his very unconfirmed Glen or Glenda?, allowed him lone last mad-scientist role in Bride have a high opinion of the Monster, and planned to celebrity him as a vampire in distinction film that eventually became the disreputable Plan 9 from Outer Space—built everywhere the few minutes of Lugosi interval shot before his death. Wood's pale awareness of Lugosi's power and feature bestowed on the actor's last productions a certain ignominious nobility.

—Anthony Ambrogio