Post by Halloween11 on Jul 24, 2006 1:50:39 GMT -5
Birth name
Béla Ferenc Dezsõ Blaskó
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nickname
Adelbert
Adelbert (his Confirmation name)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Also Credited As: Arisztid Olt, Bela Ferenc Denzso Blasko, Bela Lugossy
Born: on 10/20/1882 in Lugos, Hungary
Died: 16-AUG-56.Job Titles: ActorFamily
Son: Bela G Lugosi. mother, Lillian Lugosi
Significant Others
Wife: Beatrice Woodruff Weeks. married and divorced in 1929
Wife: Hope Linniger. married in 1955 until his death in 1956
Wife: Ilona Szmik. married in 1917; divorced in 1920
Wife: Ilona von Montagh. married in 1921; divorced in 1924
Wife: Lillian Arch. married in 1933; divorced in 1953; mother of Lugosi's son
Companion: Clara Bow.
Education
Budapest Academy of Music and Arts, Budapest, Hungary
Superior Hungarian State Gymnasium, Lugos, Hungary
Milestones
1902 Began acting on stage in Dera, Hungary, under the name Bela Lugossy
1911 Appeared in stage productions in Hungary
1917 Screen debut (billed as Arisztid Olt) in "A Leopard"
1919 To avoid political trouble in Hungary, moved to Germany
1921 Immigrated to USA
1922 Made US stage debut in "The Red Poppy"
1922 Settled in NYC and formed the Hungarian Repertory Theatre
1923 US film debut in "The Silent Command"
1927 Enjoyed success on Broadway playing the title role in a stage adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel, "Dracula"
1931 Achieved star status in films playing the title role in Tod Browning's film, "Dracula"
1934 Appeared in the first of eight films which also featured noted horror star Boris Karloff, "The Black Cat"
1939 Had a cameo role in "Ninotchka"
1948 Played the role of Dracula for a second and final time in "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein"
1953 First of three films for director Edward D Wood Jr "Glen or Glenda?"
1956 Last film, "Plan 9 from Outer Space", directed by Wood; died during production; a double, keeping his face partly covered with a cape, stood in for Lugosi in several scenes
1994 Portrayed by Martin Landau (who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar) in the biopic "Ed Wood"
Acted primarily in B films during the 1940s for Universal and such "poverty-row" studios as Monogram and PRC
Starred in the Broadway play "Arabesque"
Was a member of the National Theatre of Hungary
Was prescribed morphine treatments for shooting pains in his legs in the late 1930s; became accidentally addicted to morphine and later methadone (which he first took as a cure for his first addiction) for over two decades
Worked in the German film industry as an actor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Height
6' 1" (1.85 m)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mini biography
Born Be'la Ferenc Dezso Blasko on October 20, 1882, Lugos, Hungary. The youngest of four children. During WWI, volunteered and was commissioned as an infantry lieutenant. Wounded three times. Married Ilona Szmik (1917 - 1920) Arrived in New York City in December, 1920. Married Ilona von Montagh (? - ?) Became an American citizen 1931. Married Lillian Arch (1933 - 1951) Father of Bela Legosi Jr. (1938 - ?). Helped organize the Screen Actors Guild in the mid-30's, joining as member number 28. Died of a heart attack August 16, 1956. Buried in his full Dracula costume, including a cape.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's ironic that Martin Landau won an Oscar for impersonating Bela Lugosi (in Ed Wood (1994)) when Lugosi himself never came within a mile of one, but that's just the latest of many sad ironies surrounding Lugosi's career. A distinguished stage actor in his native Hungary, he ended up a drug-addicted pauper in Hollywood, thanks largely to typecasting brought about by his most famous role. He began his stage career in 1901 and started appearing in films during World War I, fleeing to Germany in 1919 as a result of his left-wing political activity (he organized an actors' union). In 1920 he emigrated to the US and made a living as a character actor, shooting to fame when he played Count Dracula in the legendary 1927 Broadway stage adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel. It ran for three years, and was subsequently, and memorably, filmed by Tod Browning in 1931, establishing Lugosi as one of the screen's greatest personifications of pure evil. Sadly, his reputation rapidly declined, mainly because he was only too happy to accept any part (and script) handed to him, and ended up playing pathetic parodies of his greatest role, in low-grade poverty row shockers. He ended his career working for the legendary Worst Director of All Time, 'Edward D.Wood Jr.' . He was buried in his Dracula cape.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Spouse
Hope Lininger (25 August 1955 - 16 August 1956) (his death)
Lillian Arch (1933 - 17 July 1953) (divorced) 1 child
Beatrice Weeks (29 September 1929 - 2 October 1929) (divorced)
Ilona von Montagh (September 1921 - February 1924) (divorced)
Ilona Szmik (25 June 1917 - 1920)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trivia
According to Vincent Price, when he and Peter Lorre went to view Bela's body during Bela's funeral, Lorre, upon seeing Lugosi dressed in his famous Dracula cape, quipped, "Do you think we should drive a stake through his heart just in case?" (Neither was actually at Lugosi's funeral.)
Born in Lugos, Hungary, from which he derived his eventual professional surname.
Father was a banker.
His son, Bela Lugosi Jr., practices law in Los Angeles, California (1995).
Interred at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California, USA. Specific Interment Location: Grotto, L120, 1.
Were it not for his death, Lon Chaney, rather than Lugosi, would have been the director Tod Browning's choice for the starring role in _Dracula (1931/I)_ .
On the set, he camouflaged his drug addiction by sipping burgundy.
Contrary to popular belief, he and Boris Karloff did not hate each other, as the famous scene from Ed Wood (1994) would lead one to believe. Both men's children have said that the only rivalry that existed between them is when they were both up for the same parts, and in reality, Lugosi and Karloff had almost no relationship off-set. However, near the sad end of his life, Lugosi allegedly had some morphine-addled fantasies that Karloff was a boogie man out to get him.
He was one of the charter members of the Screen Actors Guild. He was SAG member #23.
In 1929, he married a wealthy San Francisco widow named Beatrice Weeks, a union which lasted all of three days; their divorce named Clara Bow as the "other woman" - it was a media sensation and launched him into national notoriety.
Pictured on one of a set of five 32¢ US commemorative postage stamps, issued 30 September 1997, celebrating "Famous Movie Monsters". He is shown as the title character in _Dracula (1931/I)_ . Other actors honored in this set of stamps, and the classic monsters they portray, are Lon Chaney as The Phantom of the Opera (1925); Lon Chaney Jr. as The Wolf Man (1941); and Boris Karloff on two stamps as The Mummy (1932) and the monster in Frankenstein (1931).
Long, extensive classical career in Hungary including roles in Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Taming of the Shrew and Richard III.
His first stage role in the US was "The Red Poppy". Unable to speak English, he was forced to learn the role by rote. He was rewarded with excellent reviews and earned his first US film role, a villainous part in The Silent Command (1923) as a result.
At the time of his death, Lugosi was in such poor financial straits that Frank Sinatra quietly paid for his funeral.
He performed in live-action reference footage for the "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence of Walt Disney's Fantasia (1940). He was, of course, the demon.
His Los Angeles home was purchased by Johnny Depp, the actor who portrayed his friend Edward D. Wood Jr. in the film Ed Wood (1994).
Further immortalized in the song "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus, which was featured in The Hunger (1983), and went on to become a dancefloor mainstay at goth dance clubs in the 1980s. The lyrics of the song described him in his Dracula costume, along with "Undead! Undead! Undead!" being chanted during the song's chorus.
His performance in Tod Browning's _Dracula (1931/I)_ created such a sensation that he reportedly received more fan mail from females than even Clark Gable.
His name had become such as asset that various studios would give him prominent billing even when he was playing such supporting roles as butlers as he did in Columbia's Night of Terror (1933), Fox's The Gorilla (1939), Universal's Night Monster (1942) and Paramount's One Body Too Many (1944).
Is portrayed by Martin Landau in Ed Wood (1994)
In his collaborations with Boris Karloff at Universal, it was Karloff who always got top billing. When these same films were released as part of a DVD box set in 2005, Universal chose to market them as "The Bela Lugosi Collection."
He still spoke very little English by the time he shot Dracula (1931) and most of his lines were ones he had learned phonetically for the play the film was based on, which also starred Lugosi. It was another 2 years before he was fluent in English, even though he continued to shoot other films in the meantime.
"Every producer in Hollywood had set me down as a type. I was both amused and disappointed."
"I'd like to quit the supernatural roles and play just an interesting, down-to-earth person."
"I'll be truthful. The weekly paycheck is the most important thing to me."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personal quotes
"I guess I'm pretty much of a lone wolf. I don't say I don't like people at all but, to tell you the truth I only like it then if I have a chance to look deep into their hearts and their minds"
"I am Count Dracula!"
To director Edward D. Wood Jr., on the set of one of his legendary turkeys] "This is the most uncomfortable coffin I've ever been in."
"Circumstances made me the theatrical personality I am, which many people believe is also a part of my personal life."
"Every producer in Hollywood had set me down as a type. I was both amused and disappointed."
"I'd like to quit the supernatural roles and play just an interesting, down-to-earth person."
"I'll be truthful. The weekly paycheck is the most important thing to me."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Salary
Glen or Glenda (1953) $1,000
Mother Riley Meets the Vampire (1952) $5,000
Genius at Work (1946) $5,000
The Body Snatcher (1945) $3,000
The Return of the Vampire (1944) $3,500
You'll Find Out (1940) $3,750
Son of Frankenstein (1939) $4,000
S.O.S. Coast Guard (1937) $1,500
Postal Inspector (1936) $5,000
The Invisible Ray (1936) $4,000
The Raven (1935) $5,000
The Mystery of the Marie Celeste (1935) $10,000
Mark of the Vampire (1935) $3,000
Gift of Gab (1934) $250
The Black Cat (1934) $3,000
White Zombie (1932) $800
More To Come