After playing small parts on the stage in his native hungary, lugosi gained his first role in a film in 1917. Dracula 1931, mark of the vampire 1935, return of the vampire 1944 and abbott and costello meet frankenstein. Bela ferenc dezso blasko was born in lugos, hungary on october 20, 1882. Produced by universal, the screenplay is based on the 1924 stage play dracula by hamilton deane and john l. Photo of bela lugosi dracula for fans of universal monsters 11054036 an example of a typical scary old movie would be dracula which was released by universal studios and stars bela lugosi as dracula himself. Following this films success, he suffered severely from typecasting and the limitations of his heavy native accent, and spent the vast bulk of his.
Dracula the restored version although there have been numerous screen versions of bram stokers classic tale, none is more enduring than the 1931 original. Dracula is so full of quotable lines, especially from bela lugosi, practically the entire movie is a collection of famous quotes. Bela lugosi 20 october 1882 16 august 1956 was a hungarian actor born in lugoj, austria hungary in 1882. He sabotaged his own auditions, he destroyed his marriages, he wasted money faster than he could make it, and he spent the last 20 years of his life in the thrall of morphine addiction. But the movie is regarded as a classic movie from that period. Ever since dracula was first released in 1931, bela lugosis incarnation of the infamous count has become the most iconic. Bela lugosis most famous character, dracula, may have ultimately been the reason why his horror career lagged behind karloffs. Dracula is a 1931 vampirehorror film directed by tod browning and starring bela lugosi as the title character.
During wwi, he volunteered and was commissioned as an infantry lieutenant, and was wounded three times. In lugosis own scrapbook, richard sheffield saw a photograph from that movie showing lugosi as a clown alongside star lon chaney sr. While filming dracula, universal decided to start its next project which became frankenstein. Robert segedy counts down his choices of the greatest bela lugosi movies. Much like that of the vampire he brought to life, bela lugosi s story is a fascinating one. Bela ferenc dezso blasko, known professionally as bela lugosi, was a hungarianamerican actor best remembered for portraying count dracula in the 1931 film and for his roles in other horror films. Lugosi s dracula has been homaged and parodied for years, but above all else, his dracula has done what his character does best, survive. He had been playing small parts on the stage in his native hungary before making his first film in 1917, but had to leave the country after the failed hungarian. May 30, 2017 the trailer of dracula with bela lugosi playing count dracula bela lugosi worked as a stage and screen actor in his native country where he worked with director mihaly kertese who later became michael curtiz, before moving to berlin and finally making his way to america to work as an actor on stage and screen on the east coast. Bela lugosis movements when he attacks and the light across his eyes must have really scared the daylights out of the 1930s audience, today its almost humorous. Lugosi continued to work as an actor throughout his life, but he never escaped the influence of count dracula on. Balderston, which in turn is based on the novel dracula by bram stoker. More than just a horror story, the novel also explores themes of xenophobia and sexism. Dracula was the film that turned lugosi into a horror film icon.
The famous horror actor bela lugosi was well known for his portrayal as dracula. Bela lugosi may well be dead, but his cinematic legacy just cant be killed. Bela lugosi is the dracula and will always portray the caped vampire so well. This featurelength biography on the life and career of bela lugosi includes hours of rare and exclusive original footage and interviews, plus a bonus audio disc of various lugosi recordings. His success led to a career in horror movies, in which he often costarred with boris karloff. If a mob waving pitchforks found where he was at, he opened his cape and flew off like a bat. With bela lugosi, helen chandler, david manners, dwight frye. Bela lugosi became known as the face of dracula after his iconic appearance as the famous vampire in the 1931 film adaptation of bram stokers classic novel. Universal released a newly restored version of the film in 1999 that included a musical.
Despite the static nature of the final scenes, dracula is a classic among horror films, with bela lugosi giving the performance of a lifetime as the. Much like that of the vampire he brought to life, bela lugosis story is a fascinating one. The ancient vampire count dracula arrives in england and begins to prey upon the virtuous young mina. Movie lore has it that bela lugosi could barely speak english when he was chosen by universal pictures to star in dracula 1931.
Lugosis dracula has been homaged and parodied for years, but above all else, his dracula has done what his character does best, survive. No, it was during a season in the late 1960s of universal horror films that itv showed in my local region every friday night. Lugosis portrayal of the titular vampire is one of the bestknown performances in horror movie history. Moviedoms archetypal dracula, bela lugosi will always be remembered as the father of horror movies. Hollywoods dracula uncovers the life and career of legendary actor bela lugosi, examining his early life in hungary and germany through his. The film was produced by universal and is based on the 1924 stage play dracula by hamilton deane and john l. It is bela lugosis most famous and enduring role, and he is the reason the film is a classic. Bela lugosis performance as the vampire count dracula is widely acknowledged as the definitive portrayal of the character, who first appeared in bram stokers novel of. Bela lugosis timeless portrayal of dracula in this creepy and.
He had to leave the country after the failed hungarian communist revolution of 1919 because of his socialist activism. Dracula trailer directed by tod browning and karl freund and starring bela lugosi helen chandler david manners dwight frye and edward van sloan the legend of vampire count dracula begins here. Bela lugosi, hungarianborn motionpicture actor who was most famous for his sinister portrayal of the elegantly mannered vampire count dracula. He and the play were an instant success, so much so that when universal were casting the film version. When universal pictures decided to film dracula 1931, he had to campaign vigorously for the opportunity to get the same role. More than any other actor in film history, lugosi is the master of the macabre, the king of the vampires, and the cult hero of horror movies. Bela lugosi never wore fangs in his performances as count dracula. The united states film he who gets slapped mgm, 1924 is another questionable lugosi film. Unfortunately, it also typecast him as a villain, and though he had a prolific career. Dracula 1931 1931, directed by tod browning, starring bela lugosi, helen chandler, david manners, dwight frye, edward van sloan its the late 1920s.
October 20, 1882august 16, 1956 is best known for his role in the stage and screen productions of dracula. He fled during the hungarian revolution of 1919 and appeared in several films made in germany. Clarence sinclair bulljohn kobal foundationgetty images. Lugosi became the first actor to be cast as the monster and he wished to create his own makeup, however his design was rejected. Dracula trailer directed by tod browning and karl freund and starring bela lugosi helen chandler david manners dwight frye and edward. Balderston, which in turn is loosely based on the novel dracula by bram stoker.
And it is the version that has stayed in my mind the most. So it boils down to if one want a longer, more elaborate and visually detailed story or if you want the magnetism of bela lugosi. Lugosi and dracula are inseparable images from the heyday of hollywood. Dracula was released in 1931 and starred bela lugosi as dracula. Bela lugosi was a hungarianamerican actor famous for his roles in several horror films, especially count dracula in the 1931 film. Han kom fran en bondeslakt, men hans far hade brutit med familjetraditionen och blivit chef for stadens enda bank. The director of the film, tod browning, based the movie on bram stokers book of the same name, but universal studios made several changes to his literary work. At the peak of his career in the early 30s, actor bela lugosi was the screens most notorious personification of evil. He acted in several films in weimar germany before arriving in the. But he died as dracula was going into production, and the mysterious. The 1931 dracula, actually helped pull universal out of major financial disaster. Lon chaney had been scheduled to play the role, a wise casting decision after his success in the silent classics the hunchback of notre dame and the phantom of the opera.
Although bela lugosi was a muchlauded actor in hungary, where he was born in 1882, his emigration to the. He also saw a second photograph of a large group of clowns, one of which looked like lugosi. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the vampire dracula both in the 1926 play as well as the 1931 film by universal pictures. Bela lugosi 10 stars who died during the filming of a. Oct 20, 2017 bela lugosi may well be dead, but his cinematic legacy just cant be killed. May 07, 2019 moviedoms archetypal dracula, bela lugosi will always be remembered as the father of horror movies.
Dracula 1931 by michael arruda welcome to another edition of memorable movie quotes. Bela lugosi and boris karloff appear together in eight films. Bela lugosis performance as the vampire count dracula is widely acknowledged as the definitive portrayal of the character, who first appeared in bram stokers novel of the same name. Starting out with small roles on stage, he first appeared in the 1917 hungarian film the colonel. Bela lugosi as dracula 1931 film movie horror movies classic monsters vampire vampires bats blood halloween born today was bela lugosi. Dracula 910 movie clip dracula and van helsing 1931 hd. The ominous portrayal of count dracula by bela lugosi, combined with horror specialist director tod browning, help to create the films eerie. Oct 18, 2019 bela lugosi became known as the face of dracula after his iconic appearance as the famous vampire in the 1931 film adaptation of bram stokers classic novel. Dracula is held in such high regard, in nostalgic reverence. Universal studios film dracula opened on february 12, 1931 at the roxy theatre in new york and on february 14, 1931 throughout the u. He originated the role on broadway in 1927 and reprised it for the 1931 film. Today we look at some memorable lines from the classic horror movie, dracula 1931. As people keep saying about this alternatelanguage spanish version of dracula 31. Dracula, american horror film, released in 1931, that is considered one of the early classics of the genre.
Oct 29, 20 the real sad part is that universal never made a sequel to this movie. This viewing did not occur in 1931 i hasten to add. Long before dracula 1931, shots of bela lugosis hypnotic eyes in extreme closeup were often used in his films, including sklaven fremden willens 1920, the silent command 1923 and, later, more famously in white zombie 1932. Sep 27, 2019 one of the earliest films in universal studios classic monster movies series was dracula.
The voice, the clothes, the mannerisms, its all become part of pop culture. The 1931 universal film of dracula, with bela lugosis classic interpretation of the count, was the first version of dracula that i ever saw. The gold standard of cinematic vampires, the very image of his version of dracula transcends time, source material, and even his own death in relative obscurity to create the nexus of the genre. The ominous portrayal of count dracula by bela lugosi, combined with horror specialist director tod browning, help to create the films eerie mood. Balderston, which in turn is adapted from the novel dracula by bram stoker. Lugosi was typecast as the foreignborn vampire and had a difficult time proving to hollywood directors that he could break out of this mold. The real sad part is that universal never made a sequel to this movie. Long before dracula 1931, shots of bela lugosi s hypnotic eyes in extreme closeup were often used in his films, including sklaven fremden willens 1920, the silent command 1923 and, later, more famously in white zombie 1932. Lugosi was wounded in service of his country during world war i.
Its a better shot film then the tod browning version, but its really lacks a real dracula like bela lugosi. This film is perfect to watch all year round and each time brings new thrills to the scenes. But for all his memorable scary work on the screen, he had many demons in real life. I love the gothic themes that surrounds the sets and the dialogue is perfect.
The film stars bela lugosi as count dracula, a vampire who emigrates from transylvania to england and preys upon the blood of living victims, including a. Bela ferenc dezso blasko known professionally as bela lugosi was a. Dracula is a 1931 american precode vampire horror film directed by tod browning and starring bela lugosi as count dracula. Lugosi as count mora for the mgm film mark of the vampire in 1935, after his stage and film success as dracula. Bela lugosi foddes bela ferenc dezso 1882 i lugos som det fjarde och yngsta barnet till istvan och paula blasko.
Nov 10, 2018 bela lugosi born bela ferenc dezso blasko. Greg mank, author of its alive and karloff and lugosi. The ominous portrayal of count dracula by bela lugosi, combined with horror specialist director tod browning, help to create the film s eerie mood. Bela lugosi, an imposing figure at 61, piercing blue eyes and hungarian accent, was born to play dracula and in 1927 he starred in the title role on broadway in dracula the vampire play. Bela lugosi s movements when he attacks and the light across his eyes must have really scared the daylights out of the 1930s audience, today its almost humorous. He sabotaged his own auditions, he destroyed his marriages, he wasted money faster than he could make it, and he spent the last 20 years of his life in the thrall of morphine. It was selected for preservation in the united states national film registry by the library of. The ancient vampire count dracula arrives in england and begins to prey upon the. After some minor film roles through the 20s already typecast as villains and a successful stage career where he often played romantic and heroic characters, lugosi achieved his starmaking role as count dracula in hamilton deane and john l. Feb 26, 2020 ever since dracula was first released in 1931, bela lugosi s incarnation of the infamous count has become the most iconic.