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Elsa Lanchester

Acting

Elsa Lanchester

EN cinema · 79 credits

Born

28 October 1902

Died

26 December 1986 (aged 84)

Birthplace

Lewisham, London, England, UK

Also known as Elsa Sullivan Lanchester · Elizabeth Lanchester Sullivan

Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (October 28, 1902 – December 26, 1986) was a British actress with a long career in theatre, film and television and former dancer. Lanchester studied dance as a child and after the First World War began performing in theatre and cabaret, where she established her career over the following decade. She met the actor Charles Laughton in 1927, and they were married two years later. She began playing small roles in British films, including the role of Anne of Cleves with Laughton in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933). Laughton's success in American films resulted in the couple moving to Hollywood, where Lanchester played small film roles. Her role as the bride in Bride of Frankenstein (1935), brought her recognition, and came to be one of the roles most closely associated with her throughout her life. Lanchester played supporting roles through the 1940s and 1950s. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Come to the Stable (1949) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957), the last of twelve films in which she appeared with Laughton. Following Laughton's death in 1962, Lanchester resumed her career with appearances in such Disney films as Mary Poppins (1964), That Darn Cat! (1965) and Blackbeard's Ghost (1968). The horror film, Willard, (1971) was highly successful and one of her last roles was in Murder By Death (1976). Description above from the Wikipedia article Elsa Lanchester, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia

Known for

Filmography

Charmed Lives: A Family Romance poster

Charmed Lives: A Family Romance

EN · 2028Not rated

as Self (archive footage)

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood poster

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

EN · 20186.0

as Self (archive footage)

Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film poster

Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film

EN · 20147.5

as Mary Shelley / The Monster's Mate (archive footage)

Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman poster

Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman

EN · 20079.0

as Self (archive footage)

The American Nightmare poster

The American Nightmare

EN · 20006.8

as Self

Universal Horror poster

Universal Horror

EN · 19987.1

as (archive footage)

Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers poster

Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers

EN · 19937.0

as Self

Commercial Entertainment Product poster

Commercial Entertainment Product

EN · 19928.7

as The Monster's Bride

Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook

1991

Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook

EN · 19916.2

as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate

Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies poster

Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies

EN · 1988Not rated

as (archive footage) (uncredited)

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage poster

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

EN · 19837.0

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

Die Laughing poster

Die Laughing

EN · 19804.6

as Sophie

Murder by Death poster

Murder by Death

EN · 19767.1

as Jessica Marbles

Arnold poster

Arnold

EN · 19735.3

as Hester

Terror in the Wax Museum poster

Terror in the Wax Museum

EN · 19735.2

as Julia Hawthorn

Willard poster

Willard

EN · 19716.1

as Henrietta Stiles

My Dog, the Thief poster

My Dog, the Thief

EN · 19696.8

as Mrs. Formby

Rascal poster

Rascal

EN · 19696.0

as Mrs. Satterfield

Me, Natalie poster

Me, Natalie

EN · 19695.6

as Miss Dennison

In Name Only poster

In Name Only

EN · 19697.0

as Gertrude Caruso

Blackbeard's Ghost poster

Blackbeard's Ghost

EN · 19686.7

as Emily Stowecroft

Easy Come, Easy Go poster

Easy Come, Easy Go

EN · 19676.0

as Madame Neherina

Mondo Hollywood poster

Mondo Hollywood

EN · 19676.7

Actor

That Darn Cat! poster

That Darn Cat!

EN · 19656.6

as Mrs. MacDougall

Mary Poppins poster

Mary Poppins

EN · 19647.6

as Katie Nanna

Pajama Party poster

Pajama Party

EN · 19645.1

as Aunt Wendy

Honeymoon Hotel poster

Honeymoon Hotel

EN · 19644.6

as Chambermaid

Noah and the Flood poster

Noah and the Flood

EN · 1962Not rated

as Noah's wife

Bell, Book and Candle poster

Bell, Book and Candle

EN · 19586.6

as Aunt Queenie Holroyd

Witness for the Prosecution poster

Witness for the Prosecution

EN · 19578.2

as Miss Plimsoll

The Glass Slipper poster

The Glass Slipper

EN · 19556.2

as Widow Sonder

Alice in Wonderland poster

Alice in Wonderland

EN · 19555.2

as Red Queen

Heidi poster

Heidi

EN · 1955Not rated

as Fräulein Rottenmeier

Hell's Half Acre poster

Hell's Half Acre

EN · 19545.5

as Lida O'Reilly

3 Ring Circus poster

3 Ring Circus

EN · 19545.6

as The Bearded Lady

The Girls of Pleasure Island poster

The Girls of Pleasure Island

EN · 19535.8

as Thelma

Androcles and the Lion poster

Androcles and the Lion

EN · 19525.9

as Megaera

Dreamboat poster

Dreamboat

EN · 19526.1

as Mathilda Coffey

Les Miserables poster

Les Miserables

EN · 19525.5

as Madame Magloire

Buccaneer's Girl poster

Buccaneer's Girl

EN · 19505.8

as Madame Brizar

Mystery Street poster

Mystery Street

EN · 19506.8

as Mrs. Smerrling

The Petty Girl poster

The Petty Girl

EN · 19504.3

as Dr. Crutcher

Frenchie poster

Frenchie

EN · 19506.0

as Countess

The Inspector General poster

The Inspector General

EN · 19496.7

as Maria

The Secret Garden poster

The Secret Garden

EN · 19497.0

as Martha

Come to the Stable poster

Come to the Stable

EN · 19496.8

as Amelia Potts

The Big Clock poster

The Big Clock

EN · 19487.3

as Louise Patterson

The Bishop's Wife poster

The Bishop's Wife

EN · 19477.1

as Matilda

Northwest Outpost poster

Northwest Outpost

EN · 19478.0

as Princess 'Tanya' Tatiana

The Spiral Staircase poster

The Spiral Staircase

EN · 19467.0

as Mrs. Oates

The Razor's Edge poster

The Razor's Edge

EN · 19466.9

as Miss Keith

Passport to Destiny poster

Passport to Destiny

EN · 19445.3

as Ella Muggins

Lassie Come Home poster

Lassie Come Home

EN · 19436.7

as Mrs. Helen Carraclough

Thumbs Up poster

Thumbs Up

EN · 19437.0

as Emily "Emmy" Ffinch

Forever and a Day poster

Forever and a Day

EN · 19437.5

as Mamie

Tales of Manhattan poster

Tales of Manhattan

EN · 19426.4

as Mrs. Smith

Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake poster

Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake

EN · 19427.2

as Bristol Isabel

Ladies in Retirement poster

Ladies in Retirement

EN · 19416.5

as Emily Creed

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards poster

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

EN · 19406.3

as Self

Vessel of Wrath poster

Vessel of Wrath

EN · 19386.9

as Martha Jones

Rembrandt poster

Rembrandt

EN · 19366.8

as Hendrickje Stoffels

Bride of Frankenstein poster

Bride of Frankenstein

EN · 19357.5

as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate

Naughty Marietta poster

Naughty Marietta

EN · 19355.5

as Madame d'Annard

The Ghost Goes West poster

The Ghost Goes West

EN · 19356.7

as Miss Shepperton

David Copperfield poster

David Copperfield

EN · 19356.7

as Clickett

The Private Life of Henry VIII poster

The Private Life of Henry VIII

EN · 19336.4

as Anne of Cleves

The Love Habit poster

The Love Habit

EN · 19318.0

as Matilde

Potiphar's Wife poster

Potiphar's Wife

EN · 19318.0

as Thérèse

The Stronger Sex poster

The Stronger Sex

EN · 193110.0

as Thompson

The Officers' Mess

1931

The Officers' Mess

EN · 19319.0

as Cora Melville

Ashes

1930

Ashes

EN · 193010.0

as Girl

Comets poster

Comets

EN · 19307.0

as Herself

Mr. Smith Wakes Up

1929

Mr. Smith Wakes Up

EN · 1929Not rated

as Their Daughter

Blue Bottles poster

Blue Bottles

EN · 19287.3

as Elsa

The Constant Nymph poster

The Constant Nymph

EN · 192810.0

as Lady

Daydreams poster

Daydreams

EN · 19289.0

as Elsa / Heroine in Dream Sequence

The Tonic poster

The Tonic

EN · 19288.5

as Elsa

One of the Best

1927

One of the Best

EN · 19279.0

as Kitty

The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama poster

The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama

EN · 1924Not rated

as Beatrice de Carolle