Elsa Lanchester
Born
October 28, 1902
Died
December 26, 1986 (84 years old)
Known For
Acting
Place of Birth
Lewisham, London, England, UK
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).
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Known For
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
Self (archive footage)
2018
Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film
Mary Shelley / The Monster's Mate (archive footage)
2014
Cinema's Exiles: From Hitler to Hollywood
Self (archive footage)
2009
Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman
Self (archive footage)
2007
The American Nightmare
Self
2000
Universal Horror
(archive footage)
1998
Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers
Self
1993
Commercial Entertainment Product
The Monster's Bride
1992
Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate
1991
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1983
Die Laughing
Sophie
1980
Murder by Death
Jessica Marbles
1976
Arnold
Hester
1973
Terror in the Wax Museum
Julia Hawthorn
1973
Willard
Henrietta Stiles
1971
Night Gallery
(1 episode)
1970
Nanny and the Professor
Aunt Henrietta · (3 episodes)
1970
In Name Only
Gertrude Caruso
1969
My Dog, the Thief
Mrs. Formby
1969
Then Came Bronson
(1 episode)
1969
The Bill Cosby Show
Mrs. Wochuk · (2 episodes)
1969
Me, Natalie
Miss Dennison
1969
Rascal
Mrs. Satterfield
1969
Here's Lucy
Mumsie Westcott · (1 episode)
1968
The Dick Cavett Show
Self - Guest · (2 episodes)
1968
Blackbeard's Ghost
Emily Stowecroft
1968
Mannix
Portia Penhaven · (1 episode)
1967
Mannix
Edna Barrington · (1 episode)
1967
Easy Come, Easy Go
Madame Neherina
1967
That Darn Cat!
Mrs. MacDougall
1965
The John Forsythe Show
Margaret Culver · (29 episodes)
1965
Mary Poppins
Katie Nanna
1964
Pajama Party
Aunt Wendy
1964
Honeymoon Hotel
Chambermaid
1964
Burke's Law
Mrs. Ormsby · (1 episode)
1963
Burke's Law
Bessie Mopes · (1 episode)
1963
The Merv Griffin Show
Self · (3 episodes)
1962
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self · (1 episode)
1962
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
Aggie McGregor · (1 episode)
1962
The Flood
Noah's wife
1962
Ben Casey
(1 episode)
1961
Follow the Sun
(1 episode)
1961
Adventures in Paradise
Miss Creshaw · (1 episode)
1959
Bell, Book and Candle
Aunt Queenie Holroyd
1958
Shirley Temple's Storybook
Mother Goose · (1 episode)
1958
Witness for the Prosecution
Miss Plimsoll
1957
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Self · (1 episode)
1957
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self · (1 episode)
1956
Alice in Wonderland
Red Queen
1955
The 20th Century Fox Hour
(1 episode)
1955
The Glass Slipper
Widow Sonder
1955
3 Ring Circus
The Bearded Lady
1954
The Wonderful World of Disney
Mrs. Formby · (1 episode)
1954
Hell's Half Acre
Lida O'Reilly
1954
The Girls of Pleasure Island
Thelma
1953
General Electric Theater
Hanna Winters · (1 episode)
1953
Androcles and the Lion
Megaera
1952
The Ford Television Theatre
Rosie Bowker · (1 episode)
1952
Les Miserables
Madame Magloire
1952
Dreamboat
Mathilda Coffey
1952
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Red Queen · (1 episode)
1951
I Love Lucy
Edna Grundy · (1 episode)
1951
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Betsey Monk, the Widow · (1 episode)
1951
Frenchie
Countess
1950
Lux Video Theatre
Emily · (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre
Miss Mabel · (1 episode)
1950
Star Time
Self · (1 episode)
1950
The Petty Girl
Dr. Crutcher
1950
Mystery Street
Mrs. Smerrling
1950
Buccaneer's Girl
Madame Brizar
1950
Robert Montgomery Presents
(1 episode)
1950
The Inspector General
Maria
1949
Come to the Stable
Amelia Potts
1949
The Secret Garden
Martha
1949
Studio One
Jenny Pratt · (1 episode)
1948
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self · (1 episode)
1948
The Big Clock
Louise Patterson
1948
The Bishop's Wife
Matilda
1947
Northwest Outpost
Princess 'Tanya' Tatiana
1947
The Razor's Edge
Miss Keith
1946
The Spiral Staircase
Mrs. Oates
1946
Passport to Destiny
Ella Muggins
1944
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Presenter · (1 episode)
1944
Lassie Come Home
Mrs. Helen Carraclough
1943
Thumbs Up
Emily "Emmy" Ffinch
1943
Forever and a Day
Mamie
1943
Tales of Manhattan
Elsa (Mrs Charles) Smith
1942
Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake
Bristol Isabel
1942
Ladies in Retirement
Emily Creed
1941
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
Self
1940
Vessel of Wrath
Martha Jones
1938
Rembrandt
Hendrickje Stoffels
1936
The Ghost Goes West
Miss Shepperton
1935
Bride of Frankenstein
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate
1935
Naughty Marietta
Madame d'Annard
1935
David Copperfield
Clickett
1935
The Private Life of Henry VIII
Anne of Cleves
1933
The Officers' Mess
Cora Melville
1931
Potiphar's Wife
Thérèse
1931
The Stronger Sex
Thompson
1931
The Love Habit
Matilde
1931
Ashes
1930
Comets
Herself
1930
Blue Bottles
Elsa
1928
Daydreams
Elsa / Heroine in Dream Sequence
1928
The Tonic
Elsa
1928
The Constant Nymph
Lady
1928
One of the Best
Kitty
1927
The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama
Beatrice de Carolle
1924