Elsa Lanchester

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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Filmography (113 Appearances)

Charmed Lives: A Family Romance

Upcoming (2028)

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

2018

Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film

2014

Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman

2007

The American Nightmare

2000

Universal Horror

1998

Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers

1993

Commercial Entertainment Product

1992

Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook

1991

Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies

1988

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

1983

Die Laughing

1980

Murder by Death

1976

Arnold

1973

Terror in the Wax Museum

1973

Willard

1971

Night Gallery

1970

Nanny and the Professor

1970

In Name Only

1969

My Dog, the Thief

1969

Then Came Bronson

1969

The Bill Cosby Show

1969

Me, Natalie

1969

Rascal

1969

Here's Lucy

1968

The Dick Cavett Show

1968

Blackbeard's Ghost

1968

Mannix

1967

Mondo Hollywood

1967

Easy Come, Easy Go

1967

That Darn Cat!

1965

The John Forsythe Show

1965

Mary Poppins

1964

Pajama Party

1964

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

1964

Honeymoon Hotel

1964

Burke's Law

1963

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

1962

The Merv Griffin Show

1962

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

1962

Noah and the Flood

1962

Ben Casey

1961

Follow the Sun

1961

Startime

1959

Adventures in Paradise

1959

Bell, Book and Candle

1958

Shirley Temple's Storybook

1958

Witness for the Prosecution

1957

Tonight Starring Jack Paar

1957

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show

1956

Alice in Wonderland

1955

The 20th Century Fox Hour

1955

Heidi

1955

The Glass Slipper

1955

3 Ring Circus

1954

The Wonderful World of Disney

1954

Hell's Half Acre

1954

The Girls of Pleasure Island

1953

General Electric Theater

1953

Androcles and the Lion

1952

Omnibus

1952

The Ford Television Theatre

1952

Les Miserables

1952

Dreamboat

1952

Hallmark Hall of Fame

1951

I Love Lucy

1951

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

1951

Frenchie

1950

Lux Video Theatre

1950

The Petty Girl

1950

Mystery Street

1950

Buccaneer's Girl

1950

Robert Montgomery Presents

1950

The Inspector General

1949

The Ed Wynn Show

1949

Come to the Stable

1949

The Secret Garden

1949

Studio One

1948

The Ed Sullivan Show

1948

The Big Clock

1948

The Bishop's Wife

1947

Northwest Outpost

1947

The Razor's Edge

1946

The Spiral Staircase

1946

Passport to Destiny

1944

Golden Globe Awards

1944

Lassie Come Home

1943

Thumbs Up

1943

Forever and a Day

1943

Tales of Manhattan

1942

Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake

1942

Ladies in Retirement

1941

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

1940

Vessel of Wrath

1938

Rembrandt

1936

The Ghost Goes West

1935

Bride of Frankenstein

1935

Naughty Marietta

1935

David Copperfield

1935

The Private Life of Henry VIII

1933

The Officers' Mess

1931

Potiphar's Wife

1931

The Stronger Sex

1931

The Love Habit

1931

Ashes

1930

Comets

1930

Mr. Smith Wakes Up

1929

Blue Bottles

1928

The Tonic

1928

Daydreams

1928

The Constant Nymph

1928

One of the Best

1927

The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama

1924 Debut
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