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Elsa Lanchester (October 28, 1902 - December 26, 1986 in Woodland Hills, California) was an Oscar-nominated English character actress who became an American citizen in 1950 along with her husband the actor Charles Laughton. A gifted and funny actress, she is best remembered for her role as the monster's wife in Bride of Frankenstein (1935). .

Early life

Lanchester was born Elizabeth Sullivan in London, England. Her parents, James Sullivan and Edith Lanchester, were considered Bohemians in all aspects of the word, save the aspect of actually coming from the western Czech lands, refusing to legalize their union in any conventional way to satisfy the era's conservative society. Edith's parents even successfully sent her to an asylum for a while, as she refused to wed James even if she wanted to live with him. An older sibling, Waldo, completed the family.

As a child, Elsa studied dance in Paris under Isadora Duncan, whom she disliked. When the school was discontinued due to the start of First World War she returned to England. At that point (she was about twelve years of age) she considered herself capable to teach dancing in the Isadora Duncan style (despite her own scathing remarks about her former teacher's style) and, very enterprisingly, started to give classes to children of her South London neighbourhood, whith which she earned a welcome bit of extra income in her household.

Career

Lanchester married actor Charles Laughton in 1929, and one of her first screen appearances was opposite him in The Private Life of Henry VIII (as a highly comical Anne of Cleves). This and other appearances in British films helped her gain the title role in Bride of Frankenstein (1935).

She appeared again with her husband in the screen version of Agatha Christie's play Witness for the Prosecution (1957), for which both received Academy Award nominations. She, for Best Supporting Actress, and Laughton for Best Actor. Neither won. However, Lanchester did win the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress for the film. Lanchester was previously nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, for Come to the Stable, in 1950.

Lanchester is also known for her appearances in a few Walt Disney films including: Mary Poppins, That Darn Cat! and Blackbeard's Ghost.

Lanchester continued to act, making occasional film appearances such as the departing nanny, Katie Nanna, in the opening scenes of Mary Poppins, the mother in the original version of Willard and a sleuth based on 'Jane Marple' in the 1976 murder mystery spoof, Murder by Death.

Private life

Following Laughton's death in 1962, she wrote a book alleging that they never had children because Laughton was actually a homosexual. Actress Maureen O'Hara, a friend and co-star of Laughton, firmly refuted this. She claimed that Laughton had told her that his biggest regret was never having had children of his own. He also told her that the reason he and his wife never had children was because of a botched abortion she had early in her career while performing burlesque, though there is no evidence to support this assertion either.

She died on Dec 26, 1986 from pneumonia.

Partial filmography

• The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933)
• David Copperfield (1935)
• The Ghost Goes West (1935)
• The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
• Rembrandt (1937)
• Ladies in Retirement (1941)
• Tales of Manhattan (1942)
• Forever and a Day (1943)
• The Spiral Staircase (1946)
• The Razor's Edge (1946)
• Northwest Outpost (1947)
• The Big Clock (1948)
• Come to the Stable (1949)
• The Secret Garden (1949)
• The Inspector General (1949)
• Buccaneer's Girl (1949)
• Mystery Street (1950)
• Girl of the Year (1950)
• Frenchie (1950)
• Dreamboat (1952)
• 3 Ring Circus (1954)
• Hell's Half Acre (1934)
• Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
• Bell, Book and Candle (1958)
• Mary Poppins (1964)
• That Darn Cat! (1965)
• Blackbeard's Ghost (1968)
• Rascal (1969)
• My Dog, the Thief (TV) (1969)
• Willard (1971)
• Terror in the Wax Museum (1973)
• Arnold (1973)
• Murder by Death (1975)
• Die Laughing (1980)

External links

• Obituary
• Cult Sirens: Elsa Lanchester

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