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Elsa Lanchester (1902–1986)

Actress | Soundtrack

Elsa Sullivan Lanchester was born into an unconventional a family at the turn of the 20th century. Her parents, James "Shamus" Sullivan and Edith "Biddy" Lanchester, were socialists - very active members of the Social Democratic Federation (SDF) in a rather broad sense and did not believe in the institution of marriage and being tied to any conventions of legality for that matter... See full bio »

Born:

Elizabeth Lanchester Sullivan
in Lewisham, London, England, UK

Died:

(age 84) in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA
Still of Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester in Witness for the Prosecution Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, Ernesst Thesiger, BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, Universal, 1935, **I.V. Still of Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester in Witness for the Prosecution
9 photos | 19 videos | 84 news articles »

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92YTribeca Tribute to Bride of Frankenstein star Elsa Lanchester!
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Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination See more awards »

Known For


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Filmography

Hide HideActress (96 titles)
1980 Die Laughing
Sophie
 
1979 Where's Poppa? (TV movie)
Momma Hocheiser
 
1976 Murder by Death
Jessica Marbles
 
1973 Arnold
Hester
 
1973 Terror in the Wax Museum
Julia Hawthorn
 
1973 Here's Lucy (TV series)
Mumsie Westcott
– Lucy Goes to Prison (1973) … Mumsie Westcott
 
1972-1973 Mannix (TV series)
Edna Barrington / Portia Penhaven
– A Matter of Principle (1973) … Portia Penhaven
– Death Is the Fifth Gear (1972) … Edna Barrington
 
1972 Rod Serling's Night Gallery (TV series)
Lydia Bowen
– Green Fingers/The Funeral/The Tune in Dan's Cafe (1972) … Lydia Bowen
 
1971 Nanny and the Professor (TV series)
Aunt Henrietta
– Aunt Henrietta and the Poltergeist (1971) … Aunt Henrietta
– Aunt Henrietta and the Jinx (1971) … Aunt Henrietta
– Aunt Henrietta's Premonition (1971) … Aunt Henrietta
 
1971 Willard
Henrietta Stiles
 
1970-1971 The Bill Cosby Show (TV series)
Mrs. Wochuk
– The Power of a Tree (1971) … Mrs. Wochuk
– The Elevator Doesn't Stop Here Anymore (1970) … Mrs. Wochuk
 
1969 It Takes a Thief (TV series)
Miss Mollie Taylor
– The Old Who Came in from the Spy (1969) … Miss Mollie Taylor
 
1969 In Name Only (TV movie)
Gertrude Caruso
 
1969 Then Came Bronson (TV series)
Hattie Calter
– The Circle of Time (1969) … Hattie Calter
 
1969 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (TV series)
Mrs. Formby
– My Dog, the Thief: Part 2 (1969) … Mrs. Formby
– My Dog, the Thief: Part 1 (1969) … Mrs. Formby
 
1969 Me, Natalie
Miss Dennison
 
1969 Rascal
Mrs. Satterfield
 
1968 Blackbeard's Ghost
Emily Stowecroft
 
1968 Off to See the Wizard (TV series)
Widow Sonder
– Cinderella's Glass Slipper: Part 1 (1968) … Widow Sonder
 
1967 Easy Come, Easy Go
Madame Neherina
 
1965-1966 The John Forsythe Show (TV series)
Margaret Culver / Miss Margaret Culver / Miss Culver
– Get Me to the Execution on Time (1966) … Miss Margaret Culver
– From Russia with Chaos (1966) … Miss Margaret Culver
– Doctor Soo (1966) … Miss Margaret Culver
– If I Were a Prince (1966) … Miss Margaret Culver
– It Takes a Heap of Sergeants (1966) … Miss Margaret Culver
See all 29 episodes »
 
1965 That Darn Cat!
Mrs. William MacDougall
 
1965 Slattery's People (TV series)
Louella Woodward
– Question: What's a Swan Song for a Sparrow? (1965) … Louella Woodward
 
1965 The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (TV series)
Dr. Agnes Dabree
– The Brain-Killer Affair (1965) … Dr. Agnes Dabree
 
1965 Ben Casey (TV series)
Mrs. Miriam Crain
– A Boy Is Standing Outside the Door (1965) … Mrs. Miriam Crain
 
1964 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (TV series)
Aggie McGregor
– The McGregor Affair (1964) … Aggie McGregor
 
1964 Pajama Party
Aunt Wendy
 
1963-1964 Burke's Law (TV series)
Bessie Mopes / Mrs. Ormsby
– Who Killed Cassandra Cass? (1964) … Bessie Mopes
– Who Killed Eleanora Davis? (1963) … Mrs. Ormsby
 
1964 Mary Poppins
Katie Nanna
 
1964 Honeymoon Hotel
Chambermaid
 
1964 The Eleventh Hour (TV series)
Mrs. Dalrymple
– A Full Moon Every Night (1964) … Mrs. Dalrymple
 
1962 The Flood (TV movie)
Noah's Wife (voice)
 
1962 Follow the Sun (TV series)
Lilli St. John
– A Ghost in Her Gazebo (1962) … Lilli St. John
 
1961 The Dick Powell Theatre (TV series)
Naomi Griswald
– The Fifth Caller (1961) … Naomi Griswald
 
1961 G.E. True Theater (TV series)
Hanna Winters
– Cat in the Cradle (1961) … Hanna Winters
 
1960 Adventures in Paradise (TV series)
Miss Creshaw
– The Intruders (1960) … Miss Creshaw
 
1958 Shirley Temple's Storybook (TV series)
Mother Goose
– Mother Goose (1958) … Mother Goose
 
1958 Bell Book and Candle
Aunt Queenie Holroyd
 
1957 Witness for the Prosecution
Miss Plimsoll
 
1956 Robert Montgomery Presents (TV series)
– Miracle at Lensham (1956)
 
1956 I Love Lucy (TV series)
Mrs. Edna Grundy
– Off to Florida (1956) … Mrs. Edna Grundy
 
1956 The 20th Century-Fox Hour (TV series)
Ida Perkins
– Stranger in the Night (1956) … Ida Perkins
 
1954-1956 Lux Video Theatre (TV series)
Emily / Miss Mabel
– Miss Mabel (1956) … Miss Mabel
– Ladies in Retirement (1954) … Emily
 
1956 Shower of Stars (TV series)
Mrs. Zooker
– The Flattering World (1956) … Mrs. Zooker
 
1955 Alice in Wonderland (TV movie)
Red Queen
 
1955 The Best of Broadway (TV series)
Mrs. Orcutt
– Stage Door (1955) … Mrs. Orcutt
 
1955 The Ford Television Theatre (TV series)
Rosie Bowker
– Hanrahan (1955) … Rosie Bowker
 
1955 The Glass Slipper
Widow Sonder
 
1954 3 Ring Circus
The Bearded Lady
 
1954 Hell's Half Acre
Lida O'Reilly
 
1953 Schlitz Playhouse (TV series)
Betsey Monk, the Widow
– The Baker of Barnbury (1953) … Betsey Monk, the Widow
 
1953 Studio One in Hollywood (TV series)
– Music and Mrs. Pratt (1953)
 
1953 The Girls of Pleasure Island
Thelma
 
1952 Androcles and the Lion
Megaera
 
1952 Les Miserables
Madame Magloire
 
1952 Dreamboat
Dr. Mathilda Coffey
 
1950 Frenchie
Countess
 
1950 The Petty Girl
Dr. Crutcher
 
1950 Mystery Street
Mrs. Smerrling
 
1950 Buccaneer's Girl
Mme. Brizar
 
1949 The Inspector General
Maria
 
1949 Come to the Stable
Amelia Potts
 
1949 The Secret Garden
Martha
 
1948 The Big Clock
Louise Patterson
 
1947 The Bishop's Wife
Matilda
 
1947 Northwest Outpost
Princess 'Tanya' Tatiana
 
1946 The Razor's Edge
Miss Keith
 
1945 The Spiral Staircase
Mrs. Oates
 
1944 Passport to Destiny
Ella Muggins
 
1943 Lassie Come Home
Mrs. Carraclough
 
1943 Thumbs Up
Emma Finch
 
1943 Forever and a Day
Mamie
 
1942 Tales of Manhattan
Elsa (Mrs Charles) Smith
 
1942 Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake
Bristol Isabel
 
1941 Ladies in Retirement
Emily Creed
 
1938 The Beachcomber
Martha Jones
 
1936 Rembrandt
Hendrickje Stoffels
 
1936 Miss Bracegirdle Does Her Duty (short)
Millicent Bracegirdle
 
1935 The Ghost Goes West
Miss Shepperton
 
1935 The Bride of Frankenstein
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (as ?) / The Monster's Bride (as ?)
 
1935 Naughty Marietta
Madame d'Annard
 
1935 David Copperfield
Clickett
 
1934 The Private Life of Don Juan
Maid (uncredited)
 
1933 The Private Life of Henry VIII.
Anne of Cleves The Fourth Wife
 
1931 The Officers' Mess
Cora Melville
 
1931 The Love Habit
Mathilde
 
1931 The Stronger Sex
Thompson
 
1931 Potiphar's Wife
Therese
 
1930 Ashes (short)
Girl
 
1929 Mr. Smith Wakes Up (short)
 
1928 The Tonic (short)
Elsa
 
1928 Daydreams (short)
Elsa/Heroine in Dream Sequence
 
1928 Blue Bottles (short)
Elsa
 
1928 The Constant Nymph
Lady
 
1927 One of the Best
Kitty
 
1925 The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama (short)
Beatrice de Carolle
 
Show ShowSoundtrack (5 titles)
1968 Blackbeard's Ghost (performer: "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" - uncredited)
 
1967 Easy Come, Easy Go (performer: "Yoga Is As Yoga Does")
 
1960 Startime (TV series)
– Academy Award Songs (1960) (performer: "Baby, It's Cold Outside" - uncredited)
 
1950 The Ed Wynn Show (TV series)
– Episode #1.23 (1950) (performer: "The Maharani of Squat")
 
1946 The Razor's Edge (performer: "Loch Lomond" - uncredited)
 
Show ShowSelf (22 titles)
1993 Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers (documentary)
Herself
 
1984 Terror in the Aisles (documentary)
 
1978 Hollywood Greats (TV series documentary)
Herself
– Charles Laughton (1978) … Herself
 
1972 The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (TV series)
Herself
– Episode dated 31 October 1972 (1972) … Herself
– Episode dated 28 June 1972 (1972) … Herself
 
1970-1972 The David Frost Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #4.161 (1972) … Herself
– Episode #2.258 (1970) … Herself
 
1970 The Dick Cavett Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode dated 11 August 1970 (1970) … Herself
 
1967-1968 The Joey Bishop Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #3.43 (1968) … Herself
– Episode #1.97 (1967) … Herself
 
1968 The Woody Woodbury Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode dated 15 February 1968 (1968) … Herself
 
1951-1967 The Ed Sullivan Show (TV series)
Herself / Herself - Audience Bow
– Episode #21.18 (1967) … Herself - Audience Bow
– Episode #5.3 (1951) … Herself
 
1965 The Mike Douglas Show (TV series)
– Episode dated 3 November 1965 (1965)
 
1965 Today (TV series)
Herself
– Episode dated 18 June 1965 (1965) … Herself
 
1964 That Regis Philbin Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #1.14 (1964) … Herself
 
1963 The Merv Griffin Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #1.118 (1963) … Herself
 
1960 Academy Award Songs (TV movie)
Herself - Actress
 
1960 Startime (TV series)
Herself
– Academy Award Songs (1960) … Herself
 
1959 The Jack Paar Tonight Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #3.54 (1959) … Herself
– Episode #2.249 (1959) … Herself
– Episode #2.161 (1959) … Herself
– Episode #2.132 (1959) … Herself
 
1959 The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #3.25 (1959) … Herself
 
1958 The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #3.4 (1958) … Herself
 
1956 The George Gobel Show (TV series)
Herself
– Episode #2.11 (1956) … Herself
 
1950 The Ed Wynn Show (TV series)
Herself - Actress
– Episode #1.23 (1950) … Herself - Actress
 
1940 Cavalcade of the Academy Awards (documentary short)
Herself
 
1930 Comets
Herself
 
Show ShowArchive Footage (13 titles)
2010 A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss (TV series documentary)
 
2008 The Age of Believing: The Disney Live Action Classics (TV documentary)
 
2005 Silenci? (TV series)
 
2000 The American Nightmare (documentary)
Herself
 
1998 Bride of Chucky
Clips from 'Bride of Frankenstein' (uncredited)
 
1998 Universal Horror (TV documentary)
 
1994 It's Alive: The True Story of Frankenstein (TV documentary)
 
1992 EBN: Commercial Entertainment Product (video short)
The Monster's Mate (uncredited)
 
1991 Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook (documentary)
Mary Shelley/The Bride
 
1990 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: 50 Years of Magic (TV documentary)
Herself
 
1986 Moonlighting (TV series)
 
1983 Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage (documentary)
Herself (uncredited)
 
1973-1982 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (TV series)
 

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Personal Details

Other Works:

(1933-1934) Stage: Appeared in William Shakespeare's "Henry VIII", at the Old Vic Theatre and Sadler's Wells Theatre in London, England, with Charles Laughton, Flora Robson, Robert Farquarson, Nicholas Hannen, Ursula Jeans, Roger Livesey, James Mason, Athene Seyler, Marius Goring and Leon Quartermaine in the cast... See more »

Publicity Listings:

2 Print Biographies  | 2 Articles  | 1 Magazine Cover Photo  | See more »

Official Sites:

Official Elsa Lanchester Website | See more »

Alternate Names:

?

Height:

5' 4½" (1.64 m)
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Did You Know?

Personal Quote:

There is no such thing as a person that nothing has happened to, and each person's story is as different as his fingerprints. See more »

Trivia:

As a child she studied dance under Isadora Duncan and later taught dancing to neighborhood children and schoolmates. See more »

Star Sign:

Scorpio