Overview (5)

Mini Bio (1)

Bela Lugosi was born Béla Ferenc Dezsö Blaskó on October 20, 1882, Lugos, Hungary, Austria-Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), to Paula de Vojnich and István Blaskó, a banker. He was the youngest of four children. During WWI, he volunteered and was commissioned as an infantry lieutenant, and was wounded three times.



A distinguished stage actor in his native Hungary, Austria-Hungary, he began his stage career in 1901 and started appearing in films during World War I, fleeing to Germany in 1919 as a result of his left-wing political activity (he organized an actors' union). In 1920 he emigrated to the US and made a living as a character actor, shooting to fame when he played Count Dracula in the legendary 1927 Broadway stage adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel. It ran for three years, and was subsequently, and memorably, filmed by Tod Browning in 1931, establishing Lugosi as one of the screen's greatest personifications of pure evil. Also in 1931, he became a U.S. citizen. Sadly, his reputation rapidly declined, mainly because he had been blacklisted by the main studios and had no choice but to accept any part (and script) handed to him, and ended up playing parodies of his greatest role, in low-grade poverty row films. Due to shady blacklisting among the top Hollywood studio executives, he refused to sell out or to compromise his integrity, and therefore ended his career working for the legendary Worst Director of All Time, Edward D. Wood Jr..



Lugosi was married to Ilona Szmik (1917 - 1920), Ilona von Montagh (? - ?), and Lillian Arch (1933 - 1951). He is the father of Bela Lugosi Jr. (1938). Lugosi helped organize the Screen Actors Guild in the mid-'30s, joining as member number 28.



Bela Lugosi died of a heart attack August 16, 1956. He was buried in a Dracula costume, including a cape, but not the ones used in the 1931 film, contrary to popular--but unfounded--rumors.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: ReelDeal-2, Michael Brooke <michael@everyman.demon.co.uk> & anonymous

Spouse (5)

Trade Mark (7)

Black slicked back hair



Thick Hungarian accent



His suave--and often imitated--original portrayal of Count Dracula



Renowned for treating even the most ridiculous of material with immense respect and his aggressive work ethic



Sartorial elegance and regal bearing wearing a tuxedo



Cadenced delivery of lines with authoritative gravitas



Intense hypnotic gaze and dramatic pauses



Trivia (87)

Born in Lugos, Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), from which he derived his eventual professional surname.





His son, Bela Lugosi Jr. , practices law in Los Angeles, California (1995).

Following his death, he was interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.





Were it not for his death, Lon Chaney , rather than Lugosi, would have been the director Tod Browning 's choice for the starring role in Dracula (1931).



Contrary to popular belief, he and Boris Karloff did not hate each other, as the famous scene from Ed Wood (1994) would lead one to believe. Both men's children have said that the only rivalry that existed between them is when they were both up for the same roles, and in reality, although Lugosi and Karloff had almost no relationship off-set, they were reportedly amicable whenever working together.

He was one of the charter members of the Screen Actors Guild.





In 1929 he married a wealthy San Francisco widow named Beatrice Weeks, a union which lasted all of three days; their divorce named Clara Bow as the "other woman"--it was a media sensation and launched him into national notoriety.

Had a long extensive classical career in Hungary including roles in "Hamlet", "Macbeth", "King Lear", "Taming of the Shrew" and "Richard III".





His first stage role in the United States was "The Red Poppy". Unable to speak English, he was forced to learn the role by rote. He was rewarded with excellent reviews and earned his first American film role, a villainous role in The Silent Command (1923) as a result.



At the time of his death, Lugosi was in such poor financial straits that Frank Sinatra was rumored to have paid for his funeral. Actually, Bela's widow Hope and ex-wife Lillian paid it; Sinatra's only connection to the aging actor was sending him a $1000 check during his drug rehabilitation. The rumor that Boris Karloff attended the funeral was also an urban myth, as he wasn't in California at the time.



He performed in live-action reference footage for the "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence of Walt Disney 's Fantasia (1940). He was, of course, the terrifying demon Chernabog.



Further immortalized in the song "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus , which was featured in The Hunger (1983) and went on to become a dance mainstay at goth dance clubs in the 1980s. The lyrics of the song described him in his Dracula costume, along with "Undead! Undead! Undead!" being chanted during the song's chorus.



His performance in Tod Browning 's Dracula (1931) created such a sensation that he reportedly received more fan mail from females than even Clark Gable



In his collaborations with Boris Karloff at Universal, it was Karloff who always got top billing. When these same films were released as part of a DVD box set in 2005, Universal wisely chose to market them as "The Bela Lugosi Collection", the most popular---and therefore more bankable---star between of them both.



There is a persistent myth that would have us believe that Bela Lugosi spoke very little English by the time he shot Dracula (1931), and learned his lines phonetically. This has been debunked by Lugosi historians and is simply not true.



He received only $500 per week for the seven-week engagement on Dracula (1931) a total of $3500. However, in 2007 purchasing power, that would be equal to $47,319. In comparison, Universal paid $2000 per week for the use of leading man David Manners , but Manners was a contract player at First National Pictures. The payment went to that studio, not to Manners, who was paid only his usual weekly rate from First National.

Served in the Austro-Hungarian army during World War I as an infantry captain. He later recounted in stories on film sets about his experiences, which included acting as a hangman. He also said that at one point he hid in a mass grave of corpses to escape death. After being wounded three times, he was discharged while apparently feigning concussion-caused insanity.





Lugosi was contracted to appear in Dracula's Daughter (1936) at a salary of $4,000, but the original script in which the character appeared was rejected by Universal. The final script did not involve Dracula, except for an insert shot of him in his coffin, but Lugosi was paid off, earning $500 more for not appearing in Dracula's Daughter (1936) than he earned for starring in Dracula (1931).

Ilona Massey,

According to biographer Robert Cremer, Lugosi was not only the finest party host among Hungarian members of the Hollywood community but also an inveterate practical joker. When other expatriates such as Joe Pasternak Michael Curtiz and Willy Pogany were guests, he would hire comic actor Vince Barnett to play the role of a clumsy waiter spilling drinks and dropping plates of hors d'oeuvres, resulting in near misses for the guests to Lugosi's delight.



His ex-wife Lilian and son had him buried in one of his many capes, but not the one from his role as the title character of Dracula (1931). It is a myth that Bela was buried in the original Dracula cape. His son still owns it, as he tried to auction it off in 2011 but the starting bid was too high, upwards of a million, leaving no room for fans to enjoy the bidding war.



He did not wear fangs when playing the title character in Dracula (1931). The same was true of Frank Langella in Dracula (1979).

He was posthumously awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6430 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on February 8, 1960.



Bela Lugosi passed away on August 16, 1956, two months away from what would have been his 74th birthday on October 20.





Is referenced in The Kinks 1972 song "Celluloid Heroes", with the lines "Avoid stepping on Bela Lugosi, because he's liable to turn and bite.".



Contrary to popular belief, Lugosi only played Count Dracula in two films: Dracula (1931) and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948). He played vampires in many other films, but none of them--besides the aforementioned two--were Count Dracula.

Bela's personal cane featured in his infamous scene in "Plan 9 From Outer Space" sold at Bonhams and Butterfields for $10,000. This cane is considered one of the only remaining props from the film [November 2015].



Privately, Bela Lugosi struggled with his dependency upon morphine, a drug he was given to deal with leg pain from his war injuries. However, tabloid reports erroneously presented him as a "drug addict"; there is a significant difference between being physically and clinically depend upon a drug, and being "addicted" to it. The latter denotes the presence of a morbid mental want, which is absent in a medical dependency, which is a physiological need.



Because of his political involvement, his remaining in Hungary became hazardous, so he left Hungary. He went via Vienna to Berlin, where he continued his film career.





Before his success in the 1931 Tod Browning film, Lugosi had already portrayed "Dracula" on Broadway, starting in 1927. Actor Lon Chaney was originally chosen for the title role, but with his unexpected death, the search for a new Dracula started. Bela Lugosi campaigned hard for the part, and thus won the role that made him a silver-screen horror legend.

Because his parents were against his plans to become an actor, Bela Lugosi left his family at the tender age of 12. After working in a mine, he would later join the theater, where he gained his first experience as an actor. Thus classically trained, he subsequently joined the film business, in 1917, and, early on, used the pseudonym Arisztid Olt.





At the end of the Sledge Hammer episode Sledge Hammer!: The Last of the Red Hot Vampires (1987) there is a dedication "In Memory of Mr. Blasko", Lugosi's birth name.



Although he expressed interest in playing a romantic lead as he had in Hungary, Bela Lugosi only rarely got to share a kiss with a female co-star, during his entire Hollywood career. In The Midnight Girl (1925) and in Daughters Who Pay (1925), his "bad guy" characters kiss the ladies forcibly. It isn't until The Return of Chandu (1934) that he shares a split-second peck in a romantic scene with the princess character at the end of the serial.



Became a proud and patriotic U.S. citizen in 1931, the same year he starred as the legendary Count Dracula (1931), whereas fellow horror actor, Boris Karloff lived in the U.S.A for 45 years yet never sought American citizenship.

Bela Lugosi was a philatelist. As such, he would have been thrilled to know that he, himself, ended up gracing two U.S. stamps.





Is the model for the Disney demon Chernabog, in Fantasia (1940)'s "Night on Bald Mountain" spooky sequence. Bela Lugosi was photographed in miscellaneous evil, demon-like poses for the animators to draw the demon character based upon his modeling. The end result on-screen unmistakably shows typical Lugosi traits, expressions, and mannerisms in Chernabog.



Owned a large, framed, self-portrait painting he had commissioned of himself, in the 1930's. He is depicted as standing in a gray suit, one hand upon his hip, the other holding his coat and hat. This painting hung in his home until the day he died. It is now owned by Metallica's lead guitarist, Kirk Hammett , a hard-core horror movie fan and horror memorabilia collector.



Though famous for his role as Dracula, even in his native country of Hungary the movie itself was surprisingly unknown there, along with most American pictures he had appeared in. Dracula (1931) was released in Hungary shortly after its American debut in 1931, but many critics and viewers slammed it. The movie fell into obscurity shortly afterwards, and very few American niche genre movies (such as horror and monster films) reached the country during most of the 20th century, mainly due to the strict Communist censorship. It was only through the advent of home video and the internet that most Hungarians finally saw the performances that had made Lugosi a star in the West. To this day only a couple of his works have been dubbed into his own language, and the DVD releases have been out of print since the early 2000s.

Was President of the Hungarian Council for Democracy, to which many leading Americans of Hungarian descent were active.



His parents names were Stephen Blasko and Paula Von Vojnics. Studio hype claimed in the press that Bela's father was a Count, but he was actually a bank president. His brothers' and sister's names were Vilma, Hajos & Laszlo.



In spite of his cinematic association with the dark side and portraying miscellaneous evil-doing characters, Lugosi was a Catholic and, as such, was buried at the Holy Cross, a Catholic cemetery in Culver City, California.





His favorite screen role was Dracula (1931).

Legally changed his name to Bela Lugosi from Blasko. He added an "i" to the end of the name of Lugos, the town he was born.



In a form requesting biographical information for Cameo Pictures Corporation, next to the question "earliest childhood ambition", facetious Bela wrote "highway bandit". In answer to "present ambition", he wrote "dude ranch". In response to "favorite screen players", he wrote "none", then crossed that out and wrote "Mickey Mouse". His patience must have been tested when seeing the privacy invasive question requesting "highlights of your life", with three blank lines to fill out for 1 to 30 years, in 10 year increments. To cut through the aggravating nosiness, Bela used a curly bracket through all three lines and cheekily wrote: "it is no one's business".



In spite of wearing a tuxedo in nearly every film where he didn't portray a hairy beast, he said he preferred sportswear to formal, his favorite material was flannel, and he favored bright colors.





Although his status in He Who Gets Slapped (1924) remains unconfirmed to date, in August 2017, videos surfaced with screen captures of a clown extra that bears a striking resemblance to Lugosi and, allegedly, would finally offer proof that Lugosi was indeed part of the crowd, in this silent film. Initially, a teenage boy named Richard Sheffield, who befriended Bela Lugosi in the 1950's, found two photographs among Lugosi's personal scrapbook of his own work, whence the speculation that he had worked in this silent started.



In the 2004 Hungarian DVD release of the Universal Horror movies, his voice was dubbed by János Papp , who is known also for dubbing many of John Goodman 's and Morgan Freeman 's film roles, and is the modern Hungarian voice actor for Fred Flintstone. But Lugosi's most iconic film, Dracula (1931), was only released in his home country with subtitles.

He was likely the basis for the Marvel Comics villain Belasco, whose name is a shortened version of his birth name.





As heard in White Zombie (1932), Bela Lugosi pronounced French flawlessly, like a French native and, curiously enough, without a trace of his trademark Hungarian accent. It is unclear whether Bela was fluent in the language. The reason why is unclear, considering that Lugosi dropped out of school when he was 12 years old, and he is not known to have lived in France. It is equally unclear whether he also spoke any German(Lugosi lived and acted in movies in Germany for a few years).

Lugosi joined the crew of a merchant ship as a sailor, to gain transport to the United States. He entered the country at New Orleans, Louisiana in December 1920.



Lugosi's birthplace of Lugos was in Hungary when he was born, and belonged to the Austro-Hungarian empire; it is currently part of Timis County, Romania, and called "Lugoj" in Romanian. The county seat is Timisoara. Most of the then Hungarian county was annexed to the Kingdom of Romania in 1919, part of the border changes at the end of World War I, due to a political deal in which the Hungarian people did not get to vote. When it was annexed, its people was naturally Hungarian-dominant.



During World War I, Lugosi served in the infantry and ski patrol of the Austro-Hungarian Army. He reached the rank of Hauptmann (Captain). He received the Wound Metal (Verwundetenmedaille), after suffering combat injuries in the East Front of the War.



Following World War I, Lugosi was an activist for an actors' union in Hungary. In 1919, there was a coup d'état in Hungary and a right-wing military dictatorship rose to power. Union members were persecuted as "leftists", and Lugosi fled into self-exile. He spend some time as an expatriate actor n Austria and Weimar Republic Germany.



Lugosi's parents were István Blaskó and Paula de Vojnich. Blaskó was a Hungarian banker, and de Vojnich was Serbian.



Bela Lugosi grew disappointed and frustrated with Hollywood not offering him a chance of playing leading roles in non-horror productions. His early days of stardom in the likes of "Dracula" and "The Black Cat" had rendered the actor typecast.



Even when not acting, Lugosi was able to project an aura of curiosity and intrigue. According to colleagues, Lugosi could command the attention of a whole group of strangers as soon as he entered the same room.





Bela was the first horror actor to be tied to two holidays, thanks to Dracula (1931) being released Valentine's Day, on Feb. 14, 1931; and, of course, the handsome Transylvanian was first and foremost tied to Halloween due to his multiple vampire movies and other horror films.

Despite making over 1,000 appearances on stage as Dracula he wasn't considered for the role in the film. Lon Chaney was wanted but he developed throat cancer so the part was offered to Conrad Veidt who turned it down as he didn't like America.



Wasn't fond of "schmoozing" and for that reason, did not attend Hollywood parties. He said "life was too short" for that, and he wouldn't waste his time. Instead, Lugosi preferred to get together in intimate small gatherings at his home, with Hungarian artisans and working crew from his films, whom he often invited to dinner.



Was the third husband of his third wife, Beatrice Weeks.





Although it has been claimed that, in his early days of stardom, his horror films had typecast him, facts have emerged from different sources, including era newspaper articles, that all point more to Lugosi being sabotaged by his number one rival due to Bela's critical acclaim for his stellar performance in their join venture, Son of Frankenstein (1939). That covetous co-star of Lugosi's had garnered a lot of clout at Universal due to his dalliances with producers, and the rest is history.



Biographers have claimed that Bela couldn't drive, yet he is clearly seen driving an open convertible automobile in many scenes of The Return of Chandu (1934), down a narrow winding mountain road.



Did not have a natural widow's peak. Contrary to popular misconception, he did not wear a hair piece to create one in Dracula (1931), however he did sport a fake widow's peak in publicity stills for the movie. Lugosi did, however, wear another---more pronounced---widow's peak for his characterization as Murder Legendre in the excellent, White Zombie (1932).

At the height of his career, owned four large dogs all at once: a white one, 2 black dobermans and a gray one.



Even when among crowds of people, Bela Lugosi had a natural knack for attracting attention. This was usually due to his aura of intrigue and fascination.



Had difficulty in securing work in Hollywood by the early 1940s, as no producer would cast the actor in anything except horror films.



Was released from his contract by "Universal" after having filmed "Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man" in 1942.



When he tested for the role of the Frankenstein creature in 1931, it was reported that Lugosi wore a thick, clay-like make-up that resembled the monster from the German film, "The Golem.".



In the years following his passing, general Bela Lugosi merchandise outsells that of Boris Karloff by a narrow margin.



The standard price for a Bela Lugosi autograph is well above $1000, often hard to find below $1400---whereas Boris Karloff's have dropped down considerably and can easily be found for a mere $300.



He raised money for the Bergson Group.



Since biographies started being published about horror actors, has been the unfair target of unsubstantiated claims, perpetrated in print by idolaters of Boris Karloff-turned-biographers. From the beginning, there has always been a fierce divide between the two fandoms, mainly due to such vitriolic contempt propagated by that other camp.



In November 2018, when TCM advertised the Bonham auction exhibit---which included Bela's cape from his Abbott & Costello movie, their TV ads announcing the event completely glossed over the Lugosi cape in barely 2 onscreen seconds, only to showcase other artifacts, seemingly once again treating Bela Lugosi with the same disdain Hollywood had treated him during his lifetime.





After trying to auction it off for over a million dollars in 2011, his son, Bela Lugosi Jr. , parted with his father's arguably most cherished possession, the Dracula (1931) cape, in November 2019. The priceless artifact was later generously donated to the museum for the Academy of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. His son and grand-daughter felt that the cape shouldn't be hidden in one person's closet "for the world never to see", but that it should carry Bela Lugosi's legacy forward. As of February 2020, the cape was undergoing minor restoration---mainly to repair small tears in the cape's silk crepe lining by re-patching it from its backing with new silk bits, dyed to match its original taupe color. It will go on display along with other exclusive and priceless Golden Age of Hollywood movie star props and artifacts, as part of a prestigious collection where it is being well-cared for.



At the height of arguably his worst personal problems---financial troubles and severe health issues----his wife, Lilian Arch divorced him. Against Bela's wishes, she had taken a job working as secretary for Brian Donlevy . Proving Lugosi's foreboding reservations correct, she would soon leave Lugosi to take up with her boss.

Was fluent in Hungarian, French, German and English.



He developed a friendship with dwarf actor Angelo Rossitto. When making some of his poverty row quickies, he would reportedly insist that Rpssitto also be cast.



Personal Quotes (15)

I guess I'm pretty much of a lone wolf. I don't say I don't like people at all but, to tell you the truth, I only like them if I have a chance to look deep into their hearts and their minds. If I find there something, something worthwhile, some... some human kindness, some sympathy.



Circumstances made me the theatrical personality I am, which many people believe is also a part of my personal life.



Every producer in Hollywood had set me down as a type. I was both amused and disappointed.



I'd like to quit the supernatural roles and play just an interesting, down-to-earth person.



I'll be truthful. The weekly paycheck is the most important thing to me.



[on being typecast in villain roles] I find that, because of my language and gestures, that I am cataloged as what you call a heavy. My accent stamped me, in the imagination of the producers, as an enemy. Therefore, I must be a heavy.



In Hungary, acting is a career for which one fits himself as earnestly and studiously as one studies for a degree in medicine, law or philosophy. In Hungary, acting is a profession.



Every actor's greatest ambition is to create his own, definite and original role, a character with which he will always be identified. In my case, that role was Dracula.



Never has a role so influenced and dominated an actor's role as has the role of Dracula. He [Dracula] has, at times, infused me with prosperity and, at other times, he has drained me of everything.



[on playing Dracula] It's a living, but it's also a curse. It's Dracula's curse.





If I had one per cent of the millions Dracula (1931) has made, I wouldn't be sitting here now.

[in response to an interviewer question "Doesn't Dracula ever end for you?"] No. No. Dracula never ends. I don't know if I should call it a fortune or a curse, but it never ends.



Look to Count Károlyi as Hungary's own Abraham Lincoln!



[asked about the Hungarian National Front of independence] The Hungarian underground really crystallizes the common denominator of resistance, which binds all the people who have felt the whiplash of fascism. Like the heroic people of France and Poland and Greece and Yugoslavia, the people of Hungary, the real Hungary, are fighting.





Circumstances made me the theatrical personality I am, which many people believe is also a part of my personal life. My next picture, Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932), will continue to establish me as a weird, gruesome creature. As for my own feelings on the subject, I have always felt I would rather play - say Percy Marmont roles than Lon Chaney types of roles.

Salary (22)