Bela Lugosi as Dracula United States stamp

Béla Lugosi was the stage name of actor Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (October 20, 1882–August 16, 1956). He was born in Lugos, Transylvania, Austria-Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), the youngest of four children of a banker. This image is a postage stamp produced by the United States Postal Service after 1978. ... This image is a postage stamp produced by the United States Postal Service after 1978. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... October 20 is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 72 days remaining. ... 1882 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Transylvania (Romanian: Transilvania or Ardeal, Hungarian: Erdély, German: Siebenbürgen, Serbian: Transilvanija, Turkish: Erdel, Slovak: Sedmohradsko or Transylvánia, Polish: Siedmiogród) forms the western and central parts of Romania. ... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... Lugoj (Hungarian: Lugos, German: Lugosch) is a city in the Timiş county, Transylvania, Romania, situated on both banks of the Timiş river, which divides the town in two quarters, the Romanian on the right and the German on the left bank. ...

Lugosi started his acting career on the stage in Hungary in several Shakespearean plays and other major roles; and also appeared in several silent films of the Cinema of Hungary. He however, became most notably known for his portrayal of Dracula in the American stage production, and subsequent film, of Bram Stoker's classic vampire story. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... A silent film is a film which has no accompanying soundtrack. ... Bela Lugosi as Dracula United States stamp Dracula is a fictional character, arguably the most famous vampire in fiction. ... Film refers to the celluloid media on which movies are printed Film is a term that encompasses motion pictures as individual projects, as well as the field in general. ... Abraham Bram Stoker (November 8, 1847–April 20, 1912) was an Anglo-Irish writer, best remembered as the author of the influential horror novel Dracula. ... It has been proposed that History of vampire lore be merged and redirected into this article. ...

During World War I he served as an infantry lieutenant for the Central Powers. Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Infantry in the First World War Infantry (or Infantrymen) are soldiers who fight primarily on foot, using personal weapons. ... A Lieutenant is a military, paramilitary or police officer. ... Central Powers is a term used to refer to the Dual Alliance of Germany and Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria during World War I. They are so called because they all lay between Russia in the east and France and the United Kingdom in the west. ...

He left from his native Hungary for Germany in 1919 after persecution following his complicity in the forming of an actor's union, and emigrated to the United States in 1921. On June 26, 1931, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. 1919 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers... 1921 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... June 26 is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 188 days remaining. ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... Naturalization is the process whereby a person becomes a national of a nation, or a citizen of a country, other than the one of his birth. ...

He worked for some time as a laborer, then became re-involved in the theater within the Hungarian-American community. He was spotted there and approached to star in a play adapted by John Balderston from Bram Stoker's novel Dracula. After the death of silent movie legend Lon Chaney, Sr., Lugosi's stage success led to his being selected to replace Chaney in Tod Browning's movie version of Dracula (1931) by Universal Pictures. The film was also a success and Lugosi received a studio contract with Universal, but, through his association with Dracula (in which he appeared with minimal makeup, using his natural and heavily-accented voice), he found himself typecast as a horror villain with such movies as "Murders in the Rue Morgue" and "The Raven" and "Son of Frankenstein" for Universal, and the independent "White Zombie". He declined an offer to appear as The Monster in Frankenstein because the role did involve dialogue, a role which was taken by the man who became his principal contemporary in horror films, Boris Karloff. Attempts were made to give him more protagonistic roles, as in The Black Cat and The Invisible Ray and a small role in the comedy classic Ninotchka opposite Greta Garbo, but did not help him break out of "type". Additionally, after Universal changed management in 1936, he found himself being consigned, along with their entire approach to horror films, to Universal's b-film unit, at times in small roles where he was obviously used for "name value" only. In the early 1940s, Universal did not renew its contract with Lugosi, and he ended up having to contract with the poverty row company, Monogram Pictures Corp., where he received star billing in a succession of horror, psycho and mystery b-films produced by Sam Katzman. Abraham Bram Stoker (November 8, 1847–April 20, 1912) was an Anglo-Irish writer, best remembered as the author of the influential horror novel Dracula. ... Bela Lugosi as Dracula United States stamp Dracula is a fictional character, arguably the most famous vampire in fiction. ... Categories: Stub | 1883 births | 1930 deaths ... Charles Albert Browning, Jr. ... This DVD cover for the film shows Lugosi in the role which would type-cast him for the rest of his career. ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... Universal Studios logo Universal Studios is a famous Hollywood movie studio located at 100 Universal City Plaza Drive in Universal City, California, which is in the San Fernando Valley. ... DVD cover showing horror characters as depicted by Universal Studios. ... White Zombie is a 1933 film about zombies starring Bela Lugosi. ... Frankenstein is a 1931 horror film based on the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. ... Boris Karloff (November 23, 1887 - February 2, 1969), born William Henry Pratt, was a famous actor in horror films. ... The Black Cat is a 1934 horror film that became Universal Pictures biggest box office hit of the year. ... Ninotchka is a 1939 American film by Ernst Lubitsch Garbos first comedy, launched with the tagline Garbo laughs! Storyline Three Russians, Iranoff, Buljanoff and Kopalski, are sent to Paris to sell jewelry confiscated from the aristocracy during the Russian Revolution. ... Garbo in the 1920s Greta Garbo (September 18, 1905 – April 15, 1990) was a Swedish actress. ... The term B-movie originally referred to a film designed to be distributed as the lower half of a double feature, often a genre film featuring cowboys, gangsters or vampires. ... This article is about the novel and the movies based on it. ... In modern colloquial English, a mystery is a subgenre of detective fiction (see mystery fiction). ... Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer. ...

Several films at Universal, such as The Black Cat, "The Raven" and Son of Frankenstein paired Lugosi with Karloff. Regardless of the relative size of their roles, Lugosi inevitably got second billing, below Karloff. Lugosi's attitude towards Karloff is the subject of contradictory reports, some claiming he was openly resentful of Karloff's long-term success and ability to get good roles beyond the horror arena, while others suggested the two actors were - for a time at least - good friends.

Later on, the acting jobs dried up and he had become addicted to morphine, originally prescribed him for severe back pain in the early 1940s, though he did get to recreate the role of Dracula one last time for the film Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein in 1948. Morphine (INN), the principal active agent in opium, is a powerful opioid analgesic drug. ... Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is a 1948 comedy/horror film in which characters played by Bud Abbott and Lou Costello deliver large heavy crates to a wax museum only to discover that the contents -- Frankensteins monster and Dracula -- are neither wax nor dead. ... 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

1931 film poster, promoting Bela Lugosi's genre-defining turn as Dracula.

Late in his life, he again star billing in movies when Ed Wood, a would-be filmmaker and fan of Lugosi's, found him living in obscurity and near-poverty and offered him roles in his films, such as Glen or Glenda — (where his role made no sense) and as a mad scientist in Bride of the Monster. During post-production of the latter, Lugosi entered treatment for his morphine addiction, and the premier of the film was ostensibly intended to help pay for his treatment expenses. The pseudo-biographical film Ed Wood, by Tim Burton, featured Wood's relationship with Lugosi, played by Martin Landau in an inaccurate and satirical interpretation. Download high resolution version (1390x1080, 222 KB)1931 Dracula film poster, from http://lugosi01b. ... Download high resolution version (1390x1080, 222 KB)1931 Dracula film poster, from http://lugosi01b. ... 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1931 film poster, promoting Bela Lugosis genre-defining turn as Dracula. ... Edward D. Wood, Jr. ... Glen or Glenda or I Lived 2 Lives is a movie filmed in 1953, starring its director Ed Wood, Bela Lugosi, and Woods then girlfriend Dolores Fuller. ... Originally known as Bride of the Atom, Bride of the Monster is a 1955 film starring Bela Lugosi in the typical evil mad scientist role, and was directed by Ed Wood, a name synonymous with bad low-budget filmmaking. ... Ed Wood, directed by Tim Burton, stars Johnny Depp as the transvestite cult movie maker Edward D. Wood Jr. ... Tim Burton Tim Burton (born August 25, 1958 in Burbank, California) is an eccentric film director known for his off-beat and quirky style. ... Martin Landau in North by Northwest. ...

Following his treatment, he was make one final film, in late 1955, The Black Sleep, for Bel-Air Pictures, which was released in the summer of 1956 through United Artists Corp. with an a-film campaign that included several personal appearances. To his disappointment, however, his role in this film was of a mute - no dialogue.

He died of a heart attack, aged 73, in August of 1956, in his Los Angeles, California home, while sitting in a chair. The script for Final Curtain, written by Ed Wood, was in his lap. (The role was later given to Kenne Duncan, and the shots of that production made their way into Wood's Night of the Ghouls, a sequel of sorts to "Bride of the Monster".) Griffith Observatory and the Downtown Los Angeles skyline. ...

One of Lugosi's most infamous roles was in a movie that was released after he was dead. Ed Wood's Plan 9 from Outer Space featured footage of Lugosi interspersed with a double who looked nothing like him. Wood had taken a few minutes of silent footage of Lugosi, in his Dracula cape, for a planned vampire picture but was unable to find financing for the project. When he later conceived of "Plan 9", he wrote the script to incorporate the Lugosi footage and hired his wife's chiropractor to double for Lugosi in additional shots. The "double" is easily spotted by the fact that Plan 9 from Outer Space is a 1957 Ed Wood science fiction horror movie. ...

1. He looks nothing like Lugosi
2. He covers his face with his cape in every shot.

Contrary to Burton's Ed Wood, Lugosi did not receive top billing for Plan 9. Instead he was listed as a guest-star, below Tor Johnson, Vampira and Kenne Duncan. Ed Wood, directed by Tim Burton, stars Johnny Depp as the transvestite cult movie maker Edward D. Wood Jr. ... Tor Johnson (b. ... Actress Maila Nurmi (born December 21, 1921) portrayed Vampira in many shows, and starred in Ed Woods Plan 9 From Outer Space. ...

In the postmodern period, Lugosi became the subject of a song by gothic rock band Bauhaus entitled "Bela Lugosi's Dead", and a couple of his worst films turned up for mocking on the televison program Mystery Science Theater 3000. Postmodernity (also called post-modernity or the postmodern condition) is a term used by philosophers, social scientists, art critics and social critics to refer to aspects of contemporary art, culture, economics and social conditions that are the result of the unique features of late 20th century and early 21st century... Gothic rock evolved out of post punk during the late 1970s. ... Bauhaus was a British rock band (formed in Northampton in 1978) popular in the 1980s. ... From left to right, Crow T. Robot, Joel Robinson, and Tom Servo (the latter dressed as a candystriper). ...

Truth being stranger than fiction sometimes, Bela Lugosi was buried in his full Dracula costume, as per the request in his will, in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California. In the law, a will or testament is a documentary instrument by which a person (the testator) regulates the rights of others over the testators property or family after their death. ... Holy Cross Cemetery is located at 5835 W. Slauson Avenue in Culver City, California. ... Culver City sign, at the northeast corner of the Sepulveda Boulevard and Centinela Avenue intersection, near the 405 and the 90 freeway interchange. ...

See

• Index of Films of Bela Lugosi

Following is a complete filmography for Bela Lugosi, organized by year and date of release. ...

External link

• Béla Lugosi (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000509/) at the Internet Movie Database