Elsa Lanchester

Known For: Acting
Born: October 28, 1902
Place of Birth: Lewisham, London, England, UK
Died: December 26, 1986

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 1950…

Filmography

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

2018 · Self (archive footage)

Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film

2014 · Mary Shelley / The Monster's Mate (archive footage)

Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman

2007 · Self (archive footage)

The American Nightmare

2000 · Self

Universal Horror

1998 · (archive footage)

Turnabout: The Story of the Yale Puppeteers

1993 · Self

Commercial Entertainment Product

1992 · The Monster's Bride

Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook

Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook

1991 · Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate

Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies

1988 · (archive footage) (uncredited)

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

1983 · Self (archive footage) (uncredited)

Die Laughing

1980 · Sophie

Murder by Death

1976 · Jessica Marbles

Arnold

1973 · Hester

Terror in the Wax Museum

1973 · Julia Hawthorn

Willard

1971 · Henrietta Stiles

Night Gallery

1970

Nanny and the Professor

1970 · Aunt Henrietta

In Name Only

1969 · Gertrude Caruso

My Dog, the Thief

1969 · Mrs. Formby

Then Came Bronson

1969 · Hattie Calter

The Bill Cosby Show

1969 · Mrs. Wochuk

Me, Natalie

1969 · Miss Dennison

Rascal

1969 · Mrs. Satterfield

Here's Lucy

1968 · Mumsie Westcott

The Dick Cavett Show

1968 · Self - Guest

Blackbeard's Ghost

1968 · Emily Stowecroft

Mannix

1967 · Portia Penhaven, Edna Barrington

Mondo Hollywood

1967

Easy Come, Easy Go

1967 · Madame Neherina

That Darn Cat!

1965 · Mrs. MacDougall

The John Forsythe Show

The John Forsythe Show

1965 · Margaret Culver

Mary Poppins

1964 · Katie Nanna

Pajama Party

1964 · Aunt Wendy

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

1964 · Dr. Agnes Dabree

Honeymoon Hotel

1964 · Chambermaid

Burke's Law

1963 · Mrs. Ormsby, Bessie Mopes

The Merv Griffin Show

1962 · Self

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

1962 · Self

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

1962 · Aggie McGregor

Noah and the Flood

1962 · Noah's wife

Ben Casey

1961

Follow the Sun

1961

Startime

1959 · Self

Adventures in Paradise

1959 · Miss Creshaw

Bell, Book and Candle

1958 · Aunt Queenie Holroyd

Shirley Temple's Storybook

1958 · Mother Goose

Witness for the Prosecution

1957 · Miss Plimsoll

Tonight Starring Jack Paar

Tonight Starring Jack Paar

1957 · Self

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show

1956 · Self

Alice in Wonderland

1955 · Red Queen

The 20th Century Fox Hour

1955

Heidi

1955 · Fräulein Rottenmeier

The Glass Slipper

1955 · Widow Sonder

3 Ring Circus

1954 · The Bearded Lady

The Wonderful World of Disney

1954 · Mrs. Formby

Hell's Half Acre

1954 · Lida O'Reilly

The Girls of Pleasure Island

1953 · Thelma

General Electric Theater

1953 · Hanna Winters

Androcles and the Lion

1952 · Megaera

Omnibus

1952

The Ford Television Theatre

1952 · Rosie Bowker

Les Miserables

1952 · Madame Magloire

Dreamboat

1952 · Mathilda Coffey

Hallmark Hall of Fame

1951 · Red Queen

I Love Lucy

1951 · Edna Grundy

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

1951 · Betsey Monk, the Widow

Frenchie

1950 · Countess

Lux Video Theatre

Lux Video Theatre

1950 · Emily, Miss Mabel

The Petty Girl

1950 · Dr. Crutcher

Mystery Street

1950 · Mrs. Smerrling

Buccaneer's Girl

1950 · Madame Brizar

Robert Montgomery Presents

1950

The Inspector General

1949 · Maria

The Ed Wynn Show

The Ed Wynn Show

1949 · Self

Come to the Stable

1949 · Amelia Potts

The Secret Garden

1949 · Martha

Studio One

1948 · Jenny Pratt

The Ed Sullivan Show

1948 · Self

The Big Clock

1948 · Louise Patterson

The Bishop's Wife

1947 · Matilda

Northwest Outpost

1947 · Princess 'Tanya' Tatiana

The Razor's Edge

1946 · Miss Keith

The Spiral Staircase

1946 · Mrs. Oates

Passport to Destiny

1944 · Ella Muggins

Golden Globe Awards

1944 · Self - Presenter

Lassie Come Home

1943 · Mrs. Helen Carraclough

Thumbs Up

1943 · Emily "Emmy" Ffinch

Forever and a Day

1943 · Mamie

Tales of Manhattan

1942 · Mrs. Smith

Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake

1942 · Bristol Isabel

Ladies in Retirement

1941 · Emily Creed

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

1940 · Self

Vessel of Wrath

1938 · Martha Jones

Rembrandt

1936 · Hendrickje Stoffels

The Ghost Goes West

1935 · Miss Shepperton

Bride of Frankenstein

1935 · Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley / The Monster's Mate

Naughty Marietta

1935 · Madame d'Annard

David Copperfield

1935 · Clickett

The Private Life of Henry VIII

1933 · Anne of Cleves

The Officers' Mess

The Officers' Mess

1931 · Cora Melville

Potiphar's Wife

1931 · Thérèse

The Stronger Sex

1931 · Thompson

The Love Habit

1931 · Matilde

Ashes

1930 · Girl

Comets

1930 · Herself

Mr. Smith Wakes Up

Mr. Smith Wakes Up

1929 · Their Daughter

Blue Bottles

1928 · Elsa

Daydreams

1928 · Elsa / Heroine in Dream Sequence

The Tonic

1928 · Elsa

The Constant Nymph

1928 · Lady

One of the Best

One of the Best

1927 · Kitty

The Scarlet Woman: An Ecclesiastical Melodrama

1924 · Beatrice de Carolle

Elsa Lanchester · Virelixia