Actors - Bela Lugosi

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	Actors - Bela Lugosi

Béla Lugosi was the stage name of actor Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956). He was born in Lugos, Banat, Austria-Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), the youngest of four children of a banker. The blue-eyed actor is best known for his portrayal of Dracula in the American Broadway stage production, and subsequent film, of Bram Stoker's classic vampire story.

Early career in Hungary

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 under the stage name Arisztid Olt. During World War I he served as an infantry lieutenant in the Austro-Hungarian army. Lugosi left his native Hungary for Germany in 1919. Following the collapse of Bela Kun's Hungarian Soviet Republic, left-wingers and trade unionists were persecuted including Lugosi who was persecuted following his complicity in the forming of an actor's union. In exile, he began appearing in a small number of well received films in German cinema. One of his earliest appearances for the German film industry was in the 1920 adaptations of the Karl May penned novels Auf den Trümmern des Paradieses ("In the Rubble of Paradise") and Die Todeskarawane ("The Death Caravan") opposite the ill-fated Jewish actress Dora Gerson. Lugosi emigrated to the United States in 1921 and on June 26, 1931 became a naturalized citizen of the United States.

Dracula

On arrival in America, the 1.85 m (6'1"), 82 kg (180 lb) Lugosi worked for some time as a laborer, then returned to 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
. The production was very successful. Despite his excellent notices in the title role, Lugosi had to campaign vigorously for the chance to repeat his stage success in Tod Browning's movie version of Dracula
(1931), produced by Universal Pictures.

A persistent rumor asserts that silent-film actor Lon Chaney, Sr. was originally scheduled for this film role, and that Lugosi was chosen only due to Chaney's death. Chaney, however, was under long-term contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and his home studio refused to release him to Universal for this project. Further, although Chaney and Browning had worked together on several projects, Browning was only a last-minute choice to direct the movie version of Dracula
: this film was not a long-time pet project of Tod Browning, despite some claims to the contrary.

Following the success of Dracula
(1931), Lugosi received a studio contract with Universal.

Typecasting

Through his association with Dracula (in which he appeared with minimal makeup, using his natural, heavily-accented voice), Lugosi found himself typecast as a horror villain in such movies as Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Raven
and Son of Frankenstein for Universal, and the independent White Zombie.

Lugosi declined an offer to appear as The Monster in Frankenstein
because the role had no dialogue and would have concealed Lugosi beneath heavy makeup. The role was taken by the man who became Lugosi's principal rival in horror films, Boris Karloff. Several films at Universal, such as The Black Cat (1934), The Raven
(1935), and Son of Frankenstein (1939) 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 that 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.

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Actors - Bela Lugosi

Early career in Hungary

Dracula

Typecasting

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