Charles Laughton
Biography
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was an English-American stage and film actor, director, producer and screenwriter. Laughton was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future wife Elsa Lanchester, with whom he lived and worked until his death.
He played a wide range of classical and modern parts, making an impact in Shakespeare at the Old Vic. His film career took him to Broadway and then Hollywood, but he also collaborated with Alexander Korda on notable British films of the era, including The Private Life of Henry VIII, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of the title character. He portrayed everything from monsters and misfits to kings. Among Laughton's biggest film hits were The Barretts of Wimpole Street, Mutiny on the Bounty, Ruggles of Red Gap, Jamaica Inn, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Big Clock. In his later career, he took up stage directing, notably in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, and George Bernard Shaw's Don Juan in Hell, in which he also starred. He directed one film, the thriller The Night of the Hunter.
Daniel Day-Lewis cited Laughton as one of his inspirations, saying: "He was probably the greatest film actor who came from that period of time. He had something quite remarkable. His generosity as an actor, he fed himself into that work. As an actor, you cannot take your eyes off him."
Acting (72 movies)
Spartacus
1960
Island of Lost Souls
1932
O. Henry's Full House
1952
The Old Dark House
1932
The Paradine Case
1947
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
1939
Jamaica Inn
1939
The Suspect
1945
The Bribe
1949
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
1982
It Started with Eve
1941
Mutiny on the Bounty
1935
Tales of Manhattan
1942
The Horror Show
1979
Salome
1953
Arch of Triumph
1948
Payment Deferred
1932
Ruggles of Red Gap
1935
Witness for the Prosecution
1957
The Private Life of Henry VIII
1933
Forever and a Day
1943
Captain Kidd
1945
The Barretts of Wimpole Street
1934
Les Misérables
1935
Young Bess
1953
This Land Is Mine
1943
Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd
1952
Because of Him
1946
Hobson's Choice
1954
The Man on the Eiffel Tower
1949
Advise & Consent
1962
The Strange Door
1951
The Canterville Ghost
1944
Rembrandt
1936
The Sign of the Cross
1932
Piccadilly
1929
The Big Clock
1948
Devil and the Deep
1932
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983
They Knew What They Wanted
1940
Stand by for Action
1942
If I Had a Million
1932
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
1972
St. Martin's Lane
1938
The Blue Veil
1951
Under Ten Flags
1960
Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau
2014
The Tuttles of Tahiti
1942
The Girl from Manhattan
1948
Vessel of Wrath
1938
Oops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!
1982
The Epic That Never Was
1969
White Woman
1933
The Man from Down Under
1943
Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film
2014
Blue Bottles
1928
Daydreams
1928
The Tonic
1928
Comets
1930
Wolves
1930
Down River
1931
Leben des Galilei
1947
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
1940
The Clerk
1933
The Art Director
1949
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
1991
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
2009
On Our Merry Way
1948
Monster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man'
1999
Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld
1994
Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies
1988
In the Presence of Mine Enemies
1960
Directing (1 movie)
| Title | Year | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Vessel of Wrath | 1938 | Producer |
| St. Martin's Lane | 1938 | Producer |
| Jamaica Inn | 1939 | Producer |
| Leben des Galilei | 1947 | Writer |
| The Night of the Hunter | 1955 | Screenplay |