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Elsa Lanchester (October 28, 1902 - December 26, 1986 in Woodland Hills, California) was an Oscar-nominated English character actress.
Early life
Lanchester was born Elizabeth Sullivan in London, Great Britain. Her parents, James Sullivan and Edith Lanchester, were considered Bohemians in all aspects of the word, save the aspect of actually coming from the western Czech lands, refusing to legalize their union in any conventional way to satisfy the era's conservative society. Edith's parents even successfully sent her to an asylum for a while, as she refused to wed James even if she wanted to live with him. An older sibling, Waldo, completed the family.
As a child, Elsa studied dance under Isadora Duncan and later taught dancing herself to neighborhood children.
Career
Lanchester married actor Charles Laughton in 1929, and one of her first screen appearances was opposite him in The Private Life of Henry VIII (as a highly comical Anne of Cleves). This and other appearances in British films helped her gain the title role in Bride of Frankenstein (1935). She continued to appear with her husband, for example in Rembrandt (1936), but never made a name as a female lead, mainly because of her lack of conventional beauty.
Lanchester continued to act, making occasional film appearances such as the departing nanny, Katie Nanna, in the opening scenes of Mary Poppins, and a sleuth based on 'Jane Marple' in the 1976 murder mystery spoof, Murder by Death.
Private life
Following Laughton's death in 1962, she wrote a book alleging that they never had children because Laughton was actually homosexual. Actress Maureen O'Hara, a friend and co-star of Laughton, firmly refuted this. She claimed that Laughton had told her that his biggest regret was never having had children of his own. He also told her that the reason he and his wife never had children was because of a botched abortion she had early in her career while performing burlesque.
She died on Dec 26, 1986 from pneumonia.
External links
1902 births | 1986 deaths | American character actors | American film actors | Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nominees | English character actors | English film actors | English American actors | Naturalized citizens of the United States | Londoners | British silent film actors | People who use their mother's surname
"Elsa Lanchester"