Charles Laughton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Charles Laughton
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Promotional portrait of Charles Laughton for The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934)
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| Born | 1 July 1899 Scarborough, North Riding of Yorkshire, England
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| Died | 15 December 1962 (aged 63) Hollywood, California, U.S.
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| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom - United States |
| Education | Scarborough College Stonyhurst College |
| Alma mater | Royal Academy of Dramatic Art |
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| Years active | 1926–1962 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | |
Charles Laughton (born July 1, 1899 – died December 15, 1962) was a famous British actor. He learned acting in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He first performed on stage in 1926. In 1927, he met his future wife, Elsa Lanchester, while acting in a play. They lived and worked together for the rest of his life.
Laughton played many different kinds of characters. He was known for his roles in plays by Shakespeare at the Old Vic theatre. His acting career led him to Broadway in New York and then to Hollywood. He also worked with Alexander Korda on important British films. One of these was The Private Life of Henry VIII. For his role as King Henry VIII, he won an Academy Award for Best Actor.
He played many different characters, from kings to unusual people. Some of his most famous movies include The Barretts of Wimpole Street, Mutiny on the Bounty, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Later in his career, he also directed plays and one movie. This movie was the thriller The Night of the Hunter. It was not popular at first, but now it is considered a classic film.
Contents
Early Life and Acting Start
Charles Laughton was born in Scarborough, England, on July 1, 1899. His parents, Robert and Eliza Laughton, owned hotels. A special blue plaque now marks the house where he was born. His mother was a Roman Catholic, and she sent him to Scarborough College. Later, he attended Stonyhurst College, a well-known Jesuit school.
Laughton fought in World War I. During the war, he was affected by poison gas. He served in two different army battalions. After the war, he started working in his family's hotel. But he also loved acting in amateur plays in Scarborough.
In 1925, his family allowed him to study drama at RADA. There, the famous actor Claude Rains was one of his teachers. Laughton's first professional acting job was on April 28, 1926. He played Osip in a comedy called The Government Inspector. He also performed in other plays, showing his great talent. He played lead roles in plays like The Silver Tassie and Mr. Pickwick.
In 1931, Laughton went to the United States for the first time. He made his New York stage debut in a play called Payment Deferred. He returned to London in 1933 to act in several Shakespeare plays. He played important roles like Macbeth and Henry VIII. In 1936, he even performed in French at the Comédie-Française in Paris. He was the first English actor to do so and received a standing ovation.
Laughton started his film career in Great Britain while still acting on stage. He appeared in short silent comedies with his wife, Elsa Lanchester. These films were written especially for her by H. G. Wells. He also appeared in a silent film called Piccadilly in 1929. He and Elsa Lanchester sang a duet in a film revue called Comets (1930). He also made two early "talkies" (films with sound) in Britain.
His New York stage debut quickly led to offers for movies. Laughton's first Hollywood film was The Old Dark House (1932). In it, he played a businessman stuck in a spooky house. He then played a submarine commander in Devil and the Deep. One of his most famous roles that year was as Nero in The Sign of the Cross. He also played a murderer in Payment Deferred. He was Dr. Moreau in Island of Lost Souls. In 1932, he appeared in six Hollywood films.
His work with director Alexander Korda began in 1933. They made the very successful film The Private Life of Henry VIII. Laughton won an Academy Award for Best Actor for this movie. He also continued to act on stage sometimes. He performed in a US play called The Life of Galileo.
Film Career Highlights
Early Film Successes (1933–1943)
After his big success as Henry VIII, Laughton focused more on films. He returned to Hollywood. His next film was White Woman (1933). He acted with Carole Lombard in this movie. Then came The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934). He played the strict father of Norma Shearer's character.
In 1935, he played Inspector Javert in Les Misérables. One of his most famous roles was Captain William Bligh in Mutiny on the Bounty. He starred with Clark Gable in this film. He also played a very English butler in Ruggles of Red Gap (1935).
Back in the UK, he worked with Korda again. He played the main role in Rembrandt (1936). In 1937, he started filming I, Claudius. But the movie was stopped because his co-star, Merle Oberon, was injured.
After this, Laughton started his own film company in the UK. It produced three films starring Laughton. These included Vessel of Wrath (1938) with his wife, Elsa Lanchester. Another was St. Martin's Lane (1938). The last was Jamaica Inn (1939), directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
His film company did not make enough money. So, RKO Pictures offered Laughton the role of Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939). This helped save his company. World War II then began, which ended his company's plans. Laughton was often chosen for historical roles. He played characters like Nero, Henry VIII, and Quasimodo.
He later moved away from historical roles. He played a vineyard owner in They Knew What They Wanted (1940). He was a U.S. admiral in Stand By for Action (1942). He also played a butler in Forever and a Day (1943). Some critics thought his acting quality changed during this time. But others praised his performances.
Later Film Roles (1943–1962)
Laughton played a shy schoolmaster in This Land is Mine (1943). He worked closely with director Jean Renoir on this film. He also played a husband who murders his wife in The Suspect (1944). This film was directed by Robert Siodmak, who became his good friend. He starred in The Canterville Ghost, based on the Oscar Wilde story.
He appeared in two comedies with Deanna Durbin. These were It Started with Eve (1941) and Because of Him (1946). He played a pirate in Captain Kidd (1945). He was also a mean judge in Alfred Hitchcock's The Paradine Case (1947). Laughton played a powerful newspaper owner in The Big Clock (1948).
Laughton made his first color film in Paris. He played Inspector Maigret in The Man on the Eiffel Tower (1949). He also played a mad French nobleman in The Strange Door (1951). He was a tramp in O. Henry's Full House (1952). He played Captain Kidd again, but this time for laughs, in Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952).
In 1953, he played Herod Antipas in Salome. He also played Henry VIII again in Young Bess. This was a drama about Henry's children. He returned to Britain for Hobson's Choice (1954), directed by David Lean. Laughton was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in Witness for the Prosecution (1957). He played a British admiral in Under Ten Flags (1960). He also worked with Laurence Olivier in Spartacus (1960). His last film was Advise & Consent (1962). He received good reviews for playing a Southern US Senator in this film.
The Night of the Hunter
In 1955, Charles Laughton directed his only film, The Night of the Hunter. It starred Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, and Lillian Gish. His friend Paul Gregory produced the movie.
Today, many film critics say it is one of the best films from the 1950s. The United States National Film Registry has chosen it for preservation. However, when it first came out, it was not popular and did not make much money. Because of this, Laughton never directed another film. A documentary called Charles Laughton Directs The Night of the Hunter (2002) shows how he worked. It includes old film clips and Laughton's voice giving directions.
Theatre Work
Laughton' first stage performance in London was in The Government Inspector in 1926. He acted in many plays in London over the next few years. He was very successful as Hercule Poirot in Alibi (1928). He was the first actor to play this famous detective on stage. He also played William Marble in Payment Deferred. This play was his debut on the New York stage in 1931.
In 1926, he played Ficsur in the original London play Liliom. Even though he became famous for movies, he kept working in theatre. After the success of The Private Life of Henry VIII, he acted at the Old Vic Theatre in 1933. He played roles like Macbeth and Prospero in Shakespeare's plays.
In the US, Laughton worked with writer Bertolt Brecht. They created a new English version of Brecht's play Galileo. Laughton played the main role when the play first opened in Los Angeles in 1947. He also performed it later that year in New York. Brecht wrote an essay about how Laughton prepared for his role as Galileo.
One of Laughton's biggest theatre successes was directing and playing the Devil in Don Juan in Hell. This started in 1950. This part is from George Bernard Shaw's play Man and Superman. It is a philosophical debate between Don Juan and the Devil. Laughton presented it as a staged reading. He cast Charles Boyer, Cedric Hardwicke, and Agnes Moorehead with him. Boyer won a special Tony Award for his acting.
Laughton directed several plays on Broadway. His friend and producer Paul Gregory often produced them. His most successful play as a director was The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial in 1954. This play was based on a scene from Herman Wouk's novel The Caine Mutiny. Henry Fonda starred in it. Laughton also directed a staged reading of John Brown's Body in 1953. This was a long poem about the American Civil War. He did not act in these productions. He directed and starred in George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara from 1956 to 1957.
Laughton returned to the London stage in 1958. He directed and starred in The Party. Elsa Lanchester and Albert Finney were also in the cast. His last stage appearances were in 1959. He played Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream and King Lear at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre. Some critics felt his health affected these performances. Even though he did not act in plays after this, Laughton toured the US. He gave successful staged readings, including one at Stanford University in 1960.
Recordings and Voice Work
Laughton's voice was very special. He could shout loudly for the theatre or speak in a soft, gentle tone. His voice first appeared on records in the 1930s. These records featured short parts of soundtracks from popular films. He can be heard on records from The Private Life of Henry VIII and Mutiny on the Bounty. In 1937, he recorded Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. He had made a strong impression with it in the film Ruggles of Red Gap.
He made several other spoken-word recordings. One of his most famous was his album of Charles Dickens's Mr. Pickwick's Christmas. This was a twenty-minute version of a Christmas chapter from The Pickwick Papers. It was first released in 1944. It often appeared with another Dickens story, A Christmas Carol, read by Ronald Colman.
In 1943, Laughton recorded the Nativity story from St. Luke's Gospel. This was released on CD in 1995. An album called Readings from the Bible featured Laughton reading stories like Noah's Ark and David and Goliath. This was released in 1958. Laughton also narrated the story for the soundtrack album of his film, Night of the Hunter.
A two-record album called The Story Teller: A Session with Charles Laughton was released in 1962. It was taken from Laughton's one-man stage shows. It included readings from different sources. This album won a Grammy in 1962 for Best Spoken Word Recording.
Television Appearances
Laughton was a guest host on The Ed Sullivan Show on September 9, 1956. This was when Elvis Presley made his first appearance on the show. Over 60 million people watched it. That same year, Laughton hosted two classical music programs. These were called "Festival of Music". They were shown on the NBC television series Producers' Showcase. One of his last performances was on the show Checkmate. He played a missionary who had returned from China. He prepared for the role by traveling to China for several months.
Personal Life
In 1927, Charles Laughton began a relationship with Elsa Lanchester. They were acting together in a play. They got married in 1929. In 1950, they became citizens of the United States. They stayed together until Laughton's death.
They appeared together in several films. These included Rembrandt (1936) and The Big Clock (1948). Elsa Lanchester played Anne of Cleves, Henry VIII's fourth wife, in The Private Life of Henry VIII. Both Laughton and Lanchester were nominated for Academy Awards for their roles in Witness for the Prosecution (1957). Laughton was nominated for Best Actor, and Lanchester for Best Supporting Actress. Neither of them won that year.
Laughton owned a large property in Pacific Palisades, California. He supported the Democratic Party. He helped with Adlai Stevenson's campaign in the 1952 presidential election.
Death
In July 1962, Laughton went to the hospital. He had surgery for a problem with his spine. Doctors then found out he had cancer of the spine. He left the hospital in November. Charles Laughton died at home on December 15, 1962, from kidney cancer. His ashes were buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills).
Awards and Nominations
Laughton won the New York Film Critics' Circle Awards in 1935. He won for his roles in Mutiny on the Bounty and Ruggles of Red Gap.
Academy Awards
- 1933: Won Best Actor in a Leading Role, The Private Life of Henry VIII
- 1935: Nominated Best Actor in a Leading Role, Mutiny on the Bounty
- 1957: Nominated Best Actor in a Leading Role, Witness for the Prosecution
Charles Laughton has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It is located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard. This honors his important contributions to the movie industry.
Filmography
Television Roles
Laughton appeared as a guest in a few television shows:
- What's My Line? (1956-1960) as Himself (2 episodes)
- Wagon Train (1960) as Colonel Albert Farnsworth (1 episode)
- Checkmate (1961) as Reverend Wister (1 episode)
Theatre Roles
Actor
- 1926: The Revizor, by Nikolai Gogol (London debut)
- 1928: Alibi, adapted from The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (first actor to play Hercule Poirot)
- 1928: The Silver Tassie (premiere)
- 1931: Payment Deferred adapted from the novel by C. S. Forester (New York stage debut)
- 1947: Galileo by Bertolt Brecht
- 1950: The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov
- 1951 and 1952: Don Juan in Hell, from Man and Superman by George Bernard Shaw (also director)
- 1956–1957: Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw (also director)
- 1959: King Lear by William Shakespeare
Director
- 1932: The Fatal Alibi adapted from The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (also acted)
- 1951 and 1952: Don Juan in Hell by George Bernard Shaw (also acted)
- 1953: John Brown's Body, adapted by Laughton from Stephen Vincent Benét
- 1956–1957: Major Barbara, by George Bernard Shaw (also acted)
- 1954–1955: The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, adapted from the novel by Herman Wouk
- 1955: The Night of the Hunter, a film adapted by James Agee from the book by Davis Grubb
Producer
- 1955: 3 for Tonight (musical show)
Parodies
Warner Brothers cartoons made three cartoons that made fun of Laughton's acting style:
- 1955: Roman Legion-Hare (parody of Laughton as Emperor Nero)
- 1962: "Good Noose" (parody of Laughton as a ship's Captain)
- 1962: Shiskabugs (parody of Laughton as a spoiled king)
See also
In Spanish: Charles Laughton para niños
- List of actors with Academy Award nominations
