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Basil Rathbone

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Occupation
  
Actor

Books
  
In & Out of Character

Role
  
Actor

Name
  
Basil Rathbone

Years active
  
1911–67


Basil Rathbone rathbone71jpg

Full Name
  
Philip St. John Basil Rathbone

Born
  
13 June 1892 (
1892-06-13
)

Died
  
July 21, 1967, New York City, New York, United States

Children
  
John Rodion, Cynthia Rathbone

Spouse
  
Ouida Bergere (m. 1926–1967), Marion Foreman (m. 1914–1926)

Movies
  
The Adventures of Sherlo, Sherlock Holmes and the S, Dressed to Kill, The Scarlet Claw, The Pearl of Death

Similar People
  

Basil rathbone 1959


Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers and, occasionally, horror films.

Contents

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Rathbone frequently portrayed suave villains or morally ambiguous characters, such as Mr. Murdstone in David Copperfield (1935) and Sir Guy of Gisbourne in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). His most famous role, however, was heroic — that of Sherlock Holmes in fourteen Hollywood films made between 1939 and 1946 and in a radio series. His later career included roles on Broadway, as well as self-ironic film and television work. He received a Tony Award in 1948 as Best Actor in a Play. He was also nominated for two Academy Awards and won three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

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basil rathbone


Early life

Basil Rathbone wwwdoctormacrocomImagesRathbone20BasilAnnex

Rathbone was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, to British parents. His mother, Anna Barbara (née George), was a violinist, and his father, Edgar Philip Rathbone, was a mining engineer and scion of the Liverpool Rathbone family. He had two older half-brothers, Harold and Horace, as well as two younger siblings, Beatrice and John. Basil was the great-grandson of the noted Victorian philanthropist, William Rathbone V, and thus a descendant of William Rathbone II. The Rathbones fled to Britain when Basil was three years old after his father was accused by the Boers of being a spy after the Jameson Raid. He was a distant cousin of Major Henry Rathbone, who was present at the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and was seriously wounded trying to stop John Wilkes Booth.

Basil Rathbone Basil Rathbone Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

Rathbone attended Repton School in Derbyshire from 1906–1910, where he particularly excelled at sports. Thereafter, he was briefly employed by the Liverpool and Globe Insurance Companies, to appease his father's wish for him to have a conventional career.

Basil Rathbone Basil Rathbone

On 22 April 1911, Rathbone made his first appearance on stage at the Theatre Royal, Ipswich, Suffolk, as Hortensio in The Taming of the Shrew, with his cousin Sir Frank Benson's No. 2 Company, under the direction of Henry Herbert. In October 1912, he went to the United States with Benson's company, playing such parts as Paris in Romeo and Juliet, Fenton in The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Silvius in As You Like It. Returning to Britain, he made his first appearance in London at the Savoy Theatre on 9 July 1914, as Finch in The Sin of David. That December, he appeared at the Shaftesbury Theatre as the Dauphin in Henry V. During 1915, he toured with Benson and appeared with him at London's Court Theatre in December as Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream.

The Great War

Basil Rathbone Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and other links

At the end of 1915, Rathbone was called up via the Derby Scheme into the British Army as a private with the London Scottish Regiment, joining a regiment that also counted in its ranks his future professional acting contemporaries Claude Rains, Herbert Marshall and Ronald Colman at different points through the conflict. After basic training with the London Scots in early 1916 he received a commission as a lieutenant in the 2/10th Battalion of the King's Liverpool Regiment (Liverpool Scottish), where he served as an intelligence officer and eventually attained the rank of captain. Rathbone's younger brother John was killed in action on 4 June 1918. It was after this that Rathbone convinced his superiors to allow him to scout enemy positions during daylight rather than at night, as was the usual practice to minimize the chance of detection. Rathbone describes it thus in his autobiography "Camouflage suits had been made for us to resemble trees. On our heads were wreaths of freshly plucked foliage, our faces and hands were blackened with burnt cork." As a result of these highly dangerous daylight reconnaissance patrols in September 1918, he was awarded the Military Cross for "conspicuous daring and resource on patrol". Richard Van Emden in his book Famous 1914-18 speculates that this extreme bravery may have been a form of guilt or a need for vengeance following his brother's death.

Basil Rathbone basil rathbone sherlock holmes Wallpapers Free basil

Two letters written by Rathbone to his family while serving in the war have recently come to light and help to shed light on his mental state at this time.

Career

During the Summer Festival of 1919, he appeared at Stratford-upon-Avon with the New Shakespeare Company playing Romeo, Cassius, Ferdinand in The Tempest and Florizel in The Winter's Tale; in October he was at London's Queen's Theatre as the aide de camp in Napoleon, and in February 1920 he was at the Savoy Theatre in the title role in Peter Ibbetson with huge success.

During the 1920s, Rathbone appeared regularly in Shakespearean and other roles on the British stage. He began to travel and appeared at the Cort Theatre, New York, in October 1923 in a production of The Swan opposite Eva Le Gallienne, which made him a star on Broadway. He toured in the United States in 1925, appearing in San Francisco in May and the Lyceum Theatre, New York, in October. He was in the US again in 1927 and 1930 and again in 1931, when he appeared on stage with Ethel Barrymore. He continued his stage career in Britain, returning late in 1934 to the US, where he appeared with Katharine Cornell in several plays.

Rathbone was once arrested in 1926 along with every other member of the cast of The Captive, a play in which his character's wife left him for another woman. Though the charges were eventually dropped, Rathbone was very angry about the censorship because he believed that homosexuality needed to be brought into the open.

He commenced his film career in 1921 in silent movies and appeared in 1923's "School for Scandal", later appearing in The Masked Bride, appeared in a few silent films, and played the detective Philo Vance in the 1930 film The Bishop Murder Case, based on the best selling novel. In the film there is a coincidental reference to Sherlock Holmes. Like George Sanders and Vincent Price after him, Rathbone made a name for himself in the 1930s by playing suave villains in costume dramas and swashbucklers, including David Copperfield (1935) as the abusive stepfather Mr. Murdstone; Anna Karenina (1935) as her distant husband, Karenin; The Last Days of Pompeii (1935) as Pontius Pilate; Captain Blood (1935); A Tale of Two Cities (1935), as the Marquis St. Evremonde; The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) playing his best remembered villain, Sir Guy of Gisbourne; The Adventures of Marco Polo (1938); and The Mark of Zorro (1940) as Captain Esteban Pasquale. He also appeared in several early horror films: Tower of London (1939), as Richard III, and Son of Frankenstein (1939), portraying the dedicated surgeon Baron Wolf von Frankenstein, son of the monster's creator, and, in 1949, was also the narrator for the segment "The Wind in the Willows" in the animated feature, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad.

He was admired for his athletic cinema swordsmanship (he listed fencing among his favourite recreations). He fought and lost to Errol Flynn in a duel on the beach in Captain Blood and in an elaborate fight sequence in The Adventures of Robin Hood. He was also involved in noteworthy sword fights in Tower of London, The Mark of Zorro, and The Court Jester (1956). Despite his real life skill, Rathbone won only twice onscreen, against John Barrymore in Romeo and Juliet (1936) and against Eugene Pallette in The Mark of Zorro (1940). Rathbone earned Academy Award nominations for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performances as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet (1936) and as King Louis XI in If I Were King (1938). In The Dawn Patrol (1938), he played one of his few heroic roles in the 1930s, as a Royal Flying Corps (RFC) squadron commander brought to the brink of a nervous breakdown by the strain and guilt of sending his battle-weary pilots off to near-certain death in the skies of 1915 France. Errol Flynn, Rathbone's perennial foe, starred in the film as his successor when Rathbone's character was promoted.

According to Hollywood legend, Rathbone was Margaret Mitchell's first choice to play Rhett Butler in the film version of her novel Gone with the Wind. The reliability of this story may be suspect, however, as on another occasion Mitchell chose Groucho Marx for the role, apparently in jest. Rathbone actively campaigned for the role, however, but to no avail.

Despite his film success, Rathbone always insisted that he wished to be remembered for his stage career. He said that his favourite role was that of Romeo.

The Sherlock Holmes films

Rathbone is most widely recognised for his many portrayals of Sherlock Holmes. In a radio interview Rathbone recalled that Twentieth Century-Fox producer and director Gene Markey, lunching with producer-director-actor Gregory Ratoff and 20th Century-Fox mogul Daryl Zanuck at Lucey's Restaurant in Hollywood. Markey proposed a film version of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles. When asked who could possibly play Holmes, Markey incredulously replied, "Who?! Basil Rathbone!" The film was so successful that Fox produced a sequel which appeared later in 1939. Interest in Holmes cooled at Fox, but Universal Pictures picked up the character, and twelve feature films were made between 1941 and 1944 for release until 1947, all of which co-starred Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson.

The first two films, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (both produced by Fox in 1939), were set in the late Victorian times of the original stories. The later installments, produced by Universal, beginning with Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942), were set in contemporary times. The first three had World War II-related plots.

Concurrent with the films, Rathbone and Bruce reprised their film roles in a radio series, The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, which began in October 1939. Rathbone appeared in the radio series as long as the film series was active, but after the films lapsed in 1946, Rathbone ceded his radio part to Tom Conway. Conway and Bruce carried on with the series for two seasons, until both dropped out in July 1947.

The many Holmes sequels typecast Rathbone, and he was unable to shake himself completely free from the shadow of the Great Detective despite appearing in other film roles. Resenting the typecasting, Rathbone refused to renew his contract at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and returned to Broadway. In later years, however, Rathbone willingly made the Holmes association, as in a TV sketch with Milton Berle in the early 1950s, in which he donned the deerstalker cap and Inverness cape. In the 1960s, dressed as Holmes, he appeared in a series of TV commercials for Getz Exterminators ("Getz gets 'em, since 1888!'").

Rathbone also brought Holmes to the stage in a play written by his wife Ouida. Thomas Gomez, who had appeared as a Nazi ringleader in Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror, played the villainous Professor Moriarty. Nigel Bruce was slated to portray Dr Watson once more but became too ill and the part was played by character actor Jack Raine. Bruce's absence depressed Rathbone, particularly after Bruce died on 8 October 1953, while the play was in rehearsals. The play ran for only three performances.

Later career

In the 1950s, Rathbone appeared in two spoofs of his earlier swashbuckling villains: Casanova's Big Night (1954) opposite Bob Hope and The Court Jester (1956) with Danny Kaye. He appeared frequently on TV game shows and continued to appear in major films, including the Humphrey Bogart comedy We're No Angels (1955) and John Ford's political drama The Last Hurrah (1958).

Rathbone also appeared on Broadway numerous times. In 1948, he won a Tony Award for Best Actor for his performance as the unyielding Dr. Austin Sloper in the original production of The Heiress, which featured Wendy Hiller as his timid, spinster daughter. He also received accolades for his performance in Archibald Macleish's J.B., a modernisation of the Biblical trials of Job.

Through the 1950s and 1960s, he continued to appear in several dignified anthology programmes on television. To support his second wife's lavish tastes, he appeared as a panelist on the television game show The Name's the Same (in 1954), and he also took roles in cheap film thrillers of far lesser quality, such as The Black Sleep (1956), Queen of Blood (1966), The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966, wherein the character ' Eric Von Zipper' played by Harvey Lembeck jokes, "That guy looks like Sherlock Holmes"), Hillbillys in a Haunted House (1967, also featuring Lon Chaney Jr and John Carradine), and his last film, a low budget, Mexican horror film called Autopsy of a Ghost (1968).

He is also known for his spoken word recordings, including his interpretation of Clement C. Moore's "The Night Before Christmas". Rathbone's readings of the stories and poems of Edgar Allan Poe are collected together with readings by Vincent Price in Caedmon Audio's The Edgar Allan Poe Audio Collection on CD. Rathbone also made many other recordings, of everything from a dramatised version of Oliver Twist to a recording of Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf (with Leopold Stokowski conducting) to a dramatised version of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol.

On television he appeared in two musical versions of Dickens's A Christmas Carol: one in 1954, in which he played Marley's Ghost opposite Fredric March's Scrooge, and the original 1956 live action version of The Stingiest Man In Town, in which he starred as a singing Ebenezer Scrooge.

In the 1960s, he also toured with a one-man show titled (like his autobiography) In and Out of Character. In this show, he recited poetry and Shakespeare as well as giving reminiscences from his life and career (e.g., the humorous, "I could have killed Errol Flynn any time I wanted to!"). As an encore, he recited "221B" a poem written by writer-critic Vincent Starrett, one of the preeminent members of the Baker Street Irregulars whom Rathbone held in high regard.

Vincent Price and Rathbone appeared together, along with Boris Karloff, in Tower of London (1939) and The Comedy of Terrors (1963). The latter was the only film to feature the "Big Four" of American International Pictures' horror films: Price, Rathbone, Karloff and Peter Lorre. Rathbone also appeared with Price in the final segment of Roger Corman's 1962 anthology film Tales of Terror, a loose dramatisation of Poe's "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar."

In 1965 Belmont Books issued the anthology Basil Rathbone Selects Strange Tales, a collection of classic horror stories by Poe, Hawthorne, Bulwer-Lyttton, Charles Dickens, Allston Collins, Le Fanu, and Wilkie Collins. The volume features a cover portrait of Rathbone; however, the back cover's legend "Produced by Lyle Kenyon Engel" indicates the anthology was probably not edited by Rathbone himself. Canadian editor and book packager Engel packaged shows and magazines for other horror movie stars including Boris Karloff.

Basil Rathbone has three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: one for films, at 6549 Hollywood Boulevard; one for radio, at 6300 Hollywood Boulevard; and one for television, at 6915 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood.

Personal life

Rathbone married actress Ethel Marion Foreman in 1914. They had one son, Rodion Rathbone (1915–1996), who had a brief Hollywood career under the name John Rodion. The couple divorced in 1926. In 1924 he was involved in a brief relationship with Eva Le Gallienne. In 1927, he married writer Ouida Bergère; the couple adopted a daughter, Cynthia Rathbone (1939–1969). Their own baby had died some 11 years previously. The American actor Jackson Rathbone is a distant relation (a third cousin, several times removed). Basil Rathbone was a first cousin once-removed of the British campaigning independent MP, Eleanor Rathbone.

During Rathbone's Hollywood career, Ouida Rathbone, who was also her husband's business manager, developed a reputation for hosting elaborate and expensive parties in their home, with many prominent and influential people on the guest lists. This trend inspired a joke in The Ghost Breakers (1940), a film in which Rathbone does not appear: During a tremendous thunderstorm in New York City, Bob Hope observes that "Basil Rathbone must be throwing a party". Actress Mrs. Patrick Campbell described Rathbone as "two profiles pasted together". As cited in the same autobiography, Mrs. Campbell would later refer to him as, "a folded umbrella taking elocution lessons."

He was the cousin of the eminent actor Frank Benson, to whom he bore a strong resemblance.

He was a devout Episcopalian and a member of the Episcopal Actors Guild.

Rathbone died suddenly of a heart attack in New York City on 21 July 1967 at age 75. He is interred in a crypt in the Shrine of Memories Mausoleum at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.

Filmography

Actor
1968
Autopsia de un fantasma as
Canuto Pérez
1967
Hillbillys in a Haunted House as
Gregor
1967
Soldier in Love (TV Movie) as
The Duke of York
1966
Summer Fun (TV Series) as
Governor
- Pirates of Flounder Bay (1966) - Governor
1966
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini as
Reginald Ripper
1966
Queen of Blood as
Dr. Farraday
1965
Dr. Rock and Mr. Roll
1965
Dr. Kildare (TV Series) as
Frederick Foray
- Duet for One Hand (1965) - Frederick Foray
- Perfect Is Too Hard to Be (1965) - Frederick Foray
1965
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet as
Prof. Hartman - Lunar 7
1965
Burke's Law (TV Series) as
Milo James
- Who Killed Hamlet? (1965) - Milo James
1964
Suspense (TV Series) as
Steward
- The Leader (1964) - Steward
1963
The Comedy of Terrors as
Mr. John F. Black
1962
Two Before Zero as
Narrator
1962
Tales of Terror as
Carmichael (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
1962
Pontius Pilate as
Caiaphas
1962
The Magic Sword as
Lodac
1961
Victoria Regina (TV Movie) as
Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (Lord Beaconsfield)
1961
Mystic Prophecies and Nostradamus as
Narrator
1961
The Black Cat (Short) as
Voices (voice)
1960
The Christophers (TV Series)
- Tips for the Homemaker (1960)
1956
The Red Skelton Hour (TV Series) as
Hugh Rubicoff / Sir Robert
- Super-Cauliflower (1960) - Hugh Rubicoff
- The Sculpture Show (1956) - Sir Robert
1959
Fredric March Presents Tales from Dickens (TV Series) as
Ebenezer Scrooge
- A Christmas Carol (1959) - Ebenezer Scrooge
1958
The Last Hurrah as
Norman Cass, Sr.
1958
The DuPont Show of the Month (TV Series) as
Emperor
- Cole Porter's 'Aladdin' (1958) - Emperor
1958
Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates (TV Movie) as
Dr. Boekman
1956
Kraft Theatre (TV Series) as
General Zomback / Frederick Leeds
- Heroes Walk on Sand (1957) - General Zomback
- Five Minutes to Live (1956) - Frederick Leeds
1957
The United States Steel Hour (TV Series) as
Duke
- The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1957) - Duke
1957
The Lark (TV Movie) as
Chief Inquisitor
1956
The Alcoa Hour (TV Series) as
Ebenezer Scrooge
- The Stingiest Man in Town (1956) - Ebenezer Scrooge
1954
Shower of Stars (TV Series) as
Marley's Ghost
- A Christmas Carol III (1956) - Marley's Ghost
- A Christmas Carol (II) (1955) - Marley's Ghost
- A Christmas Carol (1954) - Marley's Ghost
1956
The Black Sleep as
Sir Joel Cadman
1956
Screen Directors Playhouse (TV Series) as
Paul Charters
- Affair in Sumatra (1956) - Paul Charters
1955
The Court Jester as
Sir Ravenhurst
1955
Star Tonight (TV Series) as
Narrator
- The Selfish Giant (1955) - Narrator
1955
Science Fiction Theatre (TV Series) as
Dr. Victor Berenson
- The Stones Began to Move (1955) - Dr. Victor Berenson
1955
Svengali and the Blonde (TV Movie) as
Svengali
1955
We're No Angels as
Andre Trochard
1955
The Eddie Cantor Comedy Theater (TV Series) as
Robert
- Always the Butler (1955) - Robert
1955
Encounter (TV Series) as
Captain Edward Fairfax Vere
- Billy Budd (1955) - Captain Edward Fairfax Vere
1954
Schlitz Playhouse (TV Series) as
The Jewel Thief
- Volturio Investigates (1954) - The Jewel Thief
1954
A Christmas Carol (TV Movie) as
Jacob Marley
1954
Studio One (TV Series) as
Hazelton Crome
- The House of Gair (1954) - Hazelton Crome
1954
Love Story (TV Series)
- The Yo-Yo People (1954)
1954
Casanova's Big Night as
Lucio / Narrator
1954
The Philip Morris Playhouse (TV Series)
- The Man They'd Murdered (1954)
1953
The Motorola Television Hour (TV Series) as
Duke
- The Thirteen Clocks (1953) - Duke
1953
Danger (TV Series)
- The Educated Heart (1953)
1951
Suspense (TV Series) as
Sherlock Holmes / Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
- The Adventure of the Black Baronet (1953) - Sherlock Holmes
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1951) - Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
1953
Broadway Television Theatre (TV Series) as
Benvenuto Cellini / Chief Inspector Tanner
- The Firebrand (1953) - Benvenuto Cellini
- Criminal at Large (1953) - Chief Inspector Tanner
1951
Lux Video Theatre (TV Series) as
Ambrose Wallington / Sir Paul Maxim / Frampton
- Miss Marlowe at Play (1953) - Ambrose Wallington
- Masquerade (1952) - Sir Paul Maxim
- Purple and Fine Linen (1951) - Frampton
1951
Betty Crocker Star Matinee (TV Series)
- An Inspector Calls (1951)
1951
Lights Out (TV Series) as
Gregory
- Dead Man's Coat (1951) - Gregory
1950
Nash Airflyte Theatre (TV Series)
- The Kind Mr. Smith (1950)
1949
The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre (TV Series)
- Queen of Spades (1950)
- At Night All Cats Are Grey (1949)
1949
The Ford Theatre Hour (TV Series) as
Mr. Brink
- On Borrowed Time (1949) - Mr. Brink
1949
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad as
Narrating the Story of Mr. Toad / Policeman (voice)
1949
The Wind in the Willows (Short) as
Narrator (voice)
1946
Dressed to Kill as
Sherlock Holmes
1946
Heartbeat as
Prof . Aristide
1946
Terror by Night as
Sherlock Holmes
1945
Pursuit to Algiers as
Sherlock Holmes
1945
The Woman in Green as
Sherlock Holmes
1945
The House of Fear as
Sherlock Holmes
1944
Frenchman's Creek as
Lord Rockingham
1944
The Pearl of Death as
Sherlock Holmes
1944
Bathing Beauty as
George Adams
1944
The Scarlet Claw as
Sherlock Holmes
1943
The Spider Woman as
Sherlock Holmes
1943
Crazy House as
Sherlock Holmes
1943
Sherlock Holmes Faces Death as
Sherlock Holmes
1943
Above Suspicion as
Sig von Aschenhausen
1943
Sherlock Holmes in Washington as
Sherlock Holmes
1942
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon as
Sherlock Holmes
1942
Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror as
Sherlock Holmes
1942
Crossroads as
Henri Sarrou
1942
Fingers at the Window as
Dr. H. Santelle
1941
Paris Calling as
Andre Benoit
1941
International Lady as
Reggis Oliver
1941
The Black Cat as
Montague Hartley
1940
The Mad Doctor as
Dr. George Sebastien aka Dr. Frederick Langamann
1940
The Mark of Zorro as
Capt. Esteban Pasquale
1940
Rhythm on the River as
Oliver Courtney
1939
Tower of London as
Richard, Duke of Gloucester
1939
Rio as
Paul Reynard
1939
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes as
Sherlock Holmes
1939
The Sun Never Sets as
Clive Randolph
1939
The Hound of the Baskervilles as
Sherlock Holmes
1939
Son of Frankenstein as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
1938
The Dawn Patrol as
Major Brand
1938
If I Were King as
Louis XI
1938
The Adventures of Robin Hood as
Sir Guy of Gisbourne
1938
The Adventures of Marco Polo as
Ahmed
1937
Tovarich as
Commissar Dimitri Gorotchenko
1937
Make a Wish as
Johnny Selden
1937
Confession as
Michael Michailow
1937
A Night of Terror as
Gerald Lovell
1936
The Garden of Allah as
Count Ferdinand Anteoni
1936
Romeo and Juliet as
Tybalt - Nephew to Lady Capulet
1936
Private Number as
Wroxton
1935
Captain Blood as
Levasseur
1935
A Tale of Two Cities as
Marquis St. Evrémonde
1935
Kind Lady as
Henry Abbott
1935
A Feather in Her Hat as
Captain Randolph Courtney
1935
The Last Days of Pompeii as
Pontius Pilate
1935
Anna Karenina as
Alexei Alexandrovitch Karenin
1935
David Copperfield as
Mr. Murdstone
1933
Loyalties as
Ferdinand de Levis
1933
One Precious Year as
Derek Nagel
1932
After the Ball as
Jack Harrowby
1932
A Woman Commands as
Capt. Alex Pastitsch
1930
Sin Takes a Holiday as
Reggie Durant
1930
A Lady Surrenders as
Carl Vandry
1930
The Lady of Scandal as
Edward Warrington
1930
The Flirting Widow as
Colonel John Smith
1930
A Notorious Affair as
Paul Gherardi
1930
This Mad World as
Paul Parisot
1929
The Bishop Murder Case as
Philo Vance
1929
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney as
Lord Arthur Dilling
1926
The Great Deception as
Rizzio
1925
The Masked Bride as
Antoine
1924
Trouping with Ellen as
Tony Winterslip
1923
The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots as
Undetermined Subordinate Role (uncredited)
1923
The School for Scandal as
Joseph Surface
1921
The Fruitful Vine as
Don Cesare Carelli
1921
Innocent as
Amadis de Jocelyn
Writer
2018
Musings of the Classic Sherlock Holmes Actor (TV Series) (autobiography - 38 episodes)
- Basil Rathbone on Claudette Colbert (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on the Time He Harboured a Fugitive (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Danny Kaye (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Alfred Hitchcock (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone's Ode to His Dog (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone's Short Story Tribute to Sherlock Holmes (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Amelia Earhart (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Seances with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on 'The Court Jester' (1955 Film) (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on 'A Tale of Two Cities' (1935 Film) (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Olivia De Havilland (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Why Shakespeare Shouldn't Be Taught in Schools (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on John Barrymore (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on his 1st Ever Performance (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Irving Thalburg (Film Producer) (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on His Wife Ouida Bergère. (2022) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on the Demise of Silent Film (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Greta Garbo (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on William Gillette's Sherlock Holmes Play (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on WW2 (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Mrs. Cheyney (1929 Film) (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Sir Laurence Olivier and the Difference Between Actors & Entertainers (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Orson Welles (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Why His Sherlock Holmes Play Failed (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Modern Society (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on the Aftermath of Qutting as Sherlock Holmes (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Marlene Dietrich (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Working in Television (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Adverts (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on His Favourite Sherlock Holmes Film (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Errol Flynn (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on the Garden of Allah & Falling Out with David Selznickw (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on the Medium of Radio vs. Television (2021) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on Starting his Acting Career. (2019) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on His School Days & Early Life (2019) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on returning to the Stage as Sherlock Holmes (2018) - (autobiography)
- Basil Rathbone on being Sherlock Holmes (2018) - (autobiography)
Miscellaneous
1986
The Rose King (voice: poem "The Raven")
1955
Captain Lightfoot (fencing instructor - uncredited)
Soundtrack
1956
The Alcoa Hour (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode)
- The Stingiest Man in Town (1956) - (performer: "Humbug", "I Wear A Chain", "Spirit Theme", "The Christmas Spirit", "One Little Boy", "I Wear A Chain', "Mankind Should Be My Business")
1946
Dressed to Kill (performer: "The Swagman", "Londonderry Air (Danny Boy)" - uncredited)
1943
Above Suspicion (performer: "The Eton Boating Song" - uncredited)
1939
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (performer: "I Do Like To Be Beside the Seaside" - uncredited)
1937
Confession (performer: "Sonata in A, K.331" (1783?), "Mazurka" (1935) - uncredited)
1937
A Night of Terror ("In the Hall of the Mountain King", uncredited)
1930
A Notorious Affair ("Second Movement: Andante" (1844), uncredited) / (performer: "Second Movement: Andante" (1844) - uncredited)
1929
The Bishop Murder Case (performer: "Waltz of the Flowers" (1891-2), "Waltz in A Minor, Op.34, No.2 ('Waltz Brilliante')" (1831-39) - uncredited)
Thanks
2016
Kingdom Rush Frontiers (Video Game) (inspiration)
2015
Mr. Holmes (in memory of)
2014
Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy (Video) (inspiration)
1986
The Great Mouse Detective (in memory of)
Self
1966
Baffling World of ESP (TV Movie documentary) as
Self
1965
The Sherlock Holmes Theatre (TV Series) as
Self - Host
1965
The Celebrity Game (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode dated 1 July 1965 (1965) - Self
- Episode dated 10 June 1965 (1965) - Self
1963
The Merv Griffin Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Frankie Avalon, Basil Rathbone, Vivian Vance, Michael Chaplin (1965) - Self
- Basil Rathbone, Adam Wade (1965) - Self
- Ginger Rogers, Basil Rathbone, Roger Williams, Lovelady Powell, Marc London (1965) - Self
- Basil Rathbone, Elsa Lanchester, Francois Truffaut, Adam Keefe, George Frazier, Leon Bibb (1963) - Self
- Charlton Heston, Diahann Carroll, John Daly, Dr. Albert Burke (1963) - Self
- Basil Rathbone, Margaret Leighton, George Frazier (1963) - Self
- Basil Rathbone, Genevieve, Guy Rotondo, Dr. Albert Burke (1963) - Self
1961
1, 2, 3 Go (TV Series) as
Self - Narrator
- Episode dated 26 November 1961 (1961) - Self - Narrator
1961
Here's Hollywood (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.122 (1961) - Self
1960
BP Super Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode dated 17 December 1960 (1960) - Self
1957
The Arthur Murray Party (TV Series) as
Self / Self - Actor
- Episode #11.20 (1960) - Self
- Episode #10.25 (1959) - Self - Actor
- Episode #9.7 (1958) - Self
- Episode #8.7 (1957) - Self
1959
Time to Remember (TV Series) as
Narrator
- Came the Dawn (1959) - Narrator
- 1896-1902: Turn of the Century (1959) - Narrator
1959
The Sam Levenson Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #3.61 (1959) - Self
1958
Make Me Laugh (TV Series) as
Self
- Basil Rathbone (1958) - Self
1958
The Betty White Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Pet Peeves (1958) - Self
1958
The Arlene Francis Show (TV Series) as
Self - Actor
- Episode #1.127 (1958) - Self - Actor
1957
Person to Person (TV Series documentary) as
Self
- Episode #4.18 (1957) - Self
1956
The Amazing Dunninger (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode dated 10 October 1956 (1956) - Self
1956
Stump the Stars (TV Series) as
Self
- Robert Alda, Basil Rathbone, Stubby Kaye, Dorothy Hart, Robert Strauss, Judy Tyler, Orson Bean, Carol Haney (1956) - Self
1956
The Tonight Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Basil Rathbone, Buddy Greco (1956) - Self
1956
Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall (TV Series) as
Self
- Ann Blyth, Basil Rathbone, Buddy Hackett (1956) - Self
1952
I've Got a Secret (TV Series) as
Self - Guest
- Episode dated 29 February 1956 (1956) - Self - Guest
- Basil Rathbone (1952) - Self - Guest
1955
Masquerade Party (TV Series) as
Self - Mystery Guest
- Episode dated 16 February 1955 (1955) - Self - Mystery Guest
1954
Schlitz Playhouse (TV Series) as
Self - Host / General Lee
- The General's Boots (1954) - Self - Host / General Lee
1954
The Name's the Same (TV Series) as
Self
- Billie Burke (1954) - Self
- Jean Hersholt (1954) - Self
- Jack Carson (1954) - Self
- Eddie Albert (1954) - Self
- Mickey Rooney (1954) - Self
- Phil Silvers (1954) - Self
- Mickey Spillane (1954) - Self
1949
The Milton Berle Show (TV Series) as
Self / Self - Sherlock Holmes
- Basil Rathbone, Mickey Spillane, Dagmar (1954) - Self - Sherlock Holmes
- Episode #5.12 (1952) - Self
- Episode #4.25 (1952) - Self
- Episode #4.23 (1952) - Self
- Episode #4.2 (1951) - Self
- Episode #1.46 (1949) - Self
- Episode #1.44 (1949) - Self
1953
Season's Greetings (TV Movie) as
Self
1952
Your Lucky Clue (TV Series) as
Self - Host
- Episode dated 18 September 1952 (1952) - Self - Host
- Episode #1.8 (1952) - Self - Host
- Episode dated 27 July 1952 (1952) - Self - Host
- Episode #1.1 (1952) - Self - Host
1951
Penthouse Party (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.34 (1951) - Self
1951
What's My Line? (TV Series) as
Self - Mystery Guest
- Basil Rathbone (1951) - Self - Mystery Guest
1951
The Jack Benny Program (TV Series) as
Self
- Claudette Colbert, Basil Rathbone, Robert Montgomery (1951) - Self
1951
The Frank Sinatra Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.25 (1951) - Self
1951
The Colgate Comedy Hour (TV Series) as
Self - Count Durand
- Host: Bobby Clark; Guests: Basil Rathbone, Sarah Churchill, Walter Abel, Mary Boland, Fran Warren, Danny Scholl, Nelson Case (1951) - Self - Count Durand
1950
Vienna Art Treasures (Documentary short) as
Narrator
1950
Showtime, U.S.A. (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.4 (1950) - Self
1950
Ford Star Revue (TV Series) as
Self
- Episode #1.11 (1950) - Self
1950
The Saturday Night Revue with Jack Carter (TV Series) as
Self - Guest Host
- Guest host: Basil Rathbone; guest star: Robert Merrill (1950) - Self - Guest Host
1950
Inside U.S.A. with Chevrolet (TV Series) as
Self
- Basil Rathbone (1950) - Self
1950
The Ken Murray Show (TV Series) as
Self
- Basil Rathbone/Jack Oakie (1950) - Self
1948
Tonight on Broadway (TV Series) as
Self
- The Heiress (1948) - Self
1945
Screen Snapshots Series 25, No. 4: Hollywood Celebrations (Documentary short) as
Self
1942
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 6 (Documentary short) as
Self
1940
Screen Snapshots Series 19, No 10 (Documentary short) as
Self
1940
Screen Snapshots Series 19, No. 5: Art and Artists (Short documentary) as
Self
1939
Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 10 (Documentary short) as
Self - Host
1938
For Auld Lang Syne (Documentary short) as
Self - Arriving Celebrity (uncredited)
Archive Footage
2021
Musings of the Classic Sherlock Holmes Actor (TV Series) as
Marquis St. Evrémonde / Alexei Alexandrovitch Karenin / Sherlock Holmes / ...
- Basil Rathbone on 'The Court Jester' (1955 Film) (2022)
- Basil Rathbone on 'A Tale of Two Cities' (1935 Film) (2022) - Marquis St. Evrémonde
- Basil Rathbone on Greta Garbo (2021) - Alexei Alexandrovitch Karenin
- Basil Rathbone on Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson (2021) - Sherlock Holmes
- Basil Rathbone on Mrs. Cheyney (1929 Film) (2021) - Arthur Dilling
2021
Boris Karloff: The Man Behind the Monster (Documentary) as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
2020
O! Melodious Saga: Part I (TV Movie) as
Sherlock Holmes
2020
The ComicWeb: Old Time Radio Programs (Podcast Series) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Sherlock Holmes: The Notorious Canaries (2020) - Sherlock Holmes
2020
Big Parade of Horror (Documentary) as
Son of Frankenstein
2019
Cineficción Radio (Podcast Series)
- Curtis Garland (2019)
- Arthur Conan Doyle (2019)
2019
Discovering Film (TV Series) as
Various
- Basil Rathbone (2019) - Various
2018
La galerie France 5 (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Sherlock Holmes contre Conan Doyle (2018) - Sherlock Holmes
2016
Leslie Howard: The Man Who Gave a Damn (Documentary) as
Self
2015
Duels (TV Series documentary)
- Dietrich, Garbo, l'ange et la divine (2015)
2013
Ninja the Mission Force (TV Series) as
Sorcerer Dan
- Bruce: A Dragon Story (2013) - Sorcerer Dan
2012
The Real Sherlock Holmes (TV Movie documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
2007
Cinemassacre's Monster Madness (TV Series documentary) as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein / Carmichael (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
- Son of Frankenstein (2011) - Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
- Roger Corman's Poe Films (2007) - Carmichael (segment "The Case of M. Valdemar")
2010
A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss (TV Mini Series documentary) as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
- Frankenstein Goes to Hollywood (2010) - Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (uncredited)
2010
Time to Remember (TV Series documentary) as
Self - Narrator
- Stage and Screen (2010) - Self - Narrator (as Sir Basil Rathbone)
2010
The Naked Archaeologist (TV Series documentary) as
Lodac
- Queen Esther & Purim (2010) - Lodac
2009
Elementary My Dear Watson: The Man Behind Sherlock Holmes (Documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
2007
Tasmanian Devil: The Fast and Furious Life of Errol Flynn (TV Movie documentary)
2005
Timeshift (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Baker Street Babylon: The Bizarre Afterlife of Sherlock Holmes (2005) - Sherlock Holmes
2005
Conan Doyle for the Defence (TV Movie documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
2005
Captain Blood: A Swashbuckler Is Born (Video documentary short) as
Various Roles
2005
The Adventures of Errol Flynn (TV Movie documentary) as
Self / Various Roles
2004
The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (Video documentary)
2002
The Frankenstein Files: How Hollywood Made a Monster (Video documentary short) as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (uncredited)
1999
Film Breaks (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Sherlock Holmes (1999) - Sherlock Holmes
1999
The Great Detectives (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- The Mysterious Affair of Sherlock Holmes and the Visionary Doctor (1999) - Sherlock Holmes
1998
Universal Horror (TV Movie documentary)
1997
Un siècle d'écrivains (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Arthur Conan Doyle, le père de Sherlock Holmes (1997) - Sherlock Holmes
1997
Twentieth Century Fox: The First 50 Years (TV Movie documentary) as
Captain Esteban Pasquale (uncredited)
1997
Nightmare: The Birth of Victorian Horror (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- The Hound of the Baskervilles (1997) - Sherlock Holmes
1996
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes (TV Movie documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
1995
Biography (TV Series documentary) as
Captain Esteban Pasquale
- Bela Lugosi: Hollywood's Dark Prince (1995)
- Darryl F. Zanuck: 20th Century Filmmaker (1995) - Captain Esteban Pasquale (uncredited)
1994
It's Alive: The True Story of Frankenstein (TV Movie documentary)
1993
Sprockets (TV Series) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Sherlock Holmes (1993) - Sherlock Holmes
1992
Dracula in the Movies (Video documentary) as
Dr. Farraday
1991
Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook (Documentary) as
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
1990
Classic Movie Bloopers (Video documentary) as
Self
1990
Hollywood Heaven: Tragic Lives, Tragic Deaths (Video documentary)
1989
Milton Berle, the Second Time Around: Carnival of Comedy (Video)
1988
Movie Bloopers (Video documentary) as
Self
1988
Rin Tin Tin: K-9 Cop (TV Series) as
Sherlock Holmes
- Code of Honour (1988) - Sherlock Holmes (uncredited)
1987
Reginald LeBorg - Man nannte mich den Alleskönner (TV Movie documentary) as
Sir Joel Cadman
1987
Forty Minutes (TV Series documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
- The Case of Sherlock Holmes (1987) - Sherlock Holmes
1986
The Great Mouse Detective as
Sherlock Holmes
1985
The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes (Video documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes
1983
The Horror of It All (TV Movie documentary) as
Carmichael (uncredited)
1982
Hollywood: The Gift of Laughter (TV Movie documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes (uncredited)
1979
The Horror Show (TV Movie documentary)
1976
That's Hollywood (TV Series documentary)
- The Great Detective (1976)
1974
Madhouse as
Carmichael (Clip from 'Tales of Terror')
1971
The Jarvis Collection: Scotland Yard (TV Movie documentary) as
Sherlock Holmes (uncredited)
1971
The Dick Cavett Show (TV Series) as
Sir Ravenhurst from film THE COURT JESTER
- Episode dated 4 February 1971 (1971) - Sir Ravenhurst from film THE COURT JESTER
1965
The Son of Frankenstein (Short) as
Frankenstein
1964
Hollywood and the Stars (TV Series documentary) as
Self
- The Swashbucklers (1964) - Self
1964
Horror!!! (TV Short documentary)
1963
Tri plyus dva as
Mystery Novel Character (uncredited)
1963
Hollywood: The Great Stars (TV Movie documentary) as
Sir Guy of Gisbourne (uncredited)
1955
The Magical World of Disney (TV Series) as
Narrator (edited from: The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad)
- The Wind in the Willows (1955) - Narrator (edited from: The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad)
1939
Land of Liberty as
Marquis St. Evremonde (edited from 'Tale of Two Cities')
1938
Breakdowns of 1938 (Documentary short) as
Basil (The Adventures of Robin Hood wardrobe test) (uncredited)

References

Basil Rathbone Wikipedia


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