Mention these names: Vincent Price, Bela Lugosi, Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff. And you would have a congregation of horror-inflicting characters who would surely induce fear and discomfort in this collection. It must be noted that all these actors assumed roles which inspired horror and terrors to their audience. However, in real life, they were nothing like the scary characters they portrayed in the movies, that’s for sure. Actually, they were all nice and often cast a funny demeanor. Their roles in the movies would surely give us scary pictures of them, and they were abominable people you would not want to meet. But the scary characters they played in films have always been spoofed which never failed to delight the audience.
Boris Karloff was an English actor who did a great job in each of his horror films. His first acting role on a horror film that made him a star came with Frankenstein in 1931 as Frankenstein's monster. Due to the huge success of his first horror film, he went on to star in two more Frankenstein movies, Bride of Frankenstein in 1935 and Son of Frankenstein in 1939, which further cemented his status as a leading star in the horror genre. Following the success of his first horror film, he was cast as Imhotep in The Mummy (1932). After portraying the monster in three previous Frankenstein films for almost three decades earlier, he starred in another Frankenstein movie in 1958, this time as Frankenstein himself. Before his stardom came, Boris first acted on small stage plays and, later on, silent films until his role in the Frankenstein film. In 1941, he revisited his stage acting on Broadway's Arsenic and Old Lace, the only major play he was credited for. On occasions, he also appeared on radio shows, including Oboler's Lights Out! and Information Please. Boris was also adamant to appear on a quiz show to be aired on 13th Friday for unknown reason. He always spoofed his roles in horror films every time he appeared on the show.
A son of the Austrian-Hungarian Jewish couple, Peter Lorre began acting on stage at the age of 17 in Vienna. Later on, he moved to Germany in the late 1920s and found himself acting in more stage plays with German playwright until he was cast in the film M in 1931, his first acting role in a movie. His role as a serial killer affirmed his acting talent on film and he went on to star in Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much. Maybe because of his limited English, he was often cast as an obnoxious stranger in many of his Hollywood projects. His Hollywood film debut was Mad Love in 1935 and followed by a string of Mr. Moto movies. With Maltese Falcon in 1941 and Casablanca in 1942, Lorre played the role of Joel Cairo and Ugarte, respectively, with Humphrey Bogart and Sydney Greenstreet. He played a comic role (originally played by Karloff) as a murderer's cohort in the movie version of the original Broadway play Arsenic and Old Lace. Lorre occasionally appeared on radio shows often spoofing his roles in horror films, foremost of which was in Mystery in The Air, an anthology series.
Vincent Price completes the third installment of our terror-tripod. He debuted in a major horror film Tower of London in 1939 with Karloff. In the year that followed, he snared a title role in The Invisible Man Returns. All throughout the rest of the 1940s, he often starred as a villain, mostly in film noir genre. Like most of the popular stars during the period, he occasionally dabbled on radio roles, most notable of which was the The Saint. Price returned to star in horror films throughout the 1950s and 1960s. His roles in horror films were immortalized of sort in the revolutionary music video of Michael Jackson's Thriller featuring a voice over of Price on its video ad.
Our horror film stars appeared as guests on various different comedy shows in this Horror Actors Getting Laughed At collection. They often get to spoof their roles they were known for. While most of them are noticeably enjoying their moments on the show, one could also notice that, at times, they feel awkward acting before a live audience. Vincent Price, for instance, makes a faux pas when he tells a joke that goes pfft in his appearance on Duffy's Tavern.
Aside from Duffy's Tavern, the three actors mentioned above all appear on Jack Benny Program as well as Fred Allen Show. Karloff and Lorre appear, although months apart, in a similar sketch on Jack Benny Program. Bela and Karloff, similarly, both appear on the same sketch on a Fred Allen Show.
His role as Count Dracula on film and Broadway made Bela Lugosi one of the most enduring names in Hollywood history. While appearing on radio shows on occasions, Lugosi made the most impact in his career by appearing in horror films and lots of them. Today, though still active in the industry, he mainly works on low-budget films.
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