Basil Rathbone
June 13, 1892 (134 years old) in Johannesburg, South African Republic
Sir Basil Rathbone, KBE, MC, Kt (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967), was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films. He frequently portrayed suave villains or morally ambiguous characters, such as 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 Broadway and television work; he received a Tony Award in 1948 as Best Actor in a Play.
Known For
Credits
- 2005 · The Adventures of Errol Flynn as Self / Various Roles (archive sound) (archive footage)
- 1992 · Dracula in the Movies as (archive footage)
- 1991 · Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (archive footage)
- 1983 · The Horror of It All as Carmichael (archive footage)
- 1979 · The Horror Show as (archive footage)
- 1974 · Madhouse as Basil (archive footage)
- 1966 · Queen of Blood as Dr. Farraday
- 1962 · Pontius Pilate as Caiaphas
- 1959 · Tales from Dickens as Scrooge
- 1956 · The Black Sleep as Sir Joel Cadman
- 1954 · A Christmas Carol as Marley's Ghost
- 1954 · The General's Boots as General Lee
- 1949 · The Wind in the Willows as Narrator (voice)
- 1946 · Heartbeat as Professor Aristide
- 1945 · Pursuit to Algiers as Sherlock Holmes
- 1944 · Frenchman's Creek as Lord Rockingham
- 1944 · The Scarlet Claw as Sherlock Holmes
- 1943 · Crazy House as Sherlock Holmes
- 1942 · Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6 as Himself
- 1942 · Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror as Sherlock Holmes
- 1941 · Paris Calling as Andre Benoit
- 1939 · Tower of London as Richard - Duke of Gloucester
- 1939 · The Sun Never Sets as Clive Randolph
- 1938 · Breakdowns of 1938 as Basil (archive footage) (uncredited)
- 1938 · The Dawn Patrol as Maj. Brand
- 1938 · If I Were King as Louis XI
- 1937 · Make a Wish as Johnny Selden
- 1936 · The Garden of Allah as Count Ferdinand Anteoni
- 1936 · Private Number as Thomas Wroxton
- 1935 · Kind Lady as Henry Abbott
- 1935 · A Feather in Her Hat as Captain Randolph Courtney
- 1933 · Loyalties as Ferdinand de Levis
- 1930 · A Lady Surrenders as Carl Vandry
- 1930 · The Lady of Scandal as Edward
- 1930 · This Mad World as Paul Parisot
- Future · Marlene Dietrich: Home Movies as Himself
- 1996 · In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes as
- 1986 · The Great Mouse Detective as Sherlock Holmes (voice)
- 1985 · The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes as Sherlock Holmes (archive footage)
- 1968 · Autopsy of a Ghost as Canuto Pérez
- 1968 · The Movie Orgy as Self (archival footage)
- 1967 · Hillbillys in a Haunted House as Gregor
- 1967 · Soldier in Love as Duke of York
- 1966 · Summer Fun as
- 1966 · The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini as Reginald Ripper
- 1965 · Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet as Prof. Hartman, Lunar 7
- 1964 · The Comedy of Terrors as John F. Black
- 1963 · Burke's Law as Milo James
- 1962 · Two Before Zero as
- 1962 · The Merv Griffin Show as Self
- 1962 · Tales of Terror as Carmichael ("The Case of M. Valdemar")
- 1962 · The Magic Sword as Lodac
- 1961 · Victoria Regina as Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (Lord Beaconsfield)
- 1961 · Dr. Kildare as Frederick Foray
- 1961 · Mystic Prophecies and Nostradamus as Narrator
- 1960 · The Black Cat as
- 1959 · A Christmas Carol as Scrooge
- 1958 · The Last Hurrah as Norman Cass Sr.
- 1958 · Aladdin as Emperor
- 1958 · Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates as Dr. Boekman
- 1957 · DuPont Show of the Month as Emperor
- 1957 · The Lark as Chief Inquisitor
- 1956 · The Stingiest Man in Town as Ebenezer Scrooge
- 1956 · Affair in Sumatra as Paul Charters
- 1955 · The Court Jester as Sir Ravenhurst
- 1955 · Screen Director's Playhouse as Paul Charters
- 1955 · We're No Angels as Andre Trochard
- 1954 · Casanova's Big Night as Lucio / Narrator
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Inquisitor
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Dr. Boekman
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Lord Beaconsfield
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as The Duke of York
- 1951 · Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as Self - Host / General Lee
- 1951 · Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as The Jewel Thief
- 1950 · The Jack Benny Program as Basil Rathbone
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Frampton
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Sir Paul Maxim
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Ambrose Wallington
- 1950 · Your Show of Shows as
- 1950 · What's My Line? as Self
- 1949 · The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad as Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")
- 1949 · Lights Out as
- 1949 · Suspense as Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde
- 1949 · Suspense as Sherlock Holmes
- 1948 · Studio One as Hazelton Crome
- 1946 · Dressed to Kill as Sherlock Holmes
- 1946 · Terror by Night as Sherlock Holmes
- 1945 · The Woman in Green as Sherlock Holmes
- 1945 · The House of Fear as Sherlock Holmes
- 1944 · The Pearl of Death as Sherlock Holmes
- 1944 · Bathing Beauty as George Adams
- 1943 · The Spider Woman 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 · Crossroads as Henri Sarrou
- 1942 · Fingers at the Window as Cesar Ferrari / Dr. H. Santelle
- 1941 · International Lady as Reggie Oliver
- 1941 · The Black Cat as Montague Hartley
- 1940 · The Mad Doctor as Dr. George Sebastian / Dr. Langamann
- 1940 · The Mark of Zorro as Captain Esteban Pasquale
- 1940 · Rhythm on the River as Oliver Courtney
- 1939 · Rio as Paul Reynard
- 1939 · The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes as Sherlock Holmes
- 1939 · The Hound of the Baskervilles as Sherlock Holmes
- 1939 · Son of Frankenstein as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
- 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 · Confession as Michael Michailow
- 1937 · Love from a Stranger as Gerald Lovell
- 1936 · Romeo and Juliet as Tybalt
- 1935 · Captain Blood as Levasseur
- 1935 · A Tale of Two Cities as Marquis St. Evremonde
- 1935 · The Last Days of Pompeii as Pontius Pilate
- 1935 · Anna Karenina as Alexei Alexandrovitch Karenin
- 1935 · David Copperfield as Mr. Edward Murdstone
- 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 Reginald 'Reggie' Durant
- 1930 · The Flirting Widow as Col. Smith
- 1930 · A Notorious Affair as Paul Gherardi
- 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
- 1924 · The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots as Undetermined Subordinate Role
- 1923 · The School for Scandal as Joseph Surface
- 1921 · The Fruitful Vine as Don Cesare Carelli
- 1921 · Innocent as Amadis de Jocelyn