Basil Rathbone
Date of birth: 1892-06-13
Place of birth: Johannesburg, South African Republic
Known for: Acting
Also known as: Sir Basil Rathbone, Philip St. John Basil Rathbone, Бэзил Рэтбоун
Biography
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.
Movie Credits
Son of Frankenstein
1939-01-13
One of the sons of late Dr. Henry Frankenstein finds his father's ghoulish creation in a coma and re
The Spider Woman
1943-12-24
Sherlock Holmes investigates a series of so-called "pajama suicides". He knows the female villain be
The Movie Orgy
1968-01-01
Clips from assorted television programs, B-movies, commercials, music performances, newsreels, bloop
The Adventures of Robin Hood
1938-05-13
Robin Hood fights nobly for justice against the evil Sir Guy of Gisbourne while striving to win the
Terror by Night
1946-02-01
Holmes and Watson board a passenger train bound from London to Edinburgh, to guard the Star of Rhode
Dressed to Kill
1946-05-24
A convicted thief in Dartmoor prison hides the location of the stolen Bank of England printing plate
We're No Angels
1955-07-07
Three convicts escape from prison on Devil's Island just before Christmas and arrive at a nearby Fre
The Court Jester
1955-12-24
A hapless carnival performer masquerades as the court jester as part of a plot against a usurper who
The Mark of Zorro
1940-11-08
In 1820 Spain, the son of a California nobleman comes home to find his native land under a villainou
Above Suspicion
1943-05-31
Two newlyweds spy on the Nazis for the British Secret Service during their honeymoon in Europe.
The Hound of the Baskervilles
1939-03-24
When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Ho
Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror
1942-09-18
England, at the start of World War Two. Mysterious wireless broadcasts, apparently from Nazi Germany
Autopsy of a Ghost
1968-11-07
Satan offers a weary ghost a chance for redemption through true love.
The Magic Sword
1962-04-01
The son of a sorceress, armed with weapons, armour and six magically summoned knights, goes on a que
The House of Fear
1945-03-16
The Good Comrades are a collection of varied gentlemen who crave one thing - solitude. They reside a
The Pearl of Death
1944-08-01
The famous Borgia Pearl, a valuable gem with a history of bringing murder and misfortune to its owne
The Scarlet Claw
1944-05-18
When a woman is found dead with her throat torn out, the local villagers blame a supernatural monste
The Great Mouse Detective
1986-07-02
When the diabolical Professor Ratigan kidnaps London's master toymaker, the brilliant master of disg
Queen of Blood
1966-03-01
A spaceship is sent to Mars after an alien distress signal is picked up. They find one survivor, but
Rio
1939-09-29
Diabolical French capitalist Paul Reynard is forced to leave Irene, his bride of one year, when he i
The Woman in Green
1945-06-15
Sherlock Holmes investigates when young women around London turn up murdered, each with a finger sev
The Horror Show
1979-02-06
A history of horror movies.
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
1949-10-05
The Wind in the Willows: Concise version of Kenneth Grahame's story of the same name. J. Thaddeus To
Tower of London
1939-11-17
In the 15th century Richard Duke of Gloucester, aided by his club-footed executioner Mord, eliminate
The Black Sleep
1956-06-15
In 19th century England, a noted brain surgeon rescues a former student from being hanged on a false
The Black Cat
1941-05-02
Greedy heirs wait in a mansion for a rich cat lover to die, only to learn her cats come first.
Love from a Stranger
1937-04-18
Ann Harding plays a lovely but somewhat naive young woman who goes on a European vacation after winn
Crazy House
1943-10-08
Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson are Broadway stars who return to Universal Studios to make another movie.
The Mad Doctor
1940-12-20
A reporter sleuths the mystery behind an oft-married Viennese doctor whose wives met mysterious fate
Tales of Terror
1962-07-04
Three stories adapted from the work of Edgar Allen Poe: 1) A man and his daughter are reunited, but
Heartbeat
1946-05-01
A female escapee from a reform school joins a pickpocket academy in Paris.
The Comedy of Terrors
1964-01-22
An undertaker who hasn't had any 'customers' in a long time is forced to pay one year's back-rent. T
Crossroads
1942-07-23
A French diplomat who's recovered from amnesia is blackmailed over crimes he can't remember.
Tovarich
1937-12-25
When upper-class Parisian Charles Dupont and his family hire Tina and Michel as their servants, they
Bathing Beauty
1944-06-27
After breaking up with her fiancé, a gym teacher returns to work at a women's college, but a legal l
Sherlock Holmes in Washington
1943-03-24
In World War II, a British secret agent carrying a vitally important document is kidnapped en route
The Bishop Murder Case
1929-12-31
The murders start with the body of Robin. He is found with a arrow through the heart, but Vance dedu
Romeo and Juliet
1936-09-03
Young love is poisoned by a generations long feud between two noble families.
David Copperfield
1935-01-18
A young man journeys from a difficult childhood to maturity, exploring social injustice, personal de
Captain Blood
1935-12-26
Dr. Peter Blood, unjustly convicted of treason and exiled from England, becomes a notorious pirate.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
1939-09-01
Having once again avoided criminal conviction, Professor Moriarity develops a murderous plan to “fin
Fingers at the Window
1942-04-22
In Chicago, an unemployed actor aims to solve the mystery concerning a string of ax murders, apparen
The Dawn Patrol
1938-12-24
In 1915 France, Major Brand commands the 39th Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. The young airmen g
A Tale of Two Cities
1935-12-25
Set against the conditions leading up to the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, French docto
The Masked Bride
1925-12-13
An American millionaire wants to reform a Parisian cabaret singer who moonlights as a jewel thief.
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon
1942-12-25
In the midst of World War II, Sherlock Holmes rescues the Swiss inventor of a new bomb-sight from th
The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots
1924-02-04
The Dauphin's widow weds a lord and is executed for plotting against the queen.
One Precious Year
1933-02-01
A classy woman has an affair with a rake after she learns that she has a terminal disease
Trouping with Ellen
1924-10-05
Ellen Llewellyn is a chorus girl who is loved by orchestra leader Andy Owens, a genuinely nice guy.
Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates
1958-02-09
In Holland, poor but industrious and honorable 15-year-old Hans Brinker and his younger sister yearn
Pursuit to Algiers
1945-10-26
After the King of Rovenia has been assassinated, Holmes and Watson are engaged to escort his son to
Sherlock Holmes Faces Death
1943-09-17
During WWII several murders occur at a convalescent home where Dr. Watson has volunteered his servic
Anna Karenina
1935-08-30
In 19th century Russia a woman in a respectable marriage to a senior statesman must grapple with her
Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet
1965-08-01
In 2020, after the colonization of the moon, the spaceships Vega, Sirius and Capella are launched fr
The Last Hurrah
1958-12-31
In a changing world where television has become the main source of information, Adam Caulfield, a yo
The Lark
1957-02-10
Adaptation of Jean Anouilh's 1952 play about Joan of Arc, the young girl who led the French to victo
Confession
1937-08-19
Vera Kowalska is put on trial for murdering concert pianist Michael Michailow. In court it is reveal
Casanova's Big Night
1954-04-07
Italy 1757, Pippo Popolino, a lowly tailor, disguises himself as the great Casanova in order to roma
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini
1966-04-06
A corpse has 24 hours to mastermind a good deed without leaving his crypt, to go "up there" and have
Paris Calling
1941-12-04
Marianne Jannetier, a well-to-do Parisian, engaged to Andre Benoit, a high-ranking government offici
Hillbillys in a Haunted House
1967-05-01
Country singers on their way to Nashville have car trouble, forcing them to stop at an old haunted m
The Wind in the Willows
1949-05-10
This animated fairy tale for kids tells the classic story of a dapper, automobile loving fellow name
The Adventures of Errol Flynn
2005-04-05
A documentary about the life of Errol Flynn, with recollections from friends and family.
If I Were King
1938-09-28
King Louis XI masquerades as a commoner in Paris, seeking out the treachery he is sure lurks in his
Rhythm on the River
1940-08-28
Popular songwriter Oliver Courtney has been getting by for years using one ghost writer for his musi
The Garden of Allah
1936-10-14
The star-crossed desert romance of a cloistered woman and a renegade monk.
Frenchman's Creek
1944-09-20
An English lady falls in love with a French pirate after he kidnaps her from her ancestral home on t
Frankenstein: A Cinematic Scrapbook
1991-01-01
Documentary with a treasure trove of rare footage and vintage trailers, offering a rich and unusual
The Adventures of Marco Polo
1938-04-07
The Venetian traveler Marco Polo meets Kublai Khan and foils a plotter with fireworks in medieval Ch
Sin Takes a Holiday
1930-11-10
Dowdy Sylvia accepts her boss' marriage proposal, even though he only asked her to avoid marriage to
A Notorious Affair
1930-04-26
A scheming musician seduces a wealthy woman for love and money.
The Last Days of Pompeii
1935-10-18
In this action-filled spectacle set in ancient Pompeii, a blacksmith becomes a Roman gladiator, thou
Pontius Pilate
1962-02-15
The events that culminated with the Passion of Christ seen from the perspective of Pontius Pilate, t
Kind Lady
1935-12-06
Mary, a woman with good intentions, takes pity on Henry, an artist with no home. What begins as a si
The Sun Never Sets
1939-05-31
The Randolph family have a tradition of working in the British colonial service. Clive comes home fr
Make a Wish
1937-09-01
While vacationing at a boys' camp, the rambunctious Chip Winters befriends a famed composer Johnny S
Loyalties
1933-07-02
A houseguest at an upper-class gathering, wealthy Jew Ferdinand de Levis, is robbed of £1,000 with e
The Lady of Scandal
1930-05-24
A famous British actress gets involved with two members of a reserved British noble family, whose pl
The Flirting Widow
1930-05-11
An older daughter invents a fiancé so that her father will allow her younger sister to marry. Howeve
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney
1929-07-06
There is a big charity function at the house of Mrs. Cheyney and a lot of society is present. With h
A Feather in Her Hat
1935-10-25
After the woman who raised him claims he's not her son, Richard searches for clues about his identit
Private Number
1936-06-05
Ellen Neal, a young and inexperienced maid, becomes romantically involved with her employers son whi
A Lady Surrenders
1930-10-06
A wealthy industrialist's wife gets into a big argument with him; to cool off, she goes on an ocean
The Horror of It All
1983-02-23
A collection of film clips from horror movies and interviews with the actors and directors who made
This Mad World
1930-04-11
Parisot, a French spy in World War 1, returns home on a secret mission to visit his mother, and find
The General's Boots
1954-07-23
A martinet of a general, one of his former officers, and a middle aged plane passenger find themselv
A Christmas Carol
1954-12-01
Miser Ebenezer Scrooge is awakened on Christmas Eve by spirits who reveal to him his own miserable e
Victoria Regina
1961-11-30
1961 adaptation of "Victoria Regina".
After the Ball
1932-11-23
The wife of a diplomat in Geneva pretends to be a maid in order to continue her flirting with a hand
Soldier in Love
1967-04-26
The story of the Churchills in the court of Queen Anne.
The Great Deception
1926-07-26
Cyril Mansfield, a handsome young Englishman, is associated with the German Secret Service as a spy
A Woman Commands
1932-02-12
In order to keep his lover, Maria Draga, in luxury, Captain Alex Pastitsch contracts huge debts whic
International Lady
1941-10-16
Tim Hanley, an American agent, posing as a lawyer with the United States Embassy in London, and Reg
The Black Cat
1960-01-01
A two-reeler based on Edgar Allen Poe’s classic tale.
The Fruitful Vine
1921-09-01
An old knight weds his dead friend's daughter but she gives herself to an Italian Don to bear an hei
Breakdowns of 1938
1938-12-31
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1938.
The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes
1985-01-01
This documentary examines the making of the Sherlock Holmes cinematic dynasty and includes interview
Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6
1942-10-05
Narrator Hopper covers two war benefit affairs, a garden party and a USO fashion show, at Pickfair,
The School for Scandal
1923-09-12
An uncle poses as a usurer to learn which nephew deserves his fortune.
A Christmas Carol
1959-12-27
Another version of the Dickens classic. Originally an episode of Fredric March Presents Tales from
Innocent
1921-03-01
An orphan named Innocence leaves her county home after her foster-father dies. She travels to the c
Two Before Zero
1962-10-31
A black-robed purveyor of communism is periodically interrupted by the questions of a white-robed ev
Aladdin
1958-02-21
Cole Porter's version of the story of Aladdin--his only musical written especially for television.
The Stingiest Man in Town
1956-12-23
This is a musical version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol". Ebenezer Scrooge is given a chanc
In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes
1996-07-01
Actor Patrick Macnee leads the viewer through London in the footsteps of the genius private investig
Madhouse
1974-05-22
A horror movie star returns to his famous role after years in a mental institution but the character
Affair in Sumatra
1956-02-22
On a rubber plantation in Sumatra, a woman of mixed Dutch and Indonesian parentage must choose betwe