Portrait of Basil Rathbone

Basil Rathbone

Acting

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.

Born: June 13, 1892

Place of Birth: Johannesburg, South African Republic

Filmography

2005
The Adventures of Errol Flynn

as Self / Various Roles (archive sound) (archive footage)

1986
The Great Mouse Detective

as Sherlock Holmes (voice)

1985
The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes

as Sherlock Holmes (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)

1968
Autopsy of a Ghost

as Canuto Pérez

1968
The Movie Orgy

as Self (archival footage)

1967
Soldier in Love

as Duke of York

1966
1966
Queen of Blood

as Dr. Farraday

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
Tales of Terror

as Carmichael ("The Case of M. Valdemar")

1962
1962
Pontius Pilate

as Caiaphas

1961
Victoria Regina

as Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (Lord Beaconsfield)

1961
Dr. Kildare

as Frederick Foray

1959
1958
The Last Hurrah

as Norman Cass Sr.

1958
Aladdin

as Emperor

1957
The Lark

as Chief Inquisitor

1956
The Stingiest Man in Town

as Ebenezer Scrooge

1956
The Black Sleep

as Sir Joel Cadman

1956
Affair in Sumatra

as Paul Charters

1955
The Court Jester

as Sir Ravenhurst

1955
1955
We're No Angels

as Andre Trochard

1954
A Christmas Carol

as Marley's Ghost

1954
Casanova's Big Night

as Lucio / Narrator

1951
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
1949
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

as Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")

1949
The Wind in the Willows

as Narrator (voice)

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
Heartbeat

as Professor 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
1942
Crossroads

as Henri Sarrou

1942
Fingers at the Window

as Cesar Ferrari / Dr. H. Santelle

1941
Paris Calling

as Andre Benoit

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
Tower of London

as Richard - Duke of Gloucester

1939
Rio

as Paul Reynard

1939
1939
The Sun Never Sets

as Clive Randolph

1939
1939
Son of Frankenstein

as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein

1938
Breakdowns of 1938

as Basil (archive footage) (uncredited)

1938
The Dawn Patrol

as Maj. Brand

1938
If I Were King

as Louis XI

1938
The Adventures of Robin Hood

as Sir Guy of Gisbourne

1937
Tovarich

as Commissar Dimitri Gorotchenko

1937
Make a Wish

as Johnny Selden

1937
Confession

as Michael Michailow

1937
Love from a Stranger

as Gerald Lovell

1936
The Garden of Allah

as Count Ferdinand Anteoni

1936
1936
Private Number

as Thomas Wroxton

1935
Captain Blood

as Levasseur

1935
A Tale of Two Cities

as Marquis St. Evremonde

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. Edward 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 Reginald 'Reggie' Durant

1930
A Lady Surrenders

as Carl Vandry

1930
1930
The Flirting Widow

as Col. Smith

1930
A Notorious Affair

as Paul Gherardi

1930
This Mad World

as Paul Parisot

1929
1929
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney

as Lord Arthur Dilling

1926
1925
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
Innocent

as Amadis de Jocelyn