Basil Rathbone is an American actor, an unrivaled performer for the role of the great detective Sherlock Holmes

The English actor Basil Rathbone (pictured in the article) is best known for the role of the detective Sherlock Holmes, a classic character with Baker Street, 221. The image of a private detective with an unchanged tube in his teeth was the best for him.

Basil Rathbone: Biography briefly

The actor was born June 13, 1892 in South Africa, the city of Johannesburg. His father was a specialist in mining, the mother professionally engaged in music in violin. As soon as Basil was three years old, the family left South Africa and returned to England.

Young Rathbone graduated from the Raptonian Secondary School. In 1916 he received baptism of fire on the fronts of the First World War, being drafted into a separate Scottish regiment. In the division he met his future colleagues: Claude Raines, Ronald Coleman and Herbert Marshall. The future actor suddenly had the ability to do military work, he conducted several sorties to gather intelligence, which significantly helped the command. Soon Basil Rathbone was awarded the Order of the Military Cross.

And again the UK

Upon his return to London, the demobilized captain of the Royal Armed Forces made his debut at the Ispuichi Theater. He played the character of Hortensio in the production of the Shakespearean play The Taming of the Shrew. In the twenties of the 20th century, Basil Rathbone regularly participated in performances of the most famous theaters in the UK.

Since 1923, the actor prefers to stay in San Francisco and New York. He is trying to find his niche in art. In 1927, Basil Rathbone, whose films did not make any impression on the viewer, decided to "buy" a partner for himself, counting on the double interest of the audience. He began to appear on stage in the company with actress Ethel Barrymore, who was quite popular at the time and could support Basil. They made a duet in several Broadway performances, but they did not produce the expected furore.

An evil character as an actor's image

In the early thirties of the 20th century, Basil Rathbone acquired the role of an aristocrat villain. All his characters were of an evil temper: the harsh Mr. Mardstone, the soulless Karenin from Tolstoy's novel Anna Karenina, the cruel Pontius Pilate of Pompeii's Death, the mean Captain Esteban Pasquale (The Sign of Zorro), the villain sir Guy Gisborne (The Adventures of Robin Hood ").

The actor also took part in horror movies of the early period, such as The Tower of Death, where he played Richard III, Frankenstein (the role of Baron Frankenstein Woolf, son of a monster).

Rathbone was considered the best swordsman in Hollywood, which helped him to "lose" in single combat with the enemy, if the scenario required it. Basil had to cede in the duels in the films "Zorro Sign", "Court Jester", "Tower of Death". Only in the film "Romeo and Juliet" he managed to defeat the Mercutio, who fell from the exact blow of the blade Basil. It was a duel in which the actor played Tybalda.

The first nominations for the "Oscar"

For the role of Tibald Basil Rathbone in 1937 was nominated for an Oscar, and two years later the same nomination was given to the actor for creating the image of King Louis Thirteenth in the film "Would I be king."

In 1938, the actor villain Rathbone played an unusual role for himself - a kind and understanding Major Brenda, the chief of the flying royal squadron, worried about the ordinary flight crew, which he sent to certain death.

"Gone With the Wind"

When the film project was based on the works of Margaret Mitchell, the writer read Rathbone as Rhett Butler. However, behind him was a trail of negative characters, that the viewer could simply not perceive it in a new way. The main role was approved by the inimitable Clark Gable.

Starring role

The real popularity came to the actor after he starred in a series of films about the great detective named Sherlock Holmes. Between 1939 and 1946, Basil Rathbone, the filmography Which at that time did not contain outstanding works, played in dozens of films produced on the works of the English writer Conan Doyle, the master of the detective genre.

Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, Mrs. Hudson - thanks to this trio, a lot of interesting stories were created, during which complex crimes were investigated. The first films ("The Hound of the Baskervilles" and "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes") laid the beginning of a whole series of paintings about the great detective - in the number of fourteen full-length films.

In addition to the production of films, Rathbone, along with Nigel Bruce, participated in special radio programs devoted to the adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

When the last film from the series about the great detective named "Prelude to Murder" was shot, Basil stopped appearing on the screen. Only once, after the story of Arthur Conan Doyle's "Adventure with the Black Baronet" was screened, Rathbone appeared in the preview of the film.

Personal life

In 1914, the actor married actress Ethel Foreman, who was six years older than her husband. A year later, the couple had a son, whom they called Rodion.

The couple lived together until 1926, followed by a divorce. The reason is Basil's infidelity, an adultery on the side with the actress Eva Le Gallienne.

In 1927, Rathbone married again. This time, her authoress was Wida Berger. Their children they did not have, but the couple adopted a girl named Cynthia. Basil and Weida became famous for hosting expensive parties in Hollywood. The supper with champagne was invited to the closest people from the professional environment.

The demise of the actor

July 21, 1967 Basil Rathbone overtook a heart attack. It happened in New York. The doctors could not help it. The last words the actor said, holding his wife's hand: "I'm not afraid of death, but it's better if it passes by."

Basil Rathbone was buried in a family crypt at the Faircliffe Cemetery.