Edward Van Sloan

Edward Van Sloan

Van Sloan in Dracula's Daughter (1936)
Born November 1, 1882(1882-11-01)
Minnesota, U.S.
Died March 6, 1964(1964-03-06) (aged 81)
California, U.S.
Occupation Actor
Years active 1916–1950
Spouse Myra Jackson (?-1960) (her death) 1 child

Edward Van Sloan (November 1, 1882, Minnesota – March 6, 1964, California)[1][2][3][4][5] was an American film character actor best remembered for his roles in Universal Studios horror films.

Contents

Career

Van Sloan's roles date from the 1930s, including Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931) and The Mummy (1932). In the first of these, he played Abraham Van Helsing, the famous vampire-hunter, a role he had first taken in the successful touring production of Dracula by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston. He played essentially the same role, this time as Dr. Muller, in The Mummy. He again played Van Helsing (inexplicably renamed 'Von Helsing') in the 1936 film Dracula's Daughter. In Frankenstein, he stepped in front of a curtain before the film's opening credits to warn audience members that they now had a chance to escape the theatre if they were too squeamish to endure the film.

Personal life

Van Sloan had a style of playing horror roles that was unmistakably his, speaking his lines in a slow, exaggerated style of elocution with rolling r 's. His grave is located in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania's Boehm Cemetery.

Partial filmography

References

  1. ^ 1885 Minnesota Census, County of Carver, p. 182, line 40.
  2. ^ 1910 U.S. Census, State of California, County of San Francisco, enumeration district 163, p. 12-A, line 2.
  3. ^ 1920 U.S. Census, State of New York, County of New York, enumeration district 955, p. 14-B, line 74.
  4. ^ Edward P. Vansloun, in: California Death Index, 1940-1997.
  5. ^ Edward Vansloun, in: Social Security Death Index.

External links