Charles Lawton (Loughton) was born in Scarborough, (Yorkshire, England) in the family of a hotel owner. After graduating from college, he worked as a hotel clerk, and later entered the Royal School of Dramatic Art. His professional acting debut took place in 1926 on the stage of the London West End in the play “The Inspector” based on the play by N.V. Gogol. Over time, he became one of the UK's leading theatre actors, and in his late 20s starred in several silent short comedies. While working on
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Charles Lawton (Loughton) was born in Scarborough, (Yorkshire, England) in the family of a hotel owner. After graduating from college, he worked as a hotel clerk, and later entered the Royal School of Dramatic Art. His professional acting debut took place in 1926 on the stage of the London West End in the play “The Inspector” based on the play by N.V. Gogol. Over time, he became one of the UK's leading theatre actors, and in his late 20s starred in several silent short comedies. While working on one of these films, he met his future wife, actress Elsa Lanchester; their marriage, beginning in 1929, lasted until his death. Having first visited the United States with the play “Deferred Calculation”, a year later he starred in the Hollywood adaptation of this play. Lawton’s acting talent allowed him to be convincing both in comic roles (If I Had a Million, 1932), as well as in the images of maniacs and villains in his early American films The Old Dark House (1932), Island of Lost Souls (1932). In 1933, he temporarily returned to the UK to film Alexander Korda’s famous film The Private Life of Henry VIII. The role of King Henry earned him an Academy Award in the Best Actor category, and he later starred with Corda in Rembrandt (1936). 30-40 years for Laughton became the most successful in his cinematic career; among the many films in which he starred in this period, in addition to the already mentioned, the most famous were Barretts from Wimpole Street (1934), Ruggles from Red Gep (1935), Mutiny at Bouncey (1935), Les Miserables (1935), I, Claudius (1937), Notre Dame of Paris (1939), Tales of Manhattan (1942), For a Day and Forever" (1943), "Kenville" (1944). Continuing to act in films, since the late 40s, he nevertheless increasingly began to turn to the theater. Among the performances in which he was engaged both as an actor and as a director were Galileo (which he himself translated into English from the original by Bertolt Brecht), Cherry Orchard, Don Juan in Hell, King Lear, and others. After many years in the United States, Lawton was granted American citizenship in 1950. Of the few films in which he starred in the last years of his life, it is worth mentioning Man on the Eiffel Tower (1949), Young Bess (1953), Witness for the Prosecution (1957), Spartacus (1960). In 1955, Lawton made his only film, Hunter's Night. This thriller, made in the genre of film noir, is now recognized as a classic of American cinema, at the same time it did not bring him any noticeable success. The last film in which the actor starred was the film “Council and Accord” (1962). On December 15, Charles Lawton died of cancer in Hollywood.