The power of Legendary Actor Bela Lugosi cannot be understated.
From his first on-screen appearance as Dracula his place in movie history was assured.
'Listen to them, Children of the night,'
Sadly for Bela this iconic role would also lead to a quarter century of typecasting
Say, why don't you forget that actor of Bela Lugosi? It's right up his alley.'
Bela went from Role to role oozing his malevolent charm,
and treating even the worst screenplay as if it had been scripted by Shakespeare himself
'Jungle!'
'That I will show the world I can be it's master!'
Whether he was playing a vampire a mad scientist or well himself,
he always delivered the most powerful performance in the film.
'Pull the string!'
As a cinematic villain he may also have had more screen deaths than any other actor,
and today we count down 10 of his best.
'Then burn me monsieur, light the fire.'
But first some dishonorable mentions,
Plan 9 from outer space Saw Bella's last screen performance,
Filmed walking away from his house his death is signalled by a screech of tires...
When resurrected he is about a foot taller
and holds a cape in front of his face to disguise the fact that it is not really Bella,
but Ed Woods wife's chiropractor.
'Oh, that's too bad.'
Also, we like our deaths on screen and with some kind of dramatic irony,
so films where bella gets shot as in The Mysterious Mr.. Wong
or Voodoo Man
Are excluded from our top ten?
In the Corpse Vanishes bella is stabbed in the back by a servant
Which oddly seems to render him blind?
'I can't see....'
Hardly seems fair when this guy is the hero.
'Do I get a byline?'
'After this you can have a clothes line with my shirt on it.'
My mystery of the Mary Celeste.
I didn't forget this I ship, I hate it!'
In this early Hammer film just for variation Bella plays a mad sailor,
who suffers a breakdown when he kills a man and eventually jumps off the ship to die in a watery grave.
Bella also appeared in serial adventure, S.O.S Coast Guard, where he plays yes a mad scientist.
'This is most opportune.'
After causing trouble for the heroes for 12 episodes,
he finally makes his escape from a James Bond Style Volcano lair
But is killed by his own poisonous gas which somehow sinks his speedboat.
Bowey at Midnight, a rare film where Bela is not some kind of mad scientist
Just a mad criminal, who hires a mad scientist...
'I'm still a great doctor.'
'And I'll prove it.'
Unknown to Bela, as fast as he is killing people off,
his mad scientist is bringing them back to life in the basement.
'How are you down there?'
A fact Bella only becomes aware of when he tries to hide there.
The Human Monster, has one of the most thrilling lugosi death sequences
involving gas grenades, shootouts, and whatever this guy is...
But it comes to a lackluster end when Bella falls from a window and drowns in a muddy puddle
Still an impressively spectacular ending for a movie mainly concerned with insurance fraud.
Murders in the Rue Morgue, Bela once again plays a mad scientist
who abducts young virgin women and injects them with eight blood to create a mate for his talking sideshow ape.
'Can you understand what he says?'
But as often happens the gorilla turns on Bela choking him to death.
When we think about classic horror icons one other name comes to mind.
Boris Karloff.
'Ready for the test Dracula?'
'I'm ready Frankenstein.'
'Then let us begin.'
And although Bela and Karloff were rumored to have had a rivalry,
they still appeared together in such films as The Raven, The Black Cat and The Body Snatchers.
It's here where Karloff exerts his dominance and chokes Bela to death.
The Devil Bat, as a mad perfume maker Bela exacts revenge by creating a giant bat,
training it to attack a particular scent,
Turning that scent into a perfume and then tricking his enemies to put it on.
Unfortunately for Bela he falls foul of his own plans and is killed by his own giant bat
White Zombie, as evil voodoo master, Bela commands a horde of zombies,
but it takes so much concentration, he doesn't notice the man stumbling behind him
who finally pushes Bela off a cliff breaking the voodoo curse
But Bela has the last laugh as his assailant loses his footing and follows swiftly behind...
at which point Bella's vulture thinks it's some sort of game and takes the dive as well.
And at number one...
Bride of the Monster, this time Bela Lugosi plays a mad scientist working in the woods to create...
'A race of atomic super-men...'
'Which will conquer the world.'
So far all the people he has tried his machine on have died...
But lucky for bella when his machine is turned on himself he only mutates
allowing him to escape into the woods where unfortunately he is attacked by his own giant octopus...
and struck by lightning...
causing an atomic explosion.
'He tampered in God's domain'
In the history of Cinema no one else has died like that.
That's Ten!
Ten Dead Bela Lugosis!
If you've got a film you'd like us to review leave a comment below
and don't forget to subscribe.
I love to count!
'I give all of me. I was greater than any real vampire.'
'Sure, sure but get off you makeup.'