Barbara Steele | |
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![]() Steele in a 1965 publicity photo | |
Born | Birkenhead, England | 29 December 1937
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1958–present |
Spouse | |
Children | 1 |
Barbara Steele (born 29 December 1937) [1] is an English film actress known for starring in Italian gothic horror films of the 1960s. She has been referred to as the "Queen of All Scream Queens" [2] and "Britain's first lady of horror". [3] She played the dual role of Asa and Katia Vajda in Mario Bava's landmark film Black Sunday (1960), and starred in The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962), The Long Hair of Death (1964), and Castle of Blood (1964).
Additionally, Steele had supporting roles in Federico Fellini's 8½ (1963), David Cronenberg's Shivers (1975), Joe Dante's Piranha and Louis Malle's Pretty Baby (both 1978), and appeared on television in the 1991 TV series Dark Shadows . She won a Primetime Emmy Award for producing the American television miniseries War and Remembrance (1988–1989). Steele appeared in several films in the 2010s, including a lead role in The Butterfly Room (2012) and supporting role in Ryan Gosling's Lost River (2014).
Steele was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire. [4] She studied art at the Chelsea Art School and in Paris at the Sorbonne. [4]
During the 1960s, Steele starred in a string of Italian horror films, including Black Sunday (1960), The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962), The Ghost (1963), The Long Hair of Death (1964), Castle of Blood (1964), Terror-Creatures from the Grave and Nightmare Castle (both 1965). She also starred in Roger Corman's adaptation of The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story of the same title, and the British film Curse of the Crimson Altar (1968).
Steele guest starred in British television shows including the spy drama, Danger Man (aka Secret Agent) starring Patrick McGoohan in 1965. She made her American television debut in 1960 as Dolores in the "Daughter of Illusion" episode of the ABC series, Adventures in Paradise , starring Gardner McKay. In that same year, she was replaced by Barbara Eden in the Elvis Presley film Flaming Star after a disagreement with director Don Siegel. In 1961, she appeared as Phyllis in the "Beta Delta Gamma" episode of CBS's Alfred Hitchcock Presents . She also had an supporting role in Federico Fellini's 8½ (1963), and in 1966 appeared in the second-season episode of NBC's I Spy , "Bridge of Spies".
Steele returned to the horror genre in the later 1970s, appearing in three horror films: David Cronenberg's Shivers (a.k.a. They Came From Within) (1975), Piranha (1978), and The Silent Scream (1979). [5]
Steele served as associate producer of the TV miniseries, The Winds of War (1983), and was a producer for its sequel, War and Remembrance (1988), for which she shared the 1989 Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special with executive producer Dan Curtis.
Steele was cast as Julia Hoffman in the 1991 remake of the 1960s ABC television series Dark Shadows . In 2010, she was a guest star in the Dark Shadows audio drama, The Night Whispers .
In 2010, actor-writer Mark Gatiss interviewed Steele about her role in Black Sunday for his BBC documentary series A History of Horror . [6] [7] In 2012, Gatiss again interviewed Steele about her role in Shivers for his follow-up documentary, Horror Europa . In 2014, she appeared in Ryan Gosling's directorial debut, the drama-fantasy thriller film Lost River , [8] in which she portrayed the character Belladonna in a supporting role. [9]
Steele was married to American screenwriter James Poe. [1] They were married in 1969 and divorced in 1978.[ citation needed ]
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Refs. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1958 | Bachelor of Hearts | Fiona | [10] | |
1959 | Sapphire | Student | [ citation needed ] | |
The Heart of a Man | Girl | Scenes deleted | [ citation needed ] | |
Upstairs and Downstairs | Mary | [ citation needed ] | ||
1960 | Your Money or Your Wife | Juliet Frost | [11] | |
Black Sunday | Asa Vajda / Katia Vajda | [12] | ||
1961 | The Pit and the Pendulum | Elizabeth Barnard Medina | [13] | |
1962 | Il capitano di ferro | Floriana | [14] [15] | |
The Horrible Dr. Hichcock | Cynthia | [16] [16] | ||
1963 | 8½ | Gloria Morin | [17] | |
The Hours of Love | Leila | [18] | ||
The Ghost | Margaret | [19] | ||
1964 | The Long Hair of Death | Helen Karnstein / Mary Karnstein | [20] | |
I maniaci | Barbara / Signora Brugnoli | [ citation needed ] | ||
A Sentimental Attempt | Silvia | [ citation needed ] | ||
Castle of Blood | Elisabeth Blackwood | [21] | ||
White Voices | Giulia | [22] | ||
1965 | I soldi | Unknown | [ citation needed ] | |
Nightmare Castle | Muriel and Jenny | [23] | ||
Terror-Creatures from the Grave | Cleo Hauff | [24] | ||
Once Upon a Tractor | Short film | [25] [26] | ||
1966 | L'armata Brancaleone | Teodora | [27] [28] | |
The She Beast | Veronica | [29] [30] | ||
Young Törless | Bozena | [31] | ||
An Angel for Satan | Harriet Montebruno / Belinda | [32] | ||
1968 | Curse of the Crimson Altar | Lavinia Morley | [33] | |
1974 | Caged Heat | Superintendent McQueen | [34] | |
1975 | Shivers | Betts | [35] | |
1977 | I Never Promised You a Rose Garden | Idat | Scenes deleted | [ citation needed ] |
1978 | Pretty Baby | Josephine | [36] | |
Piranha | Dr. Mengers | [37] | ||
1979 | Silent Scream | Victoria Engels | [38] [39] | |
2012 | The Butterfly Room | Ann | [40] [41] | |
2014 | Lost River | Grandmother | [42] [43] | |
2016 | Le Fantôme | Unknown | Short film | [44] |
2016 | Minutes Past Midnight | The Apparition of the Mill | [ citation needed ] | |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1958 | Dial 999 | Toni Miller | Season 1 Episode 6: "Missing Persons" |
1961 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Phyllis | Season 7 Episode 6: "Betta Delta Gamma" |
1964 | Les baisers | Thelma | Episode 3: "Baiser du Soir" |
1965 | Danger Man | Cleo | Season 2 Episode 12: "The Man on the Beach" |
1972 | Night Gallery | The Widow Craighill | Season 2 Episode 21: "The Sins of the Fathers" |
1983 | The Winds of War | Mrs. Stoller | Miniseries |
1988 | War and Remembrance | Elsa MacMahon | Miniseries |
1991 | Dark Shadows | Dr. Julia Hoffman / Countess Natalie Du Pres | Miniseries |
2020 | Castlevania | Miranda (voice) | Series regular (10 episodes) |
Jamie Lee Curtis is an American actress, producer, and children's author. Known for her performances in the horror and slasher genres, she is regarded as a scream queen, in addition to roles in comedies. Curtis has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, as well as nominations for an Emmy Award and a Grammy Award.
Antonio Margheriti, also known under the pseudonyms Anthony M. Dawson and Antony Daisies, was an Italian filmmaker. Margheriti worked in many different genres in the Italian film industry, and was known for his sometimes derivative but often stylish and entertaining science fiction, sword and sandal, horror/giallo, Eurospy, Spaghetti Western, Vietnam War and action movies that were released to a wide international audience. He died in 2002.
A scream queen is an actress who is prominent and influential in horror films, either through a notable appearance or recurring roles. A scream king is the male equivalent. Notable female examples include Barbara Steele, Sandra Peabody, Linda Blair, Olivia Hussey, Marilyn Burns, Neve Campbell, Daria Nicolodi, Dee Wallace, Jamie Lee Curtis, Mia Goth, Samara Weaving, Heather Langenkamp, Shawnee Smith, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Linnea Quigley.
Mark Gatiss is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. He is best known for his work in television acting in and co-creating shows with Steven Moffat. Gatiss has received several awards including a BAFTA TV Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Peabody Award, and two Laurence Olivier Awards.
Mario Bava was an Italian filmmaker who worked variously as a director, cinematographer, special effects artist and screenwriter. His low-budget genre films, known for their distinctive visual flair and stylish technical ingenuity, feature recurring themes and imagery concerning the conflict between illusion and reality, as well as the destructive capacity of human nature. Widely regarded as a pioneer of Italian genre cinema and one of the most influential auteurs of the horror film genre, he is popularly referred to as the "Master of Italian Horror" and the "Master of the Macabre".
Barbara Shelley was an English film and television actress. She appeared in more than a hundred films and television series. She was particularly known for her work in horror films, notably Village of the Damned; Dracula, Prince of Darkness; Rasputin, the Mad Monk and Quatermass and the Pit.
Black Sunday is a 1960 Italian gothic horror film directed by Mario Bava in his official directorial debut, and starring Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checchi, Ivo Garrani, Arturo Dominici and Enrico Oliveri. Loosely based on Nikolai Gogol's short story "Viy", the film takes place in Moldavia and tells the story of a witch who is put to death by her brother, only to return two centuries later to seek revenge upon his descendants.
The Horrible Dr. Hichcock is a 1962 Italian horror film, directed by Riccardo Freda and written by Ernesto Gastaldi. The film stars Barbara Steele and Robert Flemyng.
Castle of Blood is a 1964 horror film directed by Antonio Margheriti and Sergio Corbucci. The film stars Barbara Steele, Arturo Dominici and Georges Rivière. The film was initially commissioned to director Sergio Corbucci, who had Gianni Grimaldi and Bruno Corbucci set to write the film. A scheduling conflict led to Corbucci's friend Margheriti being hired to complete the film. To avoid going over time, Corbucci was brought in to film one scene.
Pamela Jayne Soles is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1976 as Norma Watson in Brian De Palma's Carrie (1976) before portraying Lynda van der Klok in John Carpenter's Halloween (1978) and Riff Randell in Allan Arkush's Rock 'n' Roll High School (1979).
The Ghost is a 1963 Italian horror film directed by Riccardo Freda, using the pseudonym "Robert Hampton". The film stars Barbara Steele and Peter Baldwin. Other titles for the film include The Spectre and Lo Spettro del Dr. Hichcock.
Terror-Creatures from the Grave is a 1965 horror film directed by Domenico Massimo Pupillo. The film was an international co-production between Italy and the United States through M.B.S. Cinematografica, G.I.A. Cinematografica and International Entertainment Corp.
Nightmare Castle is a 1965 Italian horror film directed by Mario Caiano. The film stars Paul Muller, Helga Liné and Barbara Steele in a dual role.
The She Beast is a 1966 horror film written and directed by Michael Reeves in his directorial debut. The film stars Barbara Steele, John Karlsen and Ian Ogilvy.
A History of Horror is a 2010 three-part documentary series made for the BBC by British writer and actor Mark Gatiss. It is a personal exploration of the history of horror film, inspired by Gatiss's lifelong enthusiasm for the genre.
The Long Hair of Death is a 1964 Italian horror film directed by Antonio Margheriti. It stars British actress Barbara Steele in the roles of Helen Rochefort and Mary, Italian actor George Ardisson as Kurt Humboldt, and Polish actress Halina Zalewska in a dual role as Adele Karnstein and her daughter Lisabeth. It is set in a 15th-century feudal castle, and the nearby village.
Walter Bigari better known by his stage name Walter Brandi was an Italian actor. In his book on European exploitation films, Danny Shipka described Brandi as "one of the first de facto stars of Italian horror/exploitation", while noting he was never as popular as Christopher Lee, Barbara Steele or Peter Cushing. He predominantly acted in genre films in the 1960s. Brandi died in May 1997.
Works cited