Is Christopher Lee the Ultimate Dracula?
Bela Lugosi played the most famous vampire in cinema history and arguably is the most famous Dracula. He first played the bloodsucking count on Broadway during the 1927-28 season, in a play by Hamilton Dean & John L. Balderston based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel. He then recreated the role in Tod Browning’s classic 1931 film. Tod Browning’s 1931Dracula, of course, is a must see for any cineaste, let alone horror movie fan. It is a classic, both as an example of the early sound cinema and as an example of the horror genre. The movie originally was intended as a silent film, and the first scenes lensed were shot as a silent, so it tells its story mainly in visuals. It is still creepy and preternatural more than three-quarters of a century after its release. After the 1977 revival of the Dean/Balderston stage Dracula on Broadway became a huge hit that ran for three years, the old war horse was once again commited to film. Frank Langella, who was nominated for a Tony as Dracula (the product
