Vincent Price Biography

American horror actor, Vincent Price, was born in Missouri, and, after graduating from Yale, studied fine arts in London.

Making his stage debut in ‘Chicago’ at the Gate Theater, in 1935, he worked on Broadway, and with Orson Welles’ legendary Mercury Theater.

He debuted on the screen with ‘Service de Luxe’ in 1938, as part of a Universal contract, under which he was offered only supporting roles. Leaving for Twentieth Century Fox, Price starred in ‘Brigham Young Frontiersman’ and ‘Hudson Bay’.

After returning to Broadway with ‘Angel Street’, Price co-starred in ‘The Song of Bernadette’ in 1943. Happy to be typecast as a villain, he began making his name in such work as ‘Wilson and Laura’ (1944) and ‘Leave Her To Heaven’ (1946), before finally starring in ‘Shock!’, and ‘Dragonwick’ (1947).

More stage work followed his departure from Fox in the early fifties, with performances in ‘The Cocktail Party’ and ‘Don Juan in Hell’.

In 1953, Price starred in the 3-D ‘The House of Wax’, which became one of the most successful horror films ever produced. This was followed by the equally 3-D ‘Dangerous Mission’.

Triumphant in a return to the stage with ‘Richard III’, Price was now, essentially, a horror film star. Hits such as 1958’s ‘The Fly’ led to his involvement with producer Roger Corman, for whom Price performed in many Edgar Allan Poe adaptations, such as ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ (1960) and ‘The Raven’ (1963).

Notable appearances over the years included the teen movie ‘Beach Party’ (1963) and the Elvis film, ‘The Trouble With Girls’ (1969).

In the 1970s Price devoted himself mainly to art history, lecturing and publishing books on art history. He re-appeared for a last role in Tim Burton’s ‘Edward Scissorhands’ in 1990, and died in Los Angeles three years later.