Francis Lederer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Francis Lederer (November 6, 1899 – May 25, 2000) was a Czech-born film and stage actor with a successful career, first in Europe, then in the United States. His original name was František Lederer. Lederer's first American movies were Man of Two Worlds (1934), Romance in Manhattan (1934), with Ginger Rogers, The Gay Deception (1935), with Frances Dee, and One Rainy Afternoon (1936). He was cast as the lead with Katharine Hepburn in the 1935 film Break of Hearts, but the producers replaced him with Charles Boyer. It was Irving Thalberg's plan to make Lederer "the biggest star in Hollywood" but the death of Thalberg ended this possibility. Although he continued to play leads occasionally – notably when he was a playboy in Mitchell Leisen's Midnight with Claudette Colbert and John Barrymore in 1939 – in the late 1930s Lederer began to expand his character parts, even playing villains. Edward G. Robinson praised Lederer's performance as a German American Bundist in Confessions of a Nazi Spy in 1939, and he earned plaudits for his portrayal of a fascist in The Man I Married (1940) with Joan Bennett. He also played Count Dracula for The Return of Dracula in 1958. Throughout his career, Lederer, who studied with Elia Kazan at the Actors Studio in New York City, continued to take stage acting seriously, and he performed often both in New York and elsewhere. He appeared in stage productions of Golden Boy (1937), Seventh Heaven (1939), No Time for Comedy (1939), in which he replaced Laurence Olivier, The Play's the Thing (1942), A Doll's House (1944), Arms and the Man (1950), The Sleeping Prince (1956) and The Diary of Anne Frank (1958). Although he took a break from making films in 1941, in order to concentrate on his stage work, he returned to the silver screen in 1944, appearing in Voice in the Wind and The Bridge of San Luis Rey, and in films such as Jean Renoir's The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946) and Million Dollar Weekend (1948). He took another break from Hollywood in 1950, after making Surrender (1950), and returned in 1956 with Lisbon and the light comedy The Ambassador's Daughter. His final film appearance was in Terror Is a Man in 1959. During the 1950s, he served as honorary mayor of Canoga Park. He would continue to make television appearances for the next 10 years in such shows as Sally, The Untouchables, Ben Casey, Blue Light, Mission: Impossible and That Girl. His final television appearance occurred in a 1971 episode of Rod Serling's Night Gallery called "The Devil Is Not Mocked". In it, he reprised his role as Dracula from The Return of Dracula.
Pandora's Box
as Alwa SchönLulu is a young woman so beautiful and alluring that few can resist her siren charms. The men...
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The Return of Dracula
as Count DraculaAfter a vampire leaves his native Balkans, he murders a Czech artist, assumes his identity, and...
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Midnight
as Jacques PicotAn unemployed showgirl poses as Hungarian royalty to infiltrate Parisian society.
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Confessions of a Nazi Spy
as Kurt SchneiderFBI agent Ed Renard investigates the pre-War espionage activities of the German-American Bund.
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A Century of Science Fiction
as SelfAmerican Documentary, narrated by Christopher Lee
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The Madonna's Secret
as James Harlan CorbinThis drama is an updated version of Ulmer's 1944 film Bluebeard. It is set in New York and...
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The Diary of a Chambermaid
as JosephCelestine, the chamber-maid, has a new job in the country, at the Lanlaires. She has decided to...
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Million Dollar Weekend
as Alan MarkerA stock broker embezzles a million bucks and plans to take off to Shanghai. A number of...
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The Man I Married
as Eric HoffmanAn American vacations in Europe with her husband and watches him turn into a Nazi.
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Starlit Days at the Lido
as SelfBasically this is a commercial for Hollywood's Lido Lounge and for MGM contract players. The...
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One Rainy Afternoon
as Philippe MartinSuave French actor Philippe Martin provokes a scandal when, in a darkened theater, he mistakes...
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Romance in Manhattan
as Karel NovakKarel Novak is an incredibly naive Czech immigrant who is taken under the wing of streetwise New...
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Lisbon
as SeraphimFor Capt. Robert John Evans, smuggling black-market goods is nothing out of the ordinary. But...
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Terror is a Man
as Dr. Charles GirardA mad scientist transforms a panther into a man-like creature that escapes and goes on a...
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A Woman of Distinction
as Paul SimoneIce-cold college dean Susan Middlecott feels there's no room in her life for romance. Enter...
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Captain Carey, U.S.A.
as Baron Rocco de GreffiNear the end of World War II, a secret American raid on an enemy transportation hub goes very...
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1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
as Self (archive footage)This documentary focuses on 1939, considered to be Hollywood's greatest year, with film clips...
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Stolen Identity
as Claude ManelliA jealous musician kills his wife and frames a cab driver.
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Vincent Price's Dracula
as Count Dracula - (archive footage)Vincent Price hosts this documentary exploring the historical myths surrounding vampires.
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The Ambassador's Daughter
as Prince Nicholas ObelskiWhile on leave in Paris, a G.I. pursues an ambassador's daughter. Meanwhile she's out to prove...
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My American Wife
as Count Ferdinand von und zu ReidenachAnn Sothern essays the title role in My American Wife. The story opens in Smelter City, Arizona,...
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Voice in the Wind
as Jan Volny / El HombreFormer concert pianist, victim of Nazi torture, pursues a confused, melancholic existence on the...
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Adventures in Vienna
as Claude ManelliTaking place over 12 hours on New Years Eve, a concert pianist murders his wife's lover, then...
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The Lone Wolf in Paris
as Michael LanyardFormer jewel thief Michael Lanyard toys with a princess and a grand duke.
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Her Majesty Love
as Fred von WellingenFred von Wellingen is a wealthy industrialist, part of a large family-owned corporation. Fred...
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The Gay Deception
as SandroA wide-eyed working girl wins a $5,000 sweepstakes and plunges into the lush life of New York...
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Refuge
as Martin FalkhagenAfter eight years in exile Martin returns to Berlin. He was involved in the German Revolution of...
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Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook
as Count Dracula (archive footage)A history of the famous vampire of books and movies, using film clips, previews and other methods.
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Memories of Berlin: The Twilight of Weimar Culture
as Self - IntervieweeThe film tells the cultural story of Berlin during the Weimar Republic through interviews with a...
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The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna
as Lt. Michael RostofThis silent-screen classic, like many others produced near the end of the silent era, was both a...
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Puddin' Head
as Prince KarlOn the day that United Broadcasting System's new building is dedicated, bumbling vice-president...
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The Pursuit of Happiness
as Max ChristmannLederer is a Hessian soldier who defects to the Americans during the Revolutionary War.He falls...
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Mother Hummingbird
as Georges de ChambryA neglected Baroness falls in love with her oldest son's military officer friend, their...
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The Great Longing
as HimselfDuring lunch break at the movie studio, the extras rush to the canteen Hans Adalbert Schlettow,...
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Man of Two Worlds
as AigoA British explorer brings an Eskimo hunter to London, where he misreads a woman.
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The Bridge of San Luis Rey
as Esteban / ManuelA rope bridge over a gorge in the Peruvian Andes snaps, sending five people plunging to their...
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Maracaibo
as Miguel OrlandoA firefighter is sent to Venezuela to battle a blazing oil well but still finds time for romance.
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It's All Yours
as Jimmy BarnesJimmy Barnes arrives from Europe to be educated by his multi-millionaire uncle, Edward J. Barnes...
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Atlantic
as PeterGerman-language version. "Atlantic" is a drama film based on the sinking of the RMS "Titanic"...
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The Other Eye
as SelfThis film essay explores the strange case of G.W. Pabst, the Austrian filmmaker who was...
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Surrender
as Henry VaanViolet Barton, a femme-fatale goal-setter, fascinates men and readily returns their affection to...
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Fundvogel
as Jan BergwallYoung Jan Bergwall visits his grandmother, the so-called centenary, at Woyland Castle. There he...
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Mission: Impossible
as Senko BrobinMission: Impossible is an American television series that was created and initially produced by...
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Ben Casey
as uncreditedBen Casey is an American medical drama series which ran on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was...
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Matinee Theater
as uncreditedMatinee Theater is an American anthology series that aired on NBC during the Golden Age of...
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Robert Montgomery Presents
as BaronRobert Montgomery Presents is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC...
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The Philco Television Playhouse
as uncreditedThe Philco Television Playhouse is an American anthology series that was broadcast live on NBC...
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Night Gallery
as uncreditedRod Serling narrates an anthology of fantasy, horror and sci-fi stories from a set resembling a...
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Studio One
as Rene d'ArcyAn American radio–television anthology series, created in 1947 by Canadian director Fletcher...
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Kraft Suspense Theatre
as Dr. Jeremias LippKraft Suspense Theatre is an American anthology series that was telecast from 1963 to 1965 on...
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That Girl
as Vittorio BarriniThat Girl is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971. It stars Marlo Thomas as the...
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Behind Closed Doors
as BrauerBehind Closed Doors is an American drama series set during the Cold War hosted by and...
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Film Emigration from Nazi Germany
as SelfBased on extensive interviews, shot on 16mm in a series of static long takes, Filmemigration aus...
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Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
as uncreditedSchlitz Playhouse of Stars is an anthology series that was telecast from 1951 until 1959 on CBS....
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