Vincent Price was born 111 years ago today.
Price was an actor, well known for his distinctive voice as well as his serio-comic performances in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Price was the youngest of the four children of Vincent Leonard Price, Sr., president of the National Candy Company, and his wife, Marguerite Cobb Price. His grandfather, Vincent Clarence Price, invented "Dr. Price's Baking Powder," the first cream of tartar baking powder and secured the family's fortune.
In 1933, Price graduated with a degree in art history from Yale University, where he worked on campus humor magazine, The Yale Record. After teaching for a year, he entered the University of London, intending to study for a Master's degree in Fine Arts. Instead, he was drawn to the theater, first appearing on stage professionally in 1934. His acting career began in London in 1935, performing with Orson Welles's Mercury Theatre.
In 1936, Price appeared as Prince Albert Victor in the American production of Laurence Housman's play, Victoria Regina, starring Helen Hayes in the title role of Queen Victoria. Price's first venture into the horror genre was in the 1939 Boris Karloff film, Tower of London.
The following year he portrayed the title character in the film, The Invisible Man Returns, a role he reprised in a vocal cameo at the end of the 1948 horror-comedy spoof, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.
In 1946, Price reunited with Tierney in two notable films, Dragonwyck and Leave Her to Heaven. There were also many villainous roles in film noir thrillers like The Web (1947), The Long Night (1947), Rogues' Regiment (1948) and The Bribe (1949), with Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner and Charles Laughton.
In the 1950s, Price moved into horror films, with a role in House of Wax (1953), the first 3-D film to land in the year's top ten at the North American box office. His next roles were The Mad Magician (1954), the monster movie, The Fly (1958), and its sequel, Return of the Fly (1959).
A witty raconteur, Price was a frequent guest on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson, where he once demonstrated how to poach a fish in a dishwasher. Price was a noted gourmet cook and art collector. He also authored several cookbooks, in particular, A Treasury of Great Recipes (with his second wife), and hosted a cookery TV show, Cooking Pricewise.
Price died of lung cancer on October 25, 1993, at UCLA Medical Center at the age of 82.