Social Entertainment / People

Basil Rathbone

Acting · Born June 13, 1892 · Johannesburg, South African Republic

Basil Rathbone, MC, Kt (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967), was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films. He frequently portrayed suave villains or morally ambiguous characters, such as Murdstone in David Copperfield (1935) and Sir Guy of Gisbourne in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). His most famous role, however, was heroic—that of Sherlock Holmes in fourteen Hollywood films made between 1939 and 1946 and in a radio series. His later career included Broadway and television work; he received a Tony Award in 1948 as Best Actor in a Play.

Movies with Basil Rathbone

• The Great Mouse Detective (1986) — Sherlock Holmes (voice)
• The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) — Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")
• The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) — Sir Guy of Gisbourne
• Son of Frankenstein (1939) — Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
• Captain Blood (1935) — Levasseur
• The Mark of Zorro (1940) — Captain Esteban Pasquale
• The Woman in Green (1945) — Sherlock Holmes
• Bathing Beauty (1944) — George Adams
• We're No Angels (1955) — Andre Trochard
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) — Sherlock Holmes
• The Court Jester (1955) — Sir Ravenhurst
• Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1942) — Sherlock Holmes