Conditions Governing Access
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Conditions Governing Use
Preferred Citation
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Processing Information
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
Scope and Content
Organization and Arrangement
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Charles Laughton papers
Creator:
Laughton, Charles
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.0851
Physical Description:
14 Linear Feet
(24 boxes, 1 oversize box)
Date (inclusive): 1920-1964
Date (bulk): 1940-1962
Abstract: Charles Laughton (1899-1962) was a
theater and film actor, radio personality, and public performer. The collection consists of
photographs, publicity materials, press clippings, correspondence, radio and theatre
scripts, screenplays, assorted readings, and miscellaneous items.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access
special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on
this page.
Language of Material:
English .
Conditions Governing Access
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in
advance using the request button located on this page.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: Audiovisual materials are available for access. All
requests to access digital materials must be made in advance using the request button
located on this page.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All
other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the
responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not
hold the copyright.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Charles Laughton papers (Collection 851). UCLA Library Special
Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of Elsa Lanchester, 1965.
Processing Information
Collections are processed to a variety of levels depending on the work necessary to make
them usable, their perceived user interest and research value, availability of staff and
resources, and competing priorities. Library Special Collections provides a standard level
of preservation and access for all collections and, when time and resources permit, conducts
more intensive processing. These materials have been arranged and described according to
national and local standards and best practices.
Pocessed by Timothy Holland with supervision from Laurel McPhee as part of the CFPRT
project, 2005; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé and edited by Josh
Fiala, Laurel McPhee and Amy Shung-Gee Wong.
A register was compiled for the collection by the Oral History Division in November 1964.
Then it was partially processed by the Manuscripts Division staff in the late 1960s. Timothy
Holland reprocessed the collection in 2005, rehousing folder contents and adding series
levels to enhance access to the materials.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
Charles Laughton was born July 1, 1899 in Scarborough, England to hotel proprietors Robert
and Eliza Laughton. He attended the public Jesuit school Stonyhurst College and enlisted
into the army during the First World War in 1917. In 1924, Laughton enrolled in the Royal
Academy of Dramatic Art to study acting and drama. His performances earned him much respect
and admiration, and soon Laughton was starring in many professional theatrical and film
productions in London. In 1927, Laughton met the actress Elsa Lanchester. They were married
in 1929.
Laughton and Lanchester first traveled to the United States in 1931, where Laughton was
hired to perform the successful English play
Payment Deferred.
For the next 19 years, they spent the majority of their time in the United States. Laughton
became one of the most well-respected film actors of the era, capturing roles in the films
Island of Lost Souls (1933) and
The
Private Life of Henry VIII
(1933), for which he won the Academy Award for best
actor. Other notable productions include:
Ruggles of Red Gap
(1935),
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939),
The Man from Down Under (1943), and
The
Paradine Case
(1947). Laughton and Lanchester became American citizens in 1950 and
settled in Southern California.
During the Second World War, Laughton began reading selected passages to wounded soldiers
at local hospitals. For the rest of his life, Laughton would devote much of his time to
reading selected passages from his favorite authors. Recognized for his powerful voice and
presence, Laughton's readings led to a number of reading tours, spoken-word albums,
performances, and publications, including
Tell Me a Story
(1957) and
The Fabulous Country (1962). Laughton made his
directorial debut in 1955 with
The Night of the Hunter starring
Robert Mitchum. Although the production was not a financial success, it was critically
lauded as one of the better films of the decade, and is considered a masterpiece of American
cinema. Laughton also performed on radio and, occasionally, on television.
Laughton's health declined in the early 1960's. After a year of fighting cancer, Charles
Laughton died at his home on December 15, 1962. He was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in
Hollywood, California.
Scope and Content
The collection consists of Charles Laughton's photographs, publicity materials, press
clippings, correspondence, scripts, screenplays, assorted readings, and miscellaneous items
documenting Charles Laughton's 35-year career as an actor in theater and film, and as a
public performer. Of particular interest are photographs of Charles Laughton and Elsa
Lanchester, Laughton's reading selections, correspondence, and miscellaneous items such as
Laughton's award for the Academy nomination of best actor in
Witness
for the Prosecution
(1957). The collection also contains numerous scripts from his
work in theatre and radio, screenplays from films, and selected readings that Laughton used
in his reading tours, publications, and performances.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged in the following series:
- Photographs, 1920-1962 (2 boxes).
- Publicity, 1942-1962 (1 box).
- Correspondence, 1929-1962 (2 boxes).
- Readings, ca.1942-1962 (7 boxes).
- Theatre scripts, 1937-1961 (5.5 boxes).
- Radio broadcasts, 1939-1952 (1.5 boxes).
- Screenplays, 1940-1961 (3.5 boxes).
- Publications, 1957-1962 (1.5 boxes).
- Miscellaneous, 1925-1964 (1.5 boxes).
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Theatrical producers and directors -- Archives.
Actors -- Archives.
Film scripts.
Photographs.
Lanchester, Elsa
Lanchester, Elsa, 1902-1986--Correspondence.
Laughton, Charles, 1899-1962--Archives.