Editing Vincent Price (section)

== Career ==
=== Early film roles ===
[[File:Vincentprice.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Price as Mr. Manningham in the play ''[[Gaslight (play)|Angel Street]]'' (1941–1942)]]
Price started out in films as a [[character actor]]. He made his film debut in ''[[Service de Luxe]]'' (1938), and established himself in the film ''Laura'' (1944), opposite [[Gene Tierney]], directed by [[Otto Preminger]].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vincent-Price|title=Vincent Price profile|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=November 18, 2017}}</ref> He played [[Joseph Smith]] in the movie ''[[Brigham Young (film)|Brigham Young]]'' (1940) and [[William Gibbs McAdoo]] in ''[[Wilson (1944 film)|Wilson]]'' (1944), as well as Bernadette's prosecutor, Vital Dutour, in ''[[The Song of Bernadette (film)|The Song of Bernadette]]'' (1943), and as a pretentious priest in ''[[The Keys of the Kingdom (film)|The Keys of the Kingdom]]'' (1944).

Price's first venture into the horror genre, for which he later became widely known, was in the [[Boris Karloff]] film ''[[Tower of London (1939 film)|Tower of London]]'' (1939). The following year, Price portrayed the title character in ''[[The Invisible Man Returns]]'' (a role he reprised in a voice-only cameo in the closing scene of the horror-comedy spoof ''[[Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein]]'' released in 1948).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tcm.com/watchtcm/movies/66686/Abbott-And-Costello-Meet-Frankenstein/ |title= Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) |website=Turner Classic Movies |access-date=May 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919122118/http://www.tcm.com/watchtcm/movies/66686/Abbott-And-Costello-Meet-Frankenstein/ |archive-date=September 19, 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He reunited with Tierney in ''[[Leave Her to Heaven]]'' (1945) and ''Dragonwyck'' (1946). He also had many villainous roles in [[film noir]] thrillers such as ''[[The Web (film)|The Web]]'' (1947), ''[[The Long Night (1947 film)|The Long Night]]'' (1947), ''[[Rogues' Regiment]]'' (1948), and ''[[The Bribe]]'' (1949), with [[Robert Taylor (American actor)|Robert Taylor]], [[Ava Gardner]], and [[Charles Laughton]].

Price's first starring role was as [[con man]] [[James Reavis]] in the biographical film ''[[The Baron of Arizona]]'' (1950). He did a comedic turn as the tycoon Burnbridge Waters, co-starring with [[Ronald Colman]] in ''[[Champagne for Caesar]]'' (also 1950), one of his favorite film roles.<ref name="biography.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.biography.com/people/vincent-price-9446990|title=Vincent Price|publisher=Biography.com|access-date=March 7, 2014|archive-date=February 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160224160317/http://www.biography.com/people/vincent-price-9446990|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== 1950s ===
Price was active in radio, portraying the [[Robin Hood]]-inspired crime-fighter [[Simon Templar]] in ''[[The Saint (radio program)|The Saint]]'', which ran from 1947 to 1951. In the 1950s, Price moved into more regular horror-film roles with the leading role in ''[[House of Wax (1953 film)|House of Wax]]'' (1953) as a homicidal sculptor,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/26/obituaries/vincent-price-a-suave-but-menacing-film-presence-is-dead-at-82.html|title=Vincent Price, a Suave but Menacing Film Presence, Is Dead at 82|last=Flint|first=Peter B.|date=October 26, 1993|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 18, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> the first [[three-dimensional film]] to land in the year's top 10 at the North American box-office. His next roles were ''[[The Mad Magician]]'' (1954), the monster movie ''[[The Fly (1958 film)|The Fly]]'' (1958), and its sequel ''[[Return of the Fly]]'' (1959). That same year, Price starred in two thrillers by producer-director [[William Castle]]: ''[[House on Haunted Hill]]'' as eccentric millionaire Fredrick Loren, and ''[[The Tingler]]'' as Dr. Warren Chapin, who discovered the titular creature. He appeared in the radio drama ''[[Three Skeleton Key]]'', the story of an island lighthouse besieged by an army of rats. He had first performed the work in 1950 on ''[[Escape (radio program)|Escape]]'' and returned to it in 1956 and 1958 for ''[[Suspense (radio drama)|Suspense]]''.<ref>[http://www.oneact.org/productions/ThreeSkeletonKey/ThreeSkeletonKey_museum.html One Act Virtual Museum], oneact.org. Retrieved May 20, 2012.</ref>

[[File:House on Haunted Hill (1959) by William Castle.webm|thumb|thumbtime=235|''House on Haunted Hill'' (1959) by William Castle]]
Outside the horror realm, Price played Baka in ''[[The Ten Commandments (1956 film)|The Ten Commandments]]'', released in 1956. About this time, he also appeared in episodes of television shows such as ''[[Science Fiction Theatre]]'', ''[[Playhouse 90]]'', and ''[[General Electric Theater]]''. In the 1955–56 television season, he was cast three times on the religion anthology series ''[[Crossroads (1955 TV series)|Crossroads]]''. In the 1955 episode "Cleanup", Price portrayed the Reverend Robert Russell. In 1956, he was cast as [[Rabbi]] [[Gershom Mendes Seixas]] in "The Rebel", and as the Rev. Alfred W. Price in "God's Healing".

=== 1960s ===
In the 1960s, Price achieved a number of low-budget filmmaking successes with [[Roger Corman]]<ref name=PM>{{cite web|work=[[PopMatters]]|title=Vincent Price: The Poe Cycle|first=J.C.|last=Maçek III|date=October 23, 2013|url=http://www.popmatters.com/column/175968-the-vincent-price-collection/}}</ref> and [[American International Pictures]] (AIP) starting with the ''[[House of Usher (film)|House of Usher]]'' (1960), which earned over $2&nbsp;million at the box office in the United States<ref>{{cite book|last=Egan, Thomas|first=Kate, Sarah|title=Cult Film Stardom: Offbeat Attractions and Processes of Cultification|year=2012|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-0230293694|page=112}}</ref> and led to the subsequent [[Edgar Allan Poe]] adaptations of ''[[The Pit and the Pendulum (1961 film)|The Pit and the Pendulum]]'' (1961), ''[[Tales of Terror]]'' (1962), ''[[The Comedy of Terrors]]'' (1963), ''[[The Raven (1963 film)|The Raven]]'' (1963), ''[[The Masque of the Red Death (1964 film)|The Masque of the Red Death]]'' (1964),<ref name=PM/> and ''[[The Tomb of Ligeia]]'' (1964).<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vincent-Price|title=Vincent Price {{!}} American actor|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=January 18, 2018|language=en}}</ref> He starred in ''[[The Last Man on Earth (1964 film)|The Last Man on Earth]]'' (1964), the first adaptation of the [[Richard Matheson]] novel ''[[I Am Legend (novel)|I Am Legend]]'',  and later starred as Felix Manderville in ''[[House of 1,000 Dolls]]'' (1967), which has been described as "quite possibly the sleaziest movie AIP ever made". A year later, Price portrayed witch hunter [[Matthew Hopkins]] in ''[[Witchfinder General (film)|Witchfinder General]]'', (US: ''The Conqueror Worm'', 1968) set during the [[English Civil War]].<ref>{{Screenonline title|id=507806|name=Witchfinder General}}</ref> Price also starred in comedy films such as ''[[Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine]]'' (1965) and its sequel ''[[Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs]]'' (1966). In 1968, he played the part of an eccentric artist in the musical ''[[Darling of the Day]]'', opposite [[Patricia Routledge]].<ref name="ibdb">{{IBDB name|56591}}</ref>

In the 1960s, Price began his role as a guest on the television game show ''[[Hollywood Squares]]'', becoming a semi-regular in the 1970s, including being one of the guest panelists on the finale in 1980.<ref>{{cite episode|series=[[Hollywood Squares]]|title=Hollywood Squares on June 20, 1980| network=NBC|airdate=June 20, 1980}}</ref>

Price made many guest-star appearances in television shows during the decade, including ''[[The Red Skelton Show]]'', ''[[Daniel Boone (1964 TV series)|Daniel Boone]]'', ''[[F Troop]]'', ''[[Get Smart]]'', ''[[The Man from U.N.C.L.E.]]'', and ''[[Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (TV series)|Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea]]''. He had a recurring role in the [[Batman (TV series)|''Batman'']] TV series as the villain [[Egghead (DC Comics)|Egghead]] from 1966 to 1967. In 1964, he provided the narration for the Tombstone Historama in [[Tombstone, Arizona|Tombstone]], Arizona, which was still in operation as of 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/15156|publisher=Roadside America|title=Historama|place=Tombstone, Arizona|access-date=July 24, 2016}}</ref> He also starred as the host of the Australian TV series ''If These Walls Could Speak'', in which a short history of an historical building (supposedly narrated by the building itself) was covered, and as the narrating voice of the building.

=== 1970s ===
During the early 1970s, Price hosted and starred in [[BBC Radio]]'s horror and mystery series ''[[The Price of Fear (radio serial)|The Price of Fear]]''. He accepted a cameo part in the Canadian children's television program ''[[The Hilarious House of Frightenstein]]'' (1971) in [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]], Ontario, on the local television station [[CHCH-TV]], filming all of his 400 segments over the course of only a few days.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hamiltoncitymagazine.ca/the-legends-of-chch/#:~:text=Price%20filmed%20all%20his%20400,The%20Hilarious%20House%20of%20Frightenstein.|title=The legends of CHCH|website=hamiltoncitymagazine.ca/|date=November 16, 2024 |access-date=April 15, 2025}}</ref> In addition to the opening and closing monologs, his role in the show was to recite poems about various characters, sometimes wearing a cloak or other costumes.<ref name=chtv>{{cite web|title=CH TV Hamilton History|url=http://www.canada.com/chtv/hamilton/info/history.html|website=canada.com|access-date=January 29, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060129104620/http://www.canada.com/chtv/hamilton/info/history.html|archive-date=January 29, 2006}}</ref> He appeared in ''[[The Abominable Dr. Phibes]]'' (1971), its sequel ''[[Dr. Phibes Rises Again]]'' (1972), and ''[[Theatre of Blood]]'' (1973), in which he portrayed one of two [[serial killer]]s. That same year, he appeared as himself in ''[[Mooch Goes to Hollywood]]'', a film written by [[Jim Backus]].

Price was an admirer of the works of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 1975 visited the [[Edgar Allan Poe Museum (Richmond, Virginia)|Edgar Allan Poe Museum]] in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], Virginia, where he had his picture taken with the museum's popular stuffed raven.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Curran|first1=Colleen|title=Poe Museum celebrates Edgar Allan Poe with the International Poe Film Festival|url=http://www.richmond.com/entertainment/article_555b25b6-04d3-5f3e-9b4a-d9e665b964a7.html|website=Richmond.com|date=September 21, 2016 |publisher=Richmond Times-Dispatch|access-date=September 23, 2016}}</ref> Price also recorded dramatic readings of Poe's short stories and poems, which were collected together with readings by [[Basil Rathbone]].

In 1975, Price and his wife [[Coral Browne]] appeared together in an international stage adaptation of ''Ardèle'', which played in the U.S. and in London at the [[Sondheim Theatre|Queen's Theatre]]. During this run, Browne and Price starred together in the BBC Radio play ''Night of the Wolf'' first airing in 1975.<ref>[http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/0fe53a646510449c88fa19e3d1675c4d ''Night of the Wolf'' details], genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved January 23, 2016.</ref> Price greatly reduced his film work from around 1975, as horror itself suffered a slump, and he increased his narrative and voice work, as well as advertising [[Milton Bradley Company|Milton Bradley]]'s Shrunken Head Apple Sculpture.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/monsters/1.html|title=Silly Vintage Monster Toys|publisher=X-Entertainment|access-date=October 7, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130209164543/http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/monsters/1.html|archive-date=February 9, 2013}}</ref>

Price provided a monolog for the [[Alice Cooper]] song "The Black Widow" on the ''[[Welcome to My Nightmare]]'' album in 1975, and he appeared in the corresponding TV special ''[[Alice Cooper: The Nightmare]]''. He starred for a year in the early 1970s in the syndicated daily radio program ''Tales of the Unexplained''. He made guest appearances in a 1970 episode of ''[[Here's Lucy]]'', showcasing his art expertise, and in a 1972 episode of ABC's ''[[The Brady Bunch]]'', in which he played a deranged [[archaeologist]]. In October 1976, he appeared as the featured guest in an episode of ''[[The Muppet Show]]''. In 1977, Price recorded a cover version of [[Bobby "Boris" Pickett]]'s 1962 Single record [[The Monster Mash]] produced by UK record producers Ken Burgess and Bob Newby and released in the UK by [[EMI Records]].

Also in 1977, Price began performing as [[Oscar Wilde]] in the one-man stage play ''Diversions and Delights'', written by John Gay and directed by Joe Hardy, and set in a Parisian theater on a night about one year before Wilde's death. The original tour of the play was a success in every city except for New York City. In the summer of 1979, Price performed the role of Wilde at the [[Leadville Historic District#Historic structures in Leadville|Tabor Opera House]] in [[Leadville]], Colorado, on the same stage from which Wilde had spoken to miners about art some 96 years before. He eventually performed the play worldwide.<ref name="Vincent"/> Victoria Price stated in her biography of her father that several members of Price's family and friends thought that this was his best acting performance.<ref name="Vincent"/>

In 1979, Price starred with his wife in the short-lived [[CBS]] series ''[[Time Express]]''. That same year he hosted the hour-long television special ''America Screams'', riding on several [[roller coaster]]s and recounting their history.<ref>{{Citation|last=Campbell|first=Scott|title=America Screams|date=December 28, 1981|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1363088/|type=Documentary|publisher=Cyclone Productions|access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref> During 1979–1980, he hosted the "Mystery Night" segment of the radio series ''[[Sears Radio Theater]]''.

=== Later career ===
[[File:Vincent Price on the red carpet at the 1989 Academy Awards.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Price on the red carpet at the [[61st Academy Awards|1989 Academy Awards]]]]
In 1982, Price provided the narrator's voice in ''[[Vincent (1982 film)|Vincent]],'' [[Tim Burton]]'s six-minute film about a young boy who flashes from reality into a fantasy where he is Vincent Price.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.openculture.com/2015/08/watch-vincent-tim-burtons-animated-tribute-to-vincent-price-edgar-allan-poe-1982.html|title=Watch Vincent, Tim Burton's Animated Tribute to Vincent Price & Edgar Allan Poe (1982)|work=Open Culture|access-date=August 4, 2017|language=en-US}}</ref> That same year, Price provided the spoken-word sequence throughout the [[Michael Jackson]] song "[[Thriller (song)|Thriller]]",<ref name="thrillertitleinterview">{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3669538/Michael-Jacksons-monster-smash.html|title=Michael Jackson's monster smash|author=Peter Lyle|date=November 25, 2007|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |access-date=January 24, 2010}}</ref> and appeared as Sir Despard Murgatroyd in a television production of [[Gilbert and Sullivan]]'s ''[[Ruddigore]]'' (with [[Keith Michell]] as Robin Oakapple). In 1983, he played the Sinister Man in the British spoof horror film ''[[Bloodbath at the House of Death]]''. He appeared in ''[[House of the Long Shadows]]'' with [[Christopher Lee]], [[Peter Cushing]], and [[John Carradine]]; he had worked with each of those actors at least once in previous decades, but this was the first time that all had teamed up. One of his last major roles, and one of his favorites, was as the voice of Professor Ratigan in [[Walt Disney Pictures]]' ''[[The Great Mouse Detective]]'' in 1986.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/155292%7C151397/Vincent-Price/|title=Overview for Vincent Price|website=Turner Classic Movies|access-date=January 18, 2018}}</ref>

From 1981 to 1989, Price hosted the [[PBS]] television series ''[[Mystery!]]'' In 1985, he provided voice talent on the Hanna-Barbera series ''[[The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo]]'' as the mysterious "Vincent Van Ghoul", who aided Scooby-Doo, Scrappy-Doo, and the gang in recapturing thirteen demons. He was a lifelong fan of roller coasters, and he narrated a 1987 thirty-minute documentary on the history of roller coasters and amusement parks, including [[Coney Island]]. During this time (1985–1989), he appeared in horror-themed commercials for [[Tilex]] bathroom cleanser.

In 1984, Price appeared in [[Shelley Duvall]]'s live-action series ''[[Faerie Tale Theatre]]'' as the Mirror in "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", and the narrator for "The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers". In 1987, he starred with [[Bette Davis]], [[Lillian Gish]], and [[Ann Sothern]] in ''[[The Whales of August]],'' a story of two sisters living in [[Maine]] facing the end of their days. His performance in ''The Whales of August'' earned an [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/57806/Vincent-Price/awards|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113081406/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/57806/Vincent-Price/awards|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 13, 2013|work=[[The New York Times]]|year=2013|title=Vincent Price|access-date=November 18, 2017}}</ref>

In 1989, Price was inducted into the [[St. Louis Walk of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stlouiswalkoffame.org/inductees/?view=achievement|title=St. Louis Walk of Fame Inductees|publisher=St. Louis Walk of Fame|access-date=April 25, 2013|archive-date=October 31, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121031162946/http://www.stlouiswalkoffame.org/inductees/?view=achievement|url-status=dead}}</ref> His last significant film work was as the inventor in Tim Burton's ''[[Edward Scissorhands]]'' (1990).<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/edward-scissorhands-10-things-didnt-know/|title=Edward Scissorhands: 10 things you didn't know about the film that made Johnny Depp a Hollywood star|last=Vincent|first=Alice|date=December 7, 2016|work=The Telegraph|access-date=January 18, 2018|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}</ref>

In 1990, Price recorded the narration of the Phantom for the [[Phantom Manor]] attraction at [[Disneyland Paris]]. However, shortly after the ride opened in 1992, the narration was removed and replaced with one entirely in French, performed by Gérard Chevalier. Only Price's infamous laughter remained on the soundtrack. In 2018, during a major renovation, it was announced that parts of Price's narration would be restored. Since the 2019 reopening, the new tracks are dual-language; Price's original excerpts as well as previously unused material from his 1990 recording comprise the English-speaking portions, while actor [[Bernard Alane]] voices the Phantom in French.