Hazel Court was a British actress who became famous for her roles in horror films of the 1950s and 1960s. She starred alongside some of the most iconic actors of the genre, such as Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, and Peter Lorre. She was known for her beauty, her scream, and her ability to portray fear and terror on screen. She died of a heart attack at her home in California on April 15, 2008, at the age of 82. This article will explore her life, her career, and her impact on the horror film industry.
Contents
Early Life and Career in Britain
Hazel Court was born on February 10, 1926, in Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire. Her father, G.W. Court, was a cricketer who played for Durham CCC She attended Boldmere School and Highclare College, and later studied drama at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre and the Alexandra Theatre
She began appearing in stage productions as a teenager, and met film director Anthony Asquith in London when she was 16. He gave her a brief part in his film Champagne Charlie (1944). She then won a British Critics Award for her role as a crippled girl in Carnival (1946). She also appeared in Holiday Camp (1947) and Bond Street (1948)
Her first role in a fantasy film was in Ghost Ship (1952), a low-budget thriller about a haunted vessel. She then starred in Devil Girl from Mars (1954), a sci-fi film about a female alien who lands in Scotland and kidnaps men for her dying planet. She also trained at the Rank Organisation’s “charm school”, where she learned how to act, speak, and dress for the camera
She wanted to act in comedy films, but she also continued to appear in horror films, which were becoming more popular and profitable. In 1957, she had what was to become a career-defining role in the first colour Hammer Horror film, The Curse of Frankenstein. She played Elizabeth, the fiancée of Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing), who is menaced by his monstrous creation (Christopher Lee). The film was a huge success, and launched the careers of Cushing, Lee, and director Terence Fisher
Career in America and Horror Film Stardom
In the 1957-58 television season, Court co-starred in a CBS sitcom filmed in Britain, Dick and the Duchess, as Jane Starrett, a patrician British woman married to an insurance claims investigator (Patrick O’Neal) The show brought her to the attention of American audiences, and she travelled back and forth between North America and Britain, appearing in four episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. She also had parts in A Woman of Mystery (1958), The Man Who Could Cheat Death (1959), and Doctor Blood’s Coffin (1961)
By the early 1960s, Court was based in the United States. She featured in the Edgar Allan Poe horror films directed by Roger Corman and produced by American International Pictures. She starred with Ray Milland in The Premature Burial (1962), about a man who suffers from a fear of being buried alive. She then co-starred with Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff in The Raven (1963), a comedy-horror film inspired by Poe’s poem. She played Lenore, the wife of a sorcerer (Lorre) who is resurrected by another sorcerer (Price) to be his bride. She also appeared with Price and Karloff in The Comedy of Terrors (1963), a spoof of horror films
Her most acclaimed role in a Poe film was in The Masque of the Red Death (1964), where she played Juliana, the consort of Prince Prospero (Price), a sadistic nobleman who holds a masquerade ball in his castle while a plague ravages the land. She performs a satanic ritual to gain immortality, but is killed by a falcon. The film was praised for its cinematography, atmosphere, and performances
Court also appeared in episodes of several TV series, including Adventures in Paradise, Mission: Impossible, Bonanza, Dr. Kildare, Danger Man, Twelve O’Clock High, Burke’s Law, Sam Benedict, Gidget, McMillan and Wife, Mannix, The Wild Wild West, Thriller, Rawhide, and The Twilight Zone
Later Life and Death
Court retired from acting in 1981, after appearing in the horror film Omen III: The Final Conflict. She then focused on her hobbies of painting and sculpting, and exhibited her works in several galleries. She also wrote an autobiography, Hazel Court – Horror Queen, which was published in 2008
She was married twice, first to Dermot Walsh, an Irish actor, from 1949 to 1963. They had a daughter, Sally, and a son, Jonathan. She then married Don Taylor, an American actor and director, in 1964. They had a daughter, Courtney, and two stepdaughters, Anne and Avery. Taylor died in 1998
Court died of a heart attack at her home near Lake Tahoe, California, on April 15, 2008. She was 82 years old. She was cremated, and her ashes were scattered in the lake. She is survived by her three children, four stepchildren, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren
Legacy and Influence
Hazel Court is remembered as one of the most prominent and influential actresses in the horror film genre. She was admired for her beauty, her talent, and her versatility. She could play both innocent and evil characters, and could convey a range of emotions, from fear and pain to joy and love. She was also praised for her professionalism, her kindness, and her sense of humour. She was a favourite of many horror film fans, especially those who grew up watching her films on TV
She also inspired many other actresses who followed in her footsteps, such as Barbara Steele, Ingrid Pitt, Caroline Munro, and Jamie Lee Curtis. She was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2008, and was inducted into the Monster Kid Hall of Fame in 2010. She was also the subject of a documentary, Hazel Court: The Horror Queen, which was released in 2012
Hazel Court was a remarkable woman who left a lasting mark on the horror film industry. She was a scream queen who could also make people laugh and cry. She was a horror icon who also had a heart of gold. She was a legend who will never be forgotten.
