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British actor (1913–1984) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Francis Marie de Wolff (7 January 1913 – 18 April 1984) was an English character actor. Large, bearded, and beetle-browed, he was often cast as villains in both film and television.
Francis de Wolff | |
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![]() Francis de Wolff in The Smallest Show on Earth, 1957 | |
Born | Francis Marie de Wolff 7 January 1913 Essex, England |
Died | 18 April 1984 71) Sussex, England | (aged
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1935–1977 (Retired) |
Spouses | Jean Fairlie
(m. 1942; div. 1950)Melissa Dundas
(m. 1958; div. 1971)Linda Finch (m. 1976) |
Born 7 January 1913[1] in Essex, and educated at Stonyhurst College, he made his film debut in Flame in the Heather (1935), and made many other appearances in such films as Fire Over England (1937), Treasure Island (1950), Scrooge (1951), as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Ivanhoe (1952), Moby Dick (1956), Saint Joan (1957), From Russia with Love (1963), and Carry On Cleo (1964).
He is perhaps best remembered, however, as a supporting player in horror movies of the 1950s and 1960s, many of them for Hammer Films. These include Corridors of Blood (1958), The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), The Man Who Could Cheat Death (1959), The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960), Devil Doll (1964), and The Black Torment (1964). His last film appearance was in The Three Musketeers (1973).
His television appearances include The Avengers, Maigret, Richard the Lionheart, Danger Man, Doctor Who, The Ordeal of Richard Feverel, The Saint, Rookery Nook, Paul Temple, Dixon of Dock Green, The Tomorrow People, and the miniseries Jesus of Nazareth.
He died in Sussex on 18 April 1984.[1]