Carla Laemmle Turns 104 On October 20

by Armand Vaquer

Above, Carla Laemmle at the 2011 Monsterpalooza.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

In five days, actress Carla Laemmle will be celebrating her 104th birthday.

She is the last surviving actress of the 1931 Universal Pictures' Dracula that starred Bela Lugosi.

According to Wikipedia:

Rebecca Isabelle Laemmle (born October 20, 1909) known professionally as Carla Laemmle is an American actress and the niece of Universal Pictures studio founder Carl Laemmle, she is of German Jewish descent. She was a movie actress in the 1920s and 1930s, and is, along with Jean Darling, Baby Peggy, and Mickey Rooney, one of the very few surviving actors of the silent film era. 

Laemmle entered films in 1925 playing an uncredited role as a ballet dancer in the original silent film version of The Phantom of the Opera (1925) and a small role in the early talkie version of Dracula (1931), and is the last surviving cast member of both classic films. Laemmle continued to appear in small roles until the late 1930s, when she disappeared from the movie screen. She briefly came out of retirement to play a vampire in The Vampire Hunters Club (2001). 

She shared her reminiscences of appearing in a bit part in Dracula (1931) by hosting the original documentary The Road to Dracula (1999), a supplemental piece included on the 2004 DVD release, Dracula: The Legacy Collection. In that classic film, she portrayed a bespectacled passenger riding in a bumpy horse-drawn carriage with Renfield as he is traveling to Dracula's castle. In this documentary, Laemmle proudly states: "I had the privilege of speaking the first lines of dialogue in the first talking supernatural thriller".

Above, Carla Laemmle during her starlet years.

Miss Laemmle attended the Son of Monsterpalooza show last weekend in Burbank.

A Happy Birthday goes out to Carla Laemmle! 

Famous Monsters Of Filmland To Give Carla Laemmle A Grand 100th Birthday Bash

Source: Kristen Snyder / Famous Monsters of Filmland (Press Release)

American actress, Carla Laemmle, niece of Universal Pictures founder Carl Laemmle, will be celebrating her 100th birthday with her family and friends at the American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles, California on Tuesday, October 20, 2009. She will be presented with Lifetime Achievement Awards by Tom Tangen, Inge Jaklin and Dr. Udo Bayer.

Special invited guests include Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Marvin Paige, Ray Bradbury, Leonard Maltin, Rick Baker, George Clayton Johnson, Sara Karloff, Bela Lugosi Jr., Leonard Neubauer, Scott MacQueen, Gloria Stuart, Earl Hamner, Lupita Tovar, Bob Burns, Ron Chaney, David Skall, and others.

Carla Laemmle’s birthday is a celebration of over eight decades in cinema. The actress has lived a most extraordinary life, growing up on her uncle’s Universal lot and witnessing the early years of Hollywood’s growth. At just 16 she was the prima ballerina who danced in the Lon Chaney classic The Phantom of the Opera (1925). She also spoke the first lines in Universal’s first “talkie movie” Dracula (1931) starring Bela Lugosi, the classic horror film that established the beginning of Universal Pictures’ success and legacy in popular horror films. Carla Laemmle is now the last surviving cast member of both films.

Laemmle continued to star in small roles until the late 1930s and recently became the subject of two biographies titled after her immortal opening lines. The first is a written biography by Rick Atkins called Among the Rugged Peaks: An Intimate Biography of Carla Laemmle. The second is a film biography, Among The Rugged Peaks, by actor, producer, and director, and interviewer, Tom Tangen, a red carpet favorite who has cataloged over 2,000 celebrity interviews. The film, edited by Emmy-winning Mary DeChambres, will debut in 2010 from Elusive Entertainment [AmongTheRuggedPeaks.com].

In May 2009, Carla Laemmle also co-authored a book with Daniel Kinske, Growing Up With Monsters: My Times at Universal Studios in Rhymes, detailing her experiences growing up on a motion picture studio lot. The instant hit offered an introduction by sci-fi legend Ray Bradbury and illustrations by Jack Davis and Hermann Mejia. Sponsored by Famous Monsters of Filmland and Universal Studios, the VIP private, invitation- only event will begin at 4:30pm with a dinner followed by special events. After-dinner celebrations include Carla Laemmle’s Lifetime Achievement Award Ceremony, a ballet performance organized by Famous Monsters of Filmland’s Robert Aragon, musical performances, a speech from the birthday girl, and concluding with a coffee and birthday cake social hour featuring live piano.

See Also: Famous Monsters Of Filmland Is Reborn On The World Wide Web / Dracula (1931) / "Famous Monsters" Trademark Injunction Won By Philip Kim / Forrest J. Ackerman, 1916 - 2008 / RIP Forrest J Ackerman (1916-2008) / Forrest Ackerman's Health Is Failing Now Is The Time For Fans To Contact Him / Mad Monster Party (1969) /