Barbara Steele

Barbara Steele (born 29 December 1937) is an English actress and producer, known for starring in Italian gothic horror films of the 1960s. She has been referred to as the "Queen of All Scream Queens" and "Britain's first lady of horror". She played the dual role of Asa and Katia Vajda in Mario Bava's film Black Sunday (1960), and starred in The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), (1962), (1964), and Castle of Blood (1964).

Additionally, Steele had supporting roles in Federico Fellini's 8½ (1963), David Cronenberg's Shivers (1975), Joe Dante's Piranha and Louis Malle's Pretty Baby (both 1978), and appeared on television in the 1991 TV series Dark Shadows. She won a Primetime Emmy Award for producing the American television miniseries War and Remembrance (1988–89). Steele appeared in several films in the 2010s, including a lead role in The Butterfly Room (2012) and supporting role in Ryan Gosling's Lost River (2014).

Early life Steele was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire. She studied art at the Chelsea Art School and in Paris at the Sorbonne. Before her film career, Steele acted on stage and also worked as a model.

Career

Early work Steele was signed to a contract by the Rank Organisation. She appeared in several minor film roles during the late 1950s, including in the BAFTA-winning Sapphire (where she appeared opposite future Black Sunday co-star John Richardson) and Upstairs and Downstairs.

In 1960, her contract was sold to 20th Century Fox. She guest starred on an episode of the ABC series, Adventures in Paradise, and was cast as the female lead opposite Elvis Presley in the Western film Flaming Star (1960). However, after one week of principal photography, Steele left the production and was replaced by Barbara Eden. Author Adam Victor writes in The Elvis Encyclopaedia that she was fired because studio executives thought her British accent was too pronounced.Victor, Adam (2008) The Elvis Encyclopaedia. Harry N. Abrams. . p. 167 However, Steele claimed she quit over a disagreement with director Don Siegel. Regardless, a March 1960 Screen Actors Guild strike led Steele to abandon her Fox contract.

Italians films and stardom Steele travelled to Italy with the hopes of working with director Federico Fellini. Soon after her arrival, she was cast in her breakout part, the dual roles of Asa and Katia Vajda in Mario Bava's Black Sunday. There are two accounts describing how Steele came to be cast in the film: one suggests that Bava, while perusing through head shots of British actors under contract at Fox, selected Steele from these photos. Steele, however, recalled that Bava tracked her down after being captivated by photos of her in a Life magazine photoshoot. Bava later commented that Steele "had the perfect face for my films".

The success of Black Sunday launched Steele to overnight stardom and defined her status as a scream queen. She would star in a string of Italian horror films throughout the decade, including Riccardo Freda's The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962) and The Ghost (1963); Antonio Margheriti's The Long Hair of Death and Castle of Blood (both 1964), Terror-Creatures from the Grave and Nightmare Castle (both 1965).

She also starred in American director Roger Corman's adaptation of The Pit and the Pendulum (1961), based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story of the same title, The She Beast (1966) and the British film Curse of the Crimson Altar (1968).

Steele guest starred in television shows including the spy drama, Danger Man (aka Secret Agent) starring Patrick McGoohan in 1965. In 1961, she appeared as Phyllis in the "Beta Delta Gamma" episode of CBS's Alfred Hitchcock Presents. She also had a supporting role in Fellini's 8½ (1963), and in 1966 appeared in the second-season episode of NBC's I Spy, "Bridge of Spies".

Supporting parts and producer Steele returned to the horror genre in the later 1970s, appearing in three horror films: David Cronenberg's Shivers (1975), Joe Dante's Piranha (1978), and The Silent Scream (1979). She also played a lesbian prison warden in Jonathan Demme's directorial debut, the women-in-prison film Caged Heat (1974). She had a supporting role in Louis Malle's critically-acclaimed period drama Pretty Baby (1978).

Steele served as associate producer of the TV miniseries, The Winds of War (1983), and was a producer for its sequel, War and Remembrance (1988), for which she shared the 1989 Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special with executive producer Dan Curtis.

Steele was cast as Julia Hoffman in the 1991 remake of the 1960s ABC television series Dark Shadows. In 2010, she was a guest star in the Dark Shadows audio drama, The Night Whispers.

In 2010, actor-writer Mark Gatiss interviewed Steele about her role in Black Sunday for his BBC documentary series A History of Horror. In 2012, Gatiss again interviewed Steele about her role in Shivers for his follow-up documentary, Horror Europa. In 2014, she appeared in Ryan Gosling's directorial debut, the drama-fantasy thriller film Lost River, in which she portrayed the character Belladonna in a supporting role.

In 2017, she was inducted into the Fangoria Chainsaw Awards' Hall of Fame.

In 2020, she had a guest role on the animated series Castlevania, voicing the character Miranda.

Personal life Steele was married to American screenwriter James Poe. They were married in 1969 and divorced in 1978. Over the same period her focus changed from European (primarily Italian) films to North American ones. They have a son, Jonathan.

Filmography Film Year Title Role(s)Notes Refs.1958 Bachelor of Hearts Fiona 1959 The 39 Steps Bit part Uncredited Sapphire Student The Heart of a Man Girl Deleted role Upstairs and Downstairs Mary 1960 Your Money or Your Wife Juliet Frost Black Sunday Asa Vajda, Katia Vajda 1961 The Pit and the Pendulum Elizabeth Barnard Medina 1962 Cynthia Il capitano di ferro Floriana 1963 8½ Gloria Morin Leila Margaret Hichcock Silvia 1964 Castle of Blood Elisabeth Blackwood Barbara, Mrs. Brugnoli Segments: "L'hobby" and "La Cambiale" Les baisers Thelma Segment: "Baiser du Soir" White Voices Giulia Three for a Robbery Barbara Sims The Monocle Laughs Valérie Amore facile Contessa Bardi-Stucchi Segment "Divorzio italo-americano" Helen Karnstein, Mary Karnstein 1965 Terror-Creatures from the Grave Cleo Hauff Nightmare Castle Muriel, Jenny Once Upon a Tractor Lady Clerk 1966 Young Törless Bozena For Love and Gold Teodora The She Beast Veronica Harriet Montebruno, Belinda 1968 Curse of the Crimson Altar Lavinia Morley 1970 Fermate il mondo... voglio scendere! Danielle 1974 Caged Heat Superintendent McQueen 1975 Shivers Betts 1977 I Never Promised You a Rose Garden Deleted role 1978 Pretty Baby Josephine Piranha Dr. Mengers La clé sur la porte Cathy 1979 Silent Scream Victoria Engels 1995 Tief oben Mrs. Wagner 1998 The Prophet Agent Oakley 2008 The Boneyard Collection Vanessa Peabody Segment: "Her Morbid Desires" 2012 Ann 2014 Lost River Grandmother 2016 Minutes Past Midnight The Apparition of the Mill Segment "The Mill at Calder's End" 2023 Ulalume - A Ballad Opening Narrator (voice)

Short films Year Title RoleNotes Refs.1965 Once Upon a Tractor Lady Clerk 1967 Barbara et ses fourrures1968 La amante estelar Handicap2014 The Shutterbug Man Narrator (voice) vhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnpsH3gBLjA 2015 The Mill at Calder's End The Apparition of the Mill 2016 The Widow

Television Year Title Role Notes 1958 Dial 999 Toni Miller S01E06: "Missing Persons" 1960 Adventures in Paradise Dolores S02E10: "Daughter of Illusion" 1961 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Phyllis S07E06: "Betta Delta Gamma" 1965 Danger Man Cleo S02E12: "The Man on the Beach" 1966 I Spy Giana S02E09: "Bridge of Spies" 1972 Night Gallery The Widow Craighill S02E21: "The Sins of the Fathers" 1991 Dark Shadows Dr. Julia Hoffman, Countess Natalie Du Pres Main cast 2020 Castlevania Miranda (voice) S03E07: "Worse Things Than Betrayal"

TV films, miniseries, and specials Year Title Role Notes1969Honeymoon with a StrangerCarla1978The Space-Watch Murders 1983 The Winds of War Mrs. Stoller Also associate producer 1988 War and Remembrance Elsa MacMahon Also producer 1996 Dark Shadows 30th Anniversary Tribute n/a Producer only

Awards and nominations Award Year Category WorkResultRef.Primetime Emmy Award1989Outstanding MiniseriesWar and RemembranceFangoria Chainsaw Award2017Hall of Fame

References

Works cited

Barbara Steele

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