Howard Vernon
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Howard Vernon (15 July 1914 - 25 July 1996), real name Mario Lippert, was a Swiss actor. He was born to a Swiss father and an American mother and was fluent in German, English, and French. Originally a stage and radio actor, he worked primarily in France and became a well-known supporting actor after 1945 by playing villainous Nazi officers in French films. Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Silence de la mer, in which he played a gentle anti-Nazi German officer, made him somewhat famous, but, in part due to his looks and Swiss accent, he was subsequently relegated to playing gangsters and heavies.
In the 1960s, he became a favorite actor of Spanish horror director Jesus Franco (a/k/a Jess Franco) and began starring in many low-budget horror movies produced in Spain or in France often portraying a character named Dr. Orlof. He continued to make increasingly small appearances in high-profile movies while often getting top billing in many Z-grade horror films. He remained active until his death.
Selected filmography
- Delicatessen (1991, director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet)
- Faceless (1988, director: Jesus Franco)
- Love and Death (1975, director: Woody Allen)
- La Comtesse perverse (1974, director: Jesus Franco)
- A Virgin among the Living Dead (1971, director: Jesus Franco)
- Gritos en la noche / L'Horrible Docteur Orloff (1962, director: Jesus Franco)
- Die Tausend Augen des Dr. Mabuse (1960), director: Fritz Lang)
- Le Silence de la mer (1947), director: Jean-Pierre Melville)
