Mario Walter Lippert (15 July 1908 – 25 July 1996), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Howard Vernon, was a Swiss actor and photographer. He had an extensive career in

French cinema The cinema of France comprises the film industry and its film productions, whether made within the nation of France or by French film production companies abroad. It is the oldest and largest precursor of national cinemas in Europe, with prima ...

which spanned nearly 200 productions over 55 years, between 1945 and 2000. He was best known for his close association with cult filmmaker

Jesús Franco Jesús Franco Manera (12 May 1930 – 2 April 2013), also commonly known as Jess Franco, was a Spanish filmmaker, composer, and actor, known as a highly prolific director of low-budget exploitation and B-movies. He worked in many different gen ...

, appearing in 40 of the director’s films, beginning with the titular character in '' The Awful Dr. Orloff'' (1962). A prolific

character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...

, Vernon also worked with many other prominent filmmakers, notably

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as ...

Jean-Pierre Melville Jean-Pierre Grumbach (20 October 1917 – 2 August 1973), known professionally as Jean-Pierre Melville (), was a French filmmaker. Considered a spiritual godfather of the French New Wave, he was one of the first fully-independent French filmmake ...

René Clément René Clément (; 18 March 1913 – 17 March 1996) was a French film director and screenwriter. He is known for directing the films ''The Battle of the Rails'' (1946), ''Forbidden Games'' (1952), ''Gervaise (film), Gervaise'' (1956), ''Purple No ...

, Powell & Pressburger,

Sacha Guitry Alexandre-Pierre Georges "Sacha" Guitry (; 21 February 188524 July 1957) was a French stage actor, film actor, director, screenwriter, and playwright of the boulevard theatre (aesthetic), boulevard theatre. He was the son of a leading French ac ...

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), better known as Fritz Lang (), was an Austrian-born film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety Obituari ...

John Frankenheimer John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film and television director known for social dramas and action/suspense films. Among his credits are ''Birdman of Alcatraz (film), Birdman of Alcatraz'', ''The Manc ...

Roger Vadim Roger Vadim Plemiannikov (; 26 January 1928 – 11 February 2000) was a French screenwriter, film director, and producer, as well as an author, artist, and occasional actor. His best-known works are visually lavish films with erotic qualities, s ...

Fred Zinnemann Alfred Zinnemann (April 29, 1907 – March 14, 1997) was an American film director and producer. He won four Academy Awards for directing and producing films in various genres, including thriller film, thrillers, western (genre), westerns, film ...

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

and

Jean-Pierre Jeunet Jean-Pierre Jeunet (; born 3 September 1953) is a French film director and screenwriter. His films combine fantasy, realism, and science fiction to create idealized realities or to give relevance to mundane situations. Jeunet debuted as a direc ...

. He was also active as a dubber.

Early life

Vernon was born Mario Walter Lippert in

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

, Germany to a Swiss hotelier, Julius Lippert, and a German mother, Doris (née Häffner). His family returned to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

shortly after he was born, and he was raised in the

canton of Aargau Aargau ( ; ), more formally the Canton of Aargau (; ; ; ), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capital is Aarau. Aargau is one of the most northerly cantons of Switzerland, by th ...

. He grew up in a trilingual household, and was fluent in French, German, and English. He studied acting in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where he made his stage acting debut in 1936. Back in Switzerland, he continued his studies under Erwin Kalser. Moving to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, he performed in theaters, cabarets, and music halls, notably the Casino de Paris. At the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the occupation of France, Vernon was employed by Fernsehsender Paris, the German-run television broadcaster, as he was bilingual and from a neutral country. In 1944, he moved to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and joined the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

as a translator and broadcaster. He returned to Paris after the

liberation of France The liberation of France () in the Second World War was accomplished through diplomacy, politics and the combined military efforts of the Allied Powers, Free French forces in London and Africa, as well as the French Resistance. Nazi Germany in ...

Career

Originally a stage and radio actor, he worked primarily in France and became a well-known supporting actor after 1945 by playing villainous

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

officers in post-war French films.

'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 rough-hewn looks and Swiss accent, he was subsequently relegated to playing gangsters and heavies. He was nonetheless a favorite of Melville, who subsequently cast him in films. In the 1960s, he became a favorite actor of Spanish horror director

and began starring in many low-budget horror and erotic movies produced in Spain and France, often portraying a mad doctor or a sadist. He continued to make increasingly small appearances in high-profile films while often getting top billing in many Grade-Z low budget films. Horror film fans consider his three greatest horror roles to be '' The Awful Dr. Orloff'' (1962) which introduced Franco's famed mad doctor character, '' Dracula vs. Frankenstein'' (1971) in which he actually played Count Dracula, and ''The Erotic Rites of Frankenstein'' (1972) in which he played Count Cagliostro. Between his work with Franco, whom he came to consider a personal friend, he continued to appear in more high-profile projects, and was active as a dubber. He also remained active in the theatre.

Personal life

Vernon was an avid

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...

, and worked as a behind-the-scenes still photographer on several films in which he acted, credited under his birth name “Mario Lippert”.

Death

Vernon died in the

Issy-les-Moulineaux Issy-les-Moulineaux () is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France, lying on the left bank of the river Seine. Its citizens are called in French. It is one of Paris's entrances and is located from Notre Dame Cathedral, whic ...

, district of Paris, 10 days after his 88th birthday.Online death certificate from Mario Walter Lippert
/ref>

Selected filmography

*'' Boule de Suif'' (1945) .... Un Prussien (uncredited) *''

Jericho Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. F ...

'' (1946) .... Un officier allemand (uncredited) *'' A Friend Will Come Tonight'' (1946) .... Robert Langlois, le muet *''Les clandestins'' (1946) *''L'insaisissable Frédéric'' (1946) .... (uncredited) *'' Night Warning'' (1946) .... L'aviateur anglais *'' Mr. Orchid'' (1946) .... Le lieutenant Fleischer, l'officier allemand *'' Devil and the Angel'' (1946) .... Un Homme de Main de Furet *'' The Royalists'' (1947) .... Le capitaine Gérard *'' Le Bataillon du ciel'' (1947) .... Un officier allemand (uncredited) *'' The Die Is Cast'' (aka "The Chips Are Down") (1947) .... Le chef milicien *''Le colonel Durand'' (1948) *'' The Lame Devil'' (1948, director:

) .... Lord Palmerston *'' Le Silence de la mer'' (1949, director:

) .... Werner von Ebrennac *'' Du Guesclin'' (1949) .... Lancaster *'' The Man on the Eiffel Tower'' (1949) .... Inspector (uncredited) *''L'auberge du péché'' (1949) .... Ducourt * '' Shot at Dawn'' (1950) .... Colonel von Pennwitz *'' The Fighting Pimpernel'' (1950) .... Comte de Tournai *'' Black Jack'' (1950) .... Schooner Captain *'' Adventures of Captain Fabian'' (1951) .... Emile * ''

Nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

'' (1951) .... Charles *''Si ça vous chante'' (1951) *'' The Secret of the Mountain Lake'' (1952) .... Borgo, der Schmugglerwirt *'' The Girl with the Whip'' (1952) .... Borgo *'' Manina, the Girl in the Bikini'' (1952) .... Éric *'' La môme vert-de-gris'' / Poison Ivy (1953) .... Rudy Saltierra *'' Monsieur Scrupule, Gangster'' (1953) .... L'ami de Rolande *'' Little Jacques'' (1953) .... Daniel Mortal *'' Lucrèce Borgia'' (1953) .... Le chapelain *''

Royal Affairs in Versailles ''Royal Affairs in Versailles'' (French title: ''Si Versailles m'était conté'') is a 1954 French-Italian historical drama directed by Sacha Guitry. Described as "a historical film showing Versailles from its beginnings to the present day", it t ...

'' (1954) .... L'acheteur anglais (uncredited) * '' Operation Thunder'' (1954) .... Roger Kervec *'' The Phantom of the Big Tent'' (1954) .... Armand LaRue, König der Luft *''

Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led a series of mi ...

'' (1955) .... Lord Liverpool (uncredited) *''Pas de souris dans le business'' (1955) .... Robert Leperque *'' El fugitivo de Amberes'' (1955, director: Miguel Iglesias) .... Bell Fermer *' (1955) ....

CIC CIC may refer to: Organizations Canada * Cadet Instructors Cadre, a part of the Canadian Armed Forces * Canadian Infantry Corps, renamed in 1947 to Royal Canadian Infantry Corps * Canadian International Council * Canadian Islamic Congress * Chemi ...

-Offizier Ted *''Alerte aux Canaries'' (1956) .... Maxime Bellac *'' Bob le Flambeur'' (1956) .... McKimmie - le commanditaire *''La melodía misteriosa'' (1956) .... L'inspecteur de police Revel * '' The River of Three Junks'' (1957) .... Igor Kourguine * '' Until the Last One'' (1957) .... Philippe Dario - le trapéziste *'' Doctor Crippen Lives'' (1958) *'' Pensione Edelweiss'' (1959) .... Général Funck *''Heiße Ware'' (1959) .... Heinrich Strasser * '' Nathalie, Secret Agent'' (1959).... William Dantoren *''Muerte al amanecer'' (1959) *''Une gueule comme la mienne'' (1960) .... Howard *'' The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse'' (1960, director:

) .... No. 12 *'' Brandenburg Division'' (1960) .... Secret Service Man *'' Interpol Against X'' (1960) .... L'inspecteur Jackson *'' The Secret Ways'' (1961) .... Colonel Hidas *'' Léon Morin, Priest'' (1961) .... The colonel *''Capitaine tempête'' (1961) *'' First Criminal Brigade'' (1962) .... Steven Hals *'' The Awful Dr. Orloff'' / Screams in the Night/ Gritos en la Noche/ L'Horrible Docteur Orloff (1962, director:

) .... Dr. Orloff *''Zorro the Avenger'' (1962) .... General Clarence *''Han matado a un cadáver'' (1962) .... Inspector Bernhardt *'' Shades of Zorro'' (1962) .... El General *''La mano de un hombre muerto''/ The Sadistic Baron Von Klaus (1962, director: Jesús Franco) ) .... Baron Max von Klaus *'' Vice and Virtue'' (1963) .... SS General *''Autopsy of a Criminal'' (1963) .... Villar *''Black Angel of the Mississippi'' (1964) .... Ray Terris *'' The Train'' (1964, director:

) .... Dietrich *'' On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts'' (1964) *'' Alphaville'' (aka "Une étrange aventure de Lemmy Caution") (1965, director:

) .... Prof. Leonard Nosferatu aka von Braun (uncredited) *''

What's New Pussycat? ''What's New Pussycat?'' is a 1965 screwball comedy film directed by Clive Donner, written by Woody Allen in his first produced screenplay, and starring Allen in his acting debut, along with Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Romy Schneider, Capuc ...

'' (1965, director: Clive Donner) .... Doctor *''Taiwo Shango - Der zweite Tag nach dem Tod'' (1965) ... Dr. Brian Murray *'' Train d'enfer'' (1965, director:

Gilles Grangier Gilles Grangier (5 May 1911 – 27 April 1996) was a French film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 50 films and several TV series between 1943 and 1985. His film ''Archimède le clochard'' was entered into the 9th Berlin Inter ...

) .... Le 'professeur' *'' The Poppy Is Also a Flower'' (1966) .... Dr. Pineau *'' The Game Is Over'' (1966) .... Lawyer *'' The Diabolical Dr. Z'' / Miss Muerte / Miss Death (1966, director:

) .... Dr. Vicas *''Le chien fou'' (1966) .... Fred *'' Triple Cross'' (1966) .... German Embassy Official *''Residencia para espías''/ Residence for Spies (1966, director: Jesús Franco) .... Radek (uncredited cameo) *'' The Unknown Man of Shandigor'' (1967) .... Yank / Bobby Gun *'' The Night of the Generals'' (1967) .... Herr Schusslig, Suspect in Erika Müller's Murder (uncredited) *''Only a Coffin'' (1967) .... Dam Gaillimh *''Les têtes brûlées'' (1967) *'' Necronomicon: Dreamt Sin'' / Succubus (1967, director:

) .... Admiral Kapp *''Im Schloß der blutigen Begierde'' (1968) .... Graf Saxon *''

Mayerling Mayerling is a small village (pop. 200) in Lower Austria belonging to the municipality of Alland in the district of Baden (district of Austria), Baden. It is situated on the Schwechat river, in the Vienna Woods, Wienerwald (''Vienna woods''), so ...

'' (1968) .... Prince Montenuevo (uncredited) *'' Marquis de Sade's Justine'' / Deadly Sanctuary (1969, director:

) .... Clément *'' The Bloody Judge'' / Throne of Fire/ The Witch Killer of Blackmoor (1970, director:

) .... Jack Ketch *'' The Blood Rose'' / Le Rose Eschorchée / The Flayed Rose (1970, director: Claude Mulot) .... Professeur Römer *'' Orloff and the Invisible Man'' (1970, director: Pierre Chevalier) .... Le professeur Orloff *'' Love Me Strangely'' (1971) .... Maître Wasserman - l'administrateur de biens *'' The Devil Came from Akasava'' (1971, director:

) .... Valet Humphrey *' / X 312 – Flug zur Hölle (1971, director: Jesus Franco) .... Pedro *'' She Killed in Ecstasy'' / Mrs. Hyde (1971, director:

) .... Prof. Jonathan Walker *''Jungfrauen-Report''/ Virgin Report (1972, director: Jesús Franco).... Medieval de-fliowerer / Anna's Father / The Inquisitor *''Sex Charade'' (1972, director: Jesús Franco) this film was unreleased *'' Casa d'appuntamento'' (1972) .... Professor Waldemar *'' Dracula, Prisoner of Frankenstein'' (1972, director:

) .... Drácula *''Robinson und seine wilden Sklavinnen''/ Three Naked Women on Robinson Island (1972, director: Jesús Franco).... Yakube / Actor in Adult Movie / Film Director's Assistant *'' Daughter of Dracula'' (1972, director:

) .... Count Karlstein / Dracula *''Les ebranlées''/ House of Vice (1972, director: Jesús Franco) .... Al Pereira *'' The Demons'' (1973, director:

) .... Lord Malcolm De Winter *'' The Day of the Jackal'' (1973) .... Cabinet Member (uncredited) *''The Erotic Rites of Frankenstein'' / The Curse of Frankenstein / La Maldicion de Frankenstein (1973, director:

) .... Cagliostro *''Le journal intime d'une nymphomane'' (1973, director: Jesús Franco) .... Doctor *'' Lovers of Devil's Island'' (1973, director:

) .... Colonel Ford *''

A Virgin Among the Living Dead ''A Virgin Among the Living Dead'' is a film directed by Jesús Franco. Franco shot the film in Portugal in 1971 with the film it was only being released to the public in 1973. While credited as a production of Liechtenstein, it was submitted the ...

'' (1973) / Christina, Princess of Eroticism (1971, director:

) .... Uncle Howard *''Al otro lado del espejo'' / The Other Side of the Mirror (1973, director: Jesús Franco) .... Howard / Anetta's father *''Un capitán de quince años'' / A Captain of 15 Years (1974, director: Jesús Franco) ... Korda *''Plaisir à trois''/ How to Seduce a Virgin (1974, director: Jesús Franco) .... Mathias *''Celestine, Maid at Your Service'' (1974, director: Jesús Franco).... Le duc *'' Lorna the Exorcist'' (1974, director:

) .... Maurizius *'' La Comtesse Perverse'' (1974, director:

) .... Count Rador *''Les gloutonnes'' (1975, director: Jesús Franco) .... Cagliostro *'' That Most Important Thing: Love'' (1975) .... (voice, uncredited) *''Les intrigues de Sylvia Couski'' (1975) *''Le jardin qui bascule'' (1975) .... Paul *''

Love and Death ''Love and Death'' is a 1975 American comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen. It is a satire on the Golden Age of Russian literature starring Allen and Diane Keaton as Boris and Sonja, Russians living during the Napoleonic Era who enga ...

'' (1975, director:

) .... General Leveque *''Change pas de main'' (1975) .... Jacques des Grieux *''The Mark of Zorro'' (1975) .... Gov. Hayes *'' The Musician Killer'' (1976) .... Anton Varga *''Seven Women for Satan'' (1976) .... Karl, Zaroff's servant *''Le théâtre des matières'' (1977) .... Hermann *'' Women in Cellblock 9'' (1978, director: Jesús Franco).... Dr. Milton *''Les belles manières'' (1978) .... Le directeur de la prison *'' From Hell to Victory'' (1979) .... SS Major Karl *'' Zombie Lake'' / Le Lac des Morts Vivants / Lake of the Living Dead (1981, director: Jean Rollin) .... The Mayor *'' Docteur Jekyll et les femmes'' (1981) .... Dr. Lanyon *''L'appât du gain'' (1981) *'' Revenge in the House of Usher'' / Neurosis (1982, director:

) .... René Dimanche *''Revenge in the House of Usher'' (1983 re-edited version) .... Eric Usher *''Sangre en mis zapatos''/ Blood on my Shoes (1983, director: Jesús Franco) .... Profesor Albert Von Klaus *'' Ogroff'' (1983) .... Vampire *''Le fou du roi'' (1984) .... Abbé guibourd *'' The Sinister Dr. Orloff'' (1984, director:

) .... Dr. Orloff *'' All Mixed Up'' (1985) .... Le docteur Belin - un médecin hémiplégique *'' The Boy Who Had Everything'' (1985) .... Singing Man *''Viaje a Bangkok, ataúd incluido'' (1985, director: Jesús Franco) .... Coronel Daniel J. Blimp *''El hombre que mató a Mengele'' (1985) *''Faubourg St Martin'' (1986) .... Le Clients Grincheux *''Las tribulaciones de un Buda Bizco'' (1986) *'' Terminus'' (1987) .... Monsieur (voice) *'' The Death of Empedocles'' (1987) .... Hermokrates *''Commando Mengele'' (1987) ....

Josef Mengele Josef Mengele (; 16 March 19117 February 1979) was a Nazi German (SS) officer and physician during World War II at the Russian front and then at Auschwitz during the Holocaust, often dubbed the "Angel of Death" (). He performed Nazi hum ...

*''Dernier été à Tanger'' (1987) .... Maître Schmidt, un avocat suisse *'' Faceless'' / Predators of the Night (1987, director:

) .... Docteur Orloff *'' Howl of the Devil'' (1987, director:

Paul Naschy Jacinto Molina Álvarez (September 6, 1934 – November 30, 2009) known by his stage name Paul Naschy, was a Spanish film actor, screenwriter, and director working primarily in horror films. His portrayals of numerous classic horror figures&md ...

) .... Eric *'' Black Sin'' (1989, Short) .... Manes *''Le champignon des Carpathes'' (1990) .... Jeremy Fairfax *''In the Eye of the Snake'' (1990) .... Old Jean *''

Delicatessen A delicatessen or deli is a grocery that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessens originated in Germany (contemporary spelling: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the mid-19th centur ...

'' (1991, director:

) .... Frog Man *'' The Girl Who Came Late'' (1992) .... Dr. Montgomery *''Faux rapports'' (1992) .... Garnier *''Hey Stranger'' (1994) .... Old officer *''Le Rocher d'Acapulco'' (1995) .... Le vieil homme *''Le complexe de Toulon'' (1996) .... Charles Toulon *''Banqueroute'' (2000) .... Georges (final film role)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vernon Howard 1908 births 1996 deaths Swiss male film actors Swiss male stage actors Swiss male television actors Male actors from Paris 20th-century Swiss male actors People from Baden-Baden People from Aargau Male actors from Baden-Württemberg