
Sir Basil Rathbone, KBE, MC, Kt (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967), was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films. He frequently portrayed suave villains or morally ambiguous characters, such as Murdstone in David Copperfield (1935) and Sir Guy of Gisbourne in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). His most famous role, however, was heroic—that of Sherlock Holmes in fourteen Hollywood films made between 1939 and 1946 and in a radio series. His later career included Broadway and television work; he received a Tony Award in 1948 as Best Actor in a Play.

The Great Mouse Detective
1986 · as Sherlock Holmes (voice)

The Adventures of Robin Hood
1938 · as Sir Guy of Gisbourne

Bathing Beauty
1944 · as George Adams

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
1949 · as Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")

The Court Jester
1955 · as Sir Ravenhurst

Captain Blood
1935 · as Levasseur

The Movie Orgy
1968 · as Self (archival footage)

The Mark of Zorro
1940 · as Captain Esteban Pasquale

Son of Frankenstein
1939 · as Baron Wolf von Frankenstein

Anna Karenina
1935 · as Alexei Alexandrovitch Karenin

Dressed to Kill
1946 · as Sherlock Holmes

A Tale of Two Cities
1935 · as Marquis St. Evremonde

The Woman in Green
1945 · as Sherlock Holmes

The Hound of the Baskervilles
1939 · as Sherlock Holmes

The Black Cat
1941 · as Montague Hartley

Romeo and Juliet
1936 · as Tybalt

Terror by Night
1946 · as Sherlock Holmes

We're No Angels
1955 · as Andre Trochard