BEST KNOWN as Hammer Films' most seductive female vampire of the early
1970s, the Polish-born Pitt possessed dark, alluring features and a sexy
figure that made her just right for Gothic horror! Ingrid Pitt (born
Ingoushka Petrov) survived World War II and became a well-known actress
on the East Berlin stage, however, she did not appear on screen until
well into her twenties. She appeared in several minor roles in Spanish
films in the mid 1960s, mostly uncredited, before landing the supporting
role of undercover agent "Heidi", assisting Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton defeat the Third Reich in Where Eagles Dare (1968).
HER EXOTIC looks and eastern European accent came to the notice of
Hammer executives who cast Pitt as vampiress "Mircalla" in the sensual
horror thriller The Vampire Lovers
(1970). The film was a box office success with its blend of horror and
sexual overtones, and Pitt was a beautiful, yet ferocious bloodsucker.
Next up, Pitt was cast by Amicus Productions as another gorgeous vampire
in the episode entitled "The Cloak" in the superb The House That Dripped Blood (1971). This time, Ingrid played an actress appearing in horror films alongside screen vampire Jon Pertwee, but then later reveals herself to be a real vampire keen on recruiting fresh blood.
INGRID DONNED the fangs for her third vampire film in a row, Countess Dracula
(1971) which was loosely based around the legend of the 16th century
bloodthirsty Countess Elizabeth Bathory. Whilst not as successful, as
the two prior outings, Ingrid Pitt had firmly established herself as one of the key ladies of British horror of the 1970s. She then appeared in the underrated The Wicker Man (1973) as an uncooperative civil servant annoying Edward Woodward in his search for a missing child. Further work followed in The Final Option (1982), as "Elvira" in the adaptation of the John le Carré Cold War thriller Smiley's People (1982), Wild Geese II (1985) and The Asylum (2000).
INGRID made regular appearances at horror conventions and fan
gatherings, had penned several books on her horror career, and she
relished talking to fans about her on screen vampiric exploits. Ingrid's
fan club is known as the "Pitt of Horror"! A much loved and genuine
cult figure of modern horror cinema, she died on November 23, 2010, just
two days after her 73rd birthday.
PLEASE visit the INGRID PITT FAN CLUB WEBSITE . . .and help keep her memory alive. Just simply CLICK HERE!
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youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS
coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA . .
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