Carle Jasmin (Image: Source unknown)
Among the classic Hollywood actors, there are those who have strongly influenced cinema and the art of film; but others have also managed to influence the public in their daily lives. I am talking about Vincent Price, master of caviar horror, whose private life did not need to be hidden.
Vincent Price (1911–1993) became one of the most iconic figures in American cinema, famous for his elegant presence and distinctive voice that brought an inverted aura to horror. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Price grew up in a cultured environment that nurtured his taste for art, culture and dark stories. After beginnings on the stage and radio, he quickly found his way into cinema, where his assured charisma and piercing gaze made him a star of the genre.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Price established himself as the embodiment of the master of suspense and anxiety, working both in exploitation productions and in more ambitious art films. His collaboration with Roger Corman in the famous series of adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s stories gave birth to classics such as The Pit and the Pendulum, The Masque of the Red Death and The Fall of the House of Usher, which cemented his image as an icon of Gothic horror. On screen, his ability to combine erudition, mischief and a touch of aristocratic disdain made his characters unforgettable.
Outside cinema, Price developed a versatile career: he worked in television, lent his voice to narrations and animated projects, and took part in stage productions. His approach to the horror genre often favored atmosphere and witty dialogue rather than simple fright, allowing him to attract a diverse audience and permanently influence the way the macabre is represented in cinema.
Awards and distinctions are not lacking in his career, but above all, it is the memory of an actor who knew how to combine sophistication and thrills that persists. His legacy lies in those performances that blended elegance and unease, leaving a lasting mark on the folklore of horror cinema and on the collective imagination surrounding the character of the master of suspense.
What is interesting for Gay Globe readers is that Vincent Price was known to be bisexual, even though he never spoke openly about it during his lifetime.
What is strongest: the testimony of his daughter
The most important testimony is that of Victoria Price, his daughter. In 2015, she stated that she was as close to certain as she could be that her father had had physically intimate relationships with men. However, she explained that she had not heard this directly from him and that part of what she knew therefore came from indirect testimony.
On the other hand, when she came out to her father at the age of 22, Vincent Price reportedly told her something much more explicit: he confided that he had had deep and loving relationships with men, adding that his wives had been jealous of them. This is probably the most significant element of the entire case, because Victoria is reporting a personal conversation with her father.
Hollywood: he does not seem to have lived this as a clandestine double life
Victoria Price describes the Price family home as a place where LGBT people were constantly present at gatherings and events. She emphasizes that her father was deeply welcoming toward homosexuals and LGBT people.
She also describes his marriage to Coral Browne as a genuine sexual and romantic relationship, rather than a marriage of convenience intended to conceal his homosexuality.
Browne herself was bisexual. Price and Browne met while filming Theatre of Blood in 1973 and married the following year. This is quite revealing of their social environment: their relationship seems to have functioned with a much more open conception of sexuality than was generally accepted publicly in Hollywood.
A particularly interesting element: Vincent Price spoke publicly about homosexual issues
At least one fascinating contemporary document exists.
In 1978, when he was 67, Price gave an interview about his play Diversions and Delights, devoted to Oscar Wilde. The journalist described him as a man who was not gay but certainly aware and understanding of the homosexual issue. Price spoke about Wilde and defended the idea that he was not exclusively homosexual but rather bisexual.
This obviously does not constitute proof of Price’s own bisexuality. But it shows that, as early as the 1970s, he was capable of speaking openly about bisexuality and homosexuality without adopting the hostile discourse that was still common at the time.
Vincent Price belonged to a generation in which an actor could be married to a woman, have children, have a very masculine career in Hollywood and nevertheless have emotional or sexual relationships with men, without necessarily using the identity vocabulary we would use today.
And his case becomes even more interesting with Coral Browne.
They apparently were not two people who married to hide their respective sexualities. According to their daughter, they were genuinely in love and sexually attracted to each other while each also having a much more open emotional life. Victoria Price considers this way of living one of the most important things she learned from her parents.
About Victoria Price
Born on April 27, 1962, in Santa Monica, California, Victoria Price is the daughter of actor Vincent Price and his second wife, Mary Grant Price. Trained in art history and theater at Williams College, she has worked as an author, designer, art consultant, educator and lecturer. She is also the author of Vincent Price: A Daughter’s Biography, first published in 1999, an intimate biography of her father based on their many conversations.
Victoria Price has become an important source for understanding Vincent Price’s private life, particularly his family relationships and sexuality. She has said that her father confided to her that he had experienced deep and affectionate relationships with men. Her testimony has therefore helped bring to light a side of the actor’s life that had long remained private.
Today, Victoria Price continues a career as a lecturer and author, addressing subjects including art, creativity, personal development and her father’s legacy. On her own website, she also describes Vincent Price and her mother as figures who profoundly shaped her understanding of love and life.
Victoria Price gave an interview to Gay Globe Magazine in 2019, as part of an edition of the magazine that paid tribute to her father, Vincent Price. The magazine and interview can be read at Gay Globe Magazine #136 – Vincent Price Special.
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