Movie 'scream queen' Hazel Court Dies at 82

Hazel Court, an English actress who co-starred with the likes of BorisKarloff and Vincent Price in popular horror movies of the 1950s and'60s, has died. She was 82.

Court died early Tuesday of a heart attack at her home near Lake Tahoe, daughter Sally Walsh said Wednesday.

While she had a substantial acting career both in England and on American TV, Court was perhaps best known for her work in such films as 1963's "The Raven." She co-starred with Price, Karloff and Peter Lorre in director Roger Corman's take on the classic Edgar Allan Poe poem.

Corman directed her in five movies. Like other "scream queens" of the era, Court often relied on her cleavage and her ability to shriek in fear and die horrible deaths for her roles.

From 1964 until his death in 1998, she was married to American actor Don Taylor. She retired from the film acting business in 1964 to concentrate on being a wife and mother. They had met while shooting an Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode, and the couple had a son together.

In 1981 she appeared briefly in the third Omen film, The Final Conflict, although she was uncredited. She has also appeared in episodes of several TV series, including Mission: Impossible, Dr. Kildare, Twelve O'Clock High, and The Twilight Zone.

In addition to acting, she was also a painter and sculptor, and has studied sculpting in Italy. Court wrote her autobiography, titled Hazel Court Horror Queen. It is due in 2008 and will be published by Tomahawk Press.[citation needed]

Court passed away after a heart attack at her home near Lake Tahoe, California on April 15 2008, aged 82[1].