Florence Stoker Home - London

Florence Stoker's home is in Studio Place, formerly Kinnerton Studion, in Knightsbridge, London.  The widow of author Bram Stoker moved here in 1914, two years after her husband's death.  It was from this home that Florence fought a legal battle with the makers of the German film Nosferatu.  Released in 1922, the horror classic was a thinly veiled, unauthorized adaptation of Dracula, even though certain plot points and character names were changed.  Word got back to Florence of this, and as Bram's literary executor, she took action against Prana Film for copyright infringement.  Her demands were not only for financial reparations, but also for all copies of Nosferatu to be destroyed.  In July 1925 she won her case and all negatives and prints of the film were to be handed over to her.  Nosferatu survived, however, and prints eventually began showing up in the late 20's.  In 1924, during the court case, she granted actor/playwright Hamilton Dean the rights to produce a stage production of Dracula, which ultimately proved a popular success.  In 1927 John L. Balderston rewrote the play for it's American debut.  It again proved a huge success and introduced audiences to Hungarian actor Bela Lugosi.  In 1935, young student Vincent Price, who was studying art at London's Courtauld Institute, was invited, along with a small group, to visit Florence here at her Knightsbridge apartment.  At that point Stoker was getting on in years, but still significantly impressed the future horror star.  Florence lived long enough to see Dracula turned into a motion picture in 1931 and produce a sequel, Dracula's Daughter, in 1936.  At the time of her death here, on May 25, 1937, she had seen the enormous popularity of her husband's work take shape.        

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