Cursed to an endless life, Count Dracula is eternally resurrected in film and fiction, as well as in the vampire myth. Bela Lugosi's Dracula has become an indelible figure haunting the popular imagination since the release of Dracula in 1931. The definitive vampire, Lugosi's well-groomed Count has spawned a diverse group of vampires, including Sesame Street's Count, Grandpa Munster, Blackula, Duckula, and Count Chockula. The only vampire most people know by name, Dracula has sold innumerable books, plays, movies, costumes, toys, consumer products, and even tours of Romania.

Bela Lugosi as "Dracula."

Tod Browning's 1931 film Dracula is probably the most famous version of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel. Often criticized for its over resemblance to the drawing-room melodrama from which it was derived, the film has nevertheless had a tremendous and lasting impact on both film and popular culture. The film follows the journey of Renfield, a British businessman, who is...