Boris Karloff was born William Henry Pratt in London, England on 23 November, 1887. After moving to Canada Karloff made his way to Hollywood where he appeared in his first role in 1916's The Dumb Girl of Portici. A few years later he was regularly appearing in films, usually as a bad guy of sorts, and his name was now changed to Boris Karloff. It was not until after 75 movies and that he was 44 years old that he achieved stardom playing the monster in Universal's Frankesnstein, directed by James Whale.

After the landmark role as the Monster, Karloff was kept very busy playing monsters or bogeyman. Some of his more notable roles were in The Mummy (1932), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Tower of London (1939), The Raven (1935 and 1963) and as the voice of the Grinch in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966).

Filmography Curse of the Crimson Altar (1968) .... Prof. John Marshe
Fear Chamber, The (1968) .... Dr. Carl Mandel
House of Evil (1968) .... Matthias Morteval
Incredible Invasion, The (1968) .... Professor John Mayer
Isle of the Snake People (1968) .... Carl van Molder
Targets (1968) .... Byron Orlok
Coleccionista de cadáveres, El (1967) .... Charles Badulescu
Mad Monster Party? (1967) (voice) .... Baron von Frankenstein
Sorcerers, The (1967) .... Professor Marcus Montserrat
Venetian Affair, The (1967) .... Dr. Pierre Vaugiroud
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966) (TV) .... Narrator/The Grinch
Daydreamer, The (1966) (voice) .... The Rat
Ghost in the Invisible Bikini, The (1966) .... The Corpse (Hiram Stokely)
Die, Monster, Die! (1965) .... Nahum Witley
Bikini Beach (1964) .... The Art Dealer
Mondo balordo (1964) .... Narrator
Comedy of Terrors, The (1963) .... Amos Hinchley
Raven, The (1963) .... Dr. Scarabus
Terror, The (1963) .... Baron Victor Frederick Von Leppe a.k.a. Eric
Black Sabbath (1963) (segment "The Wurdalak") .... Gorca
Corridors of Blood (1962) .... Dr. Thomas Bolton
Treasure Island (1960) (TV) .... Capt. Billy Bones
Frankenstein - 1970 (1958) .... Baron Frankenstein
Haunted Strangler, The (1958) .... James Rankin (Dr. Richard Tennant)
Juggler of Our Lady, The (1958) (voice)
Voodoo Island (1957) .... Phillip Knight
Arsenic and Old Lace (1955) (TV) .... Jonathan Brewster
Sabaka (1954) .... Gen. Pollegar
Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953) .... Dr. Henry Jekyll, Mr. Hyde
Mostro dell'isola, Il (1953) .... Don Gaetano
Black Castle, The (1952) .... Doctor Meissen
Colonel March Investigates (1952) .... Colonel March
Cisaruv slavik (1951) (voice) .... Narrator
Strange Door, The (1951) .... Voltan
Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) .... Swami Talpur
Tap Roots (1948) .... Tishomingo
Unconquered (1947) .... Chief Guyasuta
Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The (1947) .... Doctor Hugo Hollingshead
Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947) .... Gruesome
Lured (1947) .... Charles van Druten
Bedlam (1946) .... Master George Sims
Isle of the Dead (1945) .... General Nikolas Pherides
Body Snatcher, The (1945) .... John Gray
House of Frankenstein (1944) .... Dr. Gustav Niemann
Climax, The (1944) .... Dr. Hohner
Boogie Man Will Get You, The (1942) .... Prof. Nathaniel Billings
Devil Commands, The (1941) .... Dr. Julian Blair
Ape, The (1940) .... Prof. Bernard Adrian
Doomed to Die (1940) .... James Lee Wong
Man with Nine Lives, The (1940) .... Dr. Leon Kravaal
Black Friday (1940) .... Dr. Ernest Sovac
Fatal Hour, The (1940) .... James Lee Wong
Before I Hang (1940) .... Dr. John Garth
British Intelligence (1940) .... Voldar
You'll Find Out (1940) .... Judge Spencer Mainwaring
Tower of London (1939) .... Mord
Mr. Wong in Chinatown (1939) .... Mr. Wong
Mystery of Mr. Wong, The (1939) .... Mr. Wong
Son of Frankenstein (1939) .... The Monster
Devil's Island (1939) .... Dr. Charles Gaudet
Man They Could Not Hang, The (1939) .... Dr. Henryk Savaard
Mr. Wong, Detective (1938) .... James Lee Wong
Invisible Menace, The (1938) .... Mr. Jeffries
West of Shanghai (1937) .... Wu Yen Fang
Charlie Chan at the Opera (1937) .... Gravelle
Night Key (1937) .... Dave Mallory
Man Who Changed His Mind, The (1936) .... Doctor Laurience
Walking Dead, The (1936) .... John Ellman
Invisible Ray, The (1936) (as Karloff) .... Dr. Janos Rukh
Juggernaut (1936) .... Dr. Victor Sartorius
Raven, The (1935) (as Karloff) .... Edmond Bateman
Bride of Frankenstein (1935) (as Karloff) .... The Monster
Black Room, The (1935) .... Gregor/Anton
Gift of Gab (1934) .... Cameo
Lost Patrol, The (1934) .... Sanders
Black Cat, The (1934) (as Karloff) .... Hjalmar Poelzig
Ghoul, The (1934) .... Professor Morlant
House of Rothschild, The (1934) .... Count Ledrantz
Mask of Fu Manchu, The (1932) .... Dr. Fu Manchu
Old Dark House, The (1932) .... Morgan
Miracle Man, The (1932) .... Nikko
Alias the Doctor (1932) .... Autopsy Surgeon
Behind the Mask (1932) .... Henderson
Cohens and Kellys in Hollywood, The (1932) (uncredited) .... Himself (cameo)
Mummy, The (1932) .... Imhotep/Ardath Bey
Night World (1932) .... "Happy" MacDonald
Scarface (1932) .... Gaffney
Frankenstein (1931) (as '?' in opening credits) .... The Monster
Yellow Ticket, The (1931) .... Orderly
Graft (1931) .... Joe Terry
Public Defender, The (1931) .... Professor
Smart Money (1931) (uncredited) .... Sport Williams
Young Donovan's Kid (1931) .... Cokey Joe
Dirigible (1931) (uncredited) .... Member of Exploration Team
King of the Wild (1931) .... Mustapha
Business and Pleasure (1931) .... Sheik
Cracked Nuts (1931) .... Boris, a revolutionary
Criminal Code, The (1931) .... Ned Galloway
Five Star Final (1931) .... Reverend T. Vernon Isopod
Guilty Generation, The (1931) .... Tony Ricca
I Like Your Nerve (1931) .... Luigi
Last Parade, The (1931) .... Prison Warder
Mad Genius, The (1931) .... Fedor's father
Sous les verrous (1931) .... Le Tigre
Tonight or Never (1931) .... Waiter
Mother's Cry (1930) (uncredited) .... Murder Victim
Utah Kid, The (1930) .... Baxter
Bad One, The (1930) .... Monsieur Gaston
Sea Bat, The (1930) .... Corsican
Unholy Night, The (1929) (uncredited) .... Abdoul
King of the Kongo (1929) .... Scarface Macklin
Behind That Curtain (1929) .... Karlov, Sudanese Servant
Phantom of the North, The (1929) .... Jules Gregg
Anne Against the World (1929)
Two Sisters (1929) .... Cecil
Burning the Wind (1929) .... Pug Doran
Devil's Chaplain, The (1929) .... Boris
Fatal Warning, The (1929)
Little Wild Girl, The (1928) .... Maurice Kent
Vanishing Rider (1928)
Vultures of the Sea (1928)
Love Mart, The (1927) .... Fleming
Two Arabian Knights (1927) .... Purser
Soft Cushions (1927).... The Chief Conspirator
Phantom Buster, The (1927) .... Ramon
Meddlin' Stranger, The (1927) .... Al Meggs
Princess from Hoboken, The (1927) .... Pavel
Let It Rain (1927)
Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927) .... Owaza
Valencia (1926) (uncredited) .... Bit
Old Ironsides (1926) .... A Saracen Guard
Flaming Fury (1926) .... Gaspard
Nickel Hopper, The (1926) (uncredited) .... Dance hall masher
Eagle of the Sea, The (1926)
Flames (1926) .... Blackie Blanchette
Golden Web, The (1926) .... Dave Sinclair
Bells, The (1926) .... The Mesmerist
Man in the Saddle, The (1926) .... Robber
Greater Glory, The (1926) .... Scissors Grinder
Her Honor, the Governor (1926) .... Snipe Collins
Parisian Nights (1925) .... Pierre
Never the Twain Shall Meet (1925) (uncredited) .... Bit Part
Perils of the Wild (1925)
Lady Robinhood (1925) .... Cabraza
Prairie Wife, The (1925) .... Diego
Forbidden Cargo (1925) .... Pietro Castillano
Dynamite Dan (1924) .... Tony
Riders of the Plains (1924)
Hellion, The (1924)
Gentleman from America, The (1923)
Prisoner, The (1923) .... Prince Kapolski
Altar Stairs, The (1922) .... Hugo
Infidel, The (1922) .... The Nabob
Man from Downing Street, The (1922) .... Maharajah Jehan
Nan of the North (1922)
Omar the Tentmaker (1922) .... Imam Mowaffak
Woman Conquers, The (1922) .... Raoul Maris
Cave Girl, The (1921) .... Baptiste
Cheated Hearts (1921) .... Nli Hamed
Without Benefit of Clergy (1921) .... Ahmed Khan
Hope Diamond Mystery, The (1921)
Courage of Marge O'Doone, The (1920) .... Tavish
Deadlier Sex, The (1920) .... Jules Borney
Last of the Mohicans, The (1920) (uncredited) .... Indian
His Majesty, the American (1919) (uncredited) .... The Spy
Lightning Raider, The (1919)
Masked Raider, The (1919)
Prince and Betty, The (1919)
Dumb Girl of Portici, The (1916) .... Extra

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