Boris Karloff
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Boris Karloff (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), whose real name was William Henry Pratt, was an English-born actor who emigrated to Canada in 1909. Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), and Son of Frankenstein (1939). His popularity following Frankenstein was such that for a brief time he was billed simply as "Karloff" or "Karloff the Uncanny". His best-known non-horror role is as the Grinch in the television special of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. Description above from the Wikipedia article Boris Karloff, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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- Born:
- Nov 23, 1887 In East Dulwich, London, England, UK
- Movie/TV Credits:
- 224
- First Appeared:
- In the movie The Lightning Raider 1919-01-02
- Latest Project:
- Movie Legacy of Screams: The Evolution of Horror Movies 2025-11-21
Known For
Filmography
| Movie | Legacy of Screams: The Evolution of Horror Movies | Self - (archive footage) | 2025-11-21 |
| Movie | Hollywood in the Atomic Age: Monsters! Martians! Mad Scientists! | Self (archive footage) | 2021-02-13 |
| Movie | Jack Pierce: The Man Who Made the Monsters | Self (archive footage) | 2015-10-02 |
| Movie | Monster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film | Various roles (archive footage) | 2014-08-01 |
| Movie | Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored | Self (archive footage) | 2013-01-29 |
| Movie | A Masque of Madness (Notes on Film 06-B, Monologue 02) | Self (archive footage) | 2013-08-14 |
| Movie | He Who Made Monsters: The Life and Art of Jack Pierce | Self (archive footage) | 2008-07-09 |
| Movie | Famous Monster: Forrest J Ackerman | Self (archive footage) | 2007-05-16 |
| Movie | Bela Lugosi: The Fallen Vampire | Himself (archive footage) | 2007-10-24 |
| Movie | Ian Rankin Investigates: Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde | Cabman John Gray (archive footage) | 2007-06-16 |
| Movie | Karloff: The Gentle Monster | Self (archive footage) | 2006-04-30 |
| Movie | Terror in the Tropics | Mr. Wong (archive footage) | 2006-01-31 |
| Movie | Lugosi: The Dark Prince | Self (archive footage) | 2006-09-26 |
| Movie | The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made | Dr. Bernard Adrian (archive footage) | 2004-07-13 |
| Movie | The Mesmerist | (archive footage) | 2003-11-07 |
| Movie | The 'Frankenstein' Files: How Hollywood Made a Monster | Self (archive footage) | 2002-11-01 |
| Movie | Heroes of Horror | (archive footage) | 2001-01-01 |
| Movie | Mummy Dearest: A Horror Tradition Unearthed | Self (archive footage) | 2000-08-29 |
| Movie | The American Nightmare | Self | 2000-09-11 |
| Movie | Monster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man' | Self (archive footage) | 1999-01-01 |
| Movie | Universal Horror | (archive footage) | 1998-10-08 |
| Movie | Bride of Chucky | Clips from 'Bride of Frankenstein' (archive footage) | 1998-10-15 |
| Movie | In Search of Dr. Seuss | (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1994-11-06 |
| Movie | How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Special Edition | (voice - archive footage) | 1994-11-19 |
| Movie | Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook | Doctor Gustav Niemann (archive footage) | 1991-01-01 |
| Movie | Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To | (archive footage) | 1990-06-04 |
| Movie | Transylvania Twist | Man in Room (archive footage) | 1989-10-01 |
| Movie | Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies | 1988-09-19 | |
| Movie | Creepy Classics | Dr. Scarabus - (archive footage) | 1987-10-01 |
| Movie | Horrible Horror | Gruesome in 'Dick Tracey Meets Gruesome' | 1986-01-01 |
| Movie | Going Hollywood: The '30s | (archive footage) | 1984-01-01 |
| Movie | Terror in the Aisles | The Monster (Archive Footage) | 1984-10-26 |
| Movie | The Horror of It All | Frankenstein / Cabman John Gray (archive footage) | 1983-02-23 |
| Movie | The Horror Show | (archive footage) | 1979-02-06 |
| Movie | Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? | Self (archive footage) | 1975-08-06 |
| Movie | The Horror Hall of Fame: A Monster Salute | Self (archive footage) | 1974-02-20 |
| Movie | Madhouse | (archive footage) | 1974-05-22 |
| Movie | Isle of the Snake People | Carl van Molder / Damballah | 1971-03-01 |
| Movie | Alien Terror | Prof. John Mayer | 1971-04-01 |
| Movie | Hatchet for the Honeymoon | Gorca (archive footage) | 1970-06-02 |
| Movie | Cauldron of Blood | Franz Badulescu | 1968-02-10 |
| Movie | Macabre Serenade | Matthias Morteval | 1968-05-01 |
| Movie | The Movie Orgy | Self (archive footage) | 1968-01-01 |
| Movie | Curse of the Crimson Altar | Professor John Marsh | 1968-12-01 |
| Movie | Fear Chamber | Dr. Carl Mandel | 1968-05-01 |
| Movie | Targets | Byron Orlok | 1968-08-15 |
| Movie | Mad Monster Party? | Baron Boris von Frankenstein (voice) | 1967-03-08 |
| Movie | The Venetian Affair | Dr. Pierre Vaugiroud | 1967-01-18 |
| Movie | The Sorcerers | Prof. Marcus Monserrat | 1967-06-25 |
| Movie | The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini | The Corpse | 1966-04-06 |
| Movie | The Daydreamer | The Rat (voice) | 1966-06-01 |
| Series | The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. | Unknown | 1966-09-13 |
| Movie | How the Grinch Stole Christmas! | Narrator / The Grinch (voice) | 1966-12-18 |
| Series | The Wild Wild West | Unknown | 1965-09-17 |
| Movie | Die, Monster, Die! | Nahum Witley | 1965-10-26 |
| Movie | Hollywood My Home Town | Self (archive footage) | 1965-12-31 |
| Movie | A Fool's World | Narrator | 1964-01-01 |
| Movie | The Comedy of Terrors | Amos Hinchley | 1964-01-22 |
| Series | Shindig! | Unknown | 1964-09-16 |
| Movie | Bikini Beach | Art Dealer | 1964-07-22 |
| Movie | The Raven | Dr. Scarabus | 1963-01-25 |
| Movie | Corridors of Blood | Dr. Thomas Bolton | 1963-06-05 |
| Movie | The Terror | Baron Victor Frederick Von Leppe | 1963-06-17 |
| Movie | Black Sabbath | Gorca (segment "The Wurdalak") | 1963-08-17 |
| Series | Out of This World | Host | 1962-06-24 |
| Movie | Little Lost Robot | Host | 1962-07-07 |
| Movie | Days of Thrills and Laughter | Self (archive footage) | 1961-03-21 |
| Series | Thriller | Self - Host | 1960-09-13 |
| Series | Route 66 | Unknown | 1960-10-07 |
| Movie | Heart of Darkness | Mr. Kurtz | 1958-11-06 |
| Series | The Veil | Unknown | 1958-01-01 |
| Movie | Jack the Ripper | Host / Capt. John Elwood / Jonas Atterbury / Dr. Francis Mason | 1958-03-08 |
| Series | Shirley Temple's Storybook | Unknown | 1958-01-12 |
| Movie | Destination Nightmare | Host / Ira Perry / Pete Wade Sr. / Professor Charles Goncourt / Morgan Debs | 1958-03-08 |
| Movie | Frankenstein 1970 | Baron Viktor von Frankenstein | 1958-07-20 |
| Movie | Grip of the Strangler | James Rankin | 1958-05-11 |
| Movie | Voodoo Island | Phillip Knight | 1957-02-01 |
| Series | DuPont Show of the Month | Unknown | 1957-09-29 |
| Movie | The Juggler of Our Lady | Narrator (voice) | 1957-12-04 |
| Series | Suspicion | Unknown | 1957-09-30 |
| Series | Colonel March of Scotland Yard | Colonel March Of Scotland Yard | 1956-02-22 |
| Series | Telephone Time | Unknown | 1956-04-08 |
| Series | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show | Unknown | 1956-10-05 |
| Movie | Rendezvous in Black | Ward Allen | 1956-10-25 |
| Movie | Sabaka | General Pollegar | 1955-02-02 |
| Movie | A Connecticut Yankee | King Arthur | 1955-03-12 |
| Series | This Is Your Life | Unknown | 1955-07-29 |
| Movie | The Island Monster | Don Gaetano | 1954-01-02 |
| Series | Climax! | Unknown | 1954-10-07 |
| Series | General Electric Theater | Unknown | 1953-02-01 |
| Movie | Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | Dr. Henry Jekyll / Mr. Hyde | 1953-08-01 |
| Movie | Colonel March Investigates | Colonel March | 1953-07-01 |
| Series | This Is Your Life | Unknown | 1952-10-01 |
| Movie | The Black Castle | Dr. Meissen | 1952-11-20 |
| Series | Down You Go | Self | 1951-05-30 |
| Series | The Ernie Kovacs Show | 1951-03-07 | |
| Movie | The Strange Door | Voltan | 1951-06-21 |
| Series | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | Unknown | 1951-10-05 |
| Series | Tales of Tomorrow | Unknown | 1951-08-03 |
| Series | Hallmark Hall of Fame | Unknown | 1951-12-24 |
| Series | Robert Montgomery Presents | Unknown | 1950-01-30 |
| Series | Lux Video Theatre | Unknown | 1950-10-02 |
| Movie | The Emperor's Nightingale | Narrator (English version) | 1949-04-15 |
| Series | Suspense | Unknown | 1949-01-06 |
| Series | Lights Out | Unknown | 1949-07-19 |
| Movie | Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff | Swami Talpur | 1949-05-26 |
| Series | Starring Boris Karloff | 1949-09-22 | |
| Movie | Tap Roots | Tishomingo | 1948-08-25 |
| Series | Studio One | Unknown | 1948-11-07 |
| Movie | Lured | Charles van Druten | 1947-08-28 |
| Movie | The Secret Life of Walter Mitty | Dr. Hugo Hollingshead | 1947-09-01 |
| Movie | Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome | Gruesome | 1947-09-26 |
| Movie | Unconquered | Guyasuta, Chief of the Senecas | 1947-10-10 |
| Movie | Bedlam | George Sims | 1946-05-10 |
| Movie | The Body Snatcher | John Gray | 1945-05-25 |
| Movie | Isle of the Dead | Gen. Nikolas Pherides | 1945-09-01 |
| Movie | The Climax | Dr. Friedrich Hohner | 1944-10-20 |
| Movie | House of Frankenstein | Dr. Gustav Niemann | 1944-12-01 |
| Movie | The Mummy's Curse | Kharis in Flashback (archive footage / uncredited) | 1944-12-22 |
| Movie | Hedda Hopper’s Hollywood No. 6 | Himself | 1942-10-05 |
| Movie | The Boogie Man Will Get You | Prof. Nathaniel Billings | 1942-10-22 |
| Movie | The Devil Commands | Dr. Julian Blair | 1941-08-15 |
| Movie | You'll Find Out | Judge Spencer Mainwaring | 1940-11-22 |
| Movie | Black Friday | Dr. Ernest Sovac | 1940-02-29 |
| Movie | The Fatal Hour | James Lee Wong | 1940-01-15 |
| Movie | Doomed to Die | James Lee Wong | 1940-08-12 |
| Movie | The Man with Nine Lives | Dr. Leon Kravaal | 1940-04-18 |
| Movie | Before I Hang | Dr. John Garth | 1940-09-17 |
| Movie | The Ape | Dr. Bernard Adrian | 1940-09-30 |
| Movie | The Mummy's Hand | Kharis (archive footage / uncredited) | 1940-09-20 |
| Movie | The Mystery of Mr. Wong | James Lee Wong | 1939-03-08 |
| Movie | Mr. Wong in Chinatown | Mr. James Lee Wong | 1939-08-01 |
| Movie | Son of Frankenstein | The Monster | 1939-01-13 |
| Movie | Devil's Island | Dr. Charles Gaudet | 1939-01-07 |
| Movie | The Man They Could Not Hang | Dr. Henryk Savaard | 1939-08-17 |
| Movie | Tower of London | Mord | 1939-11-17 |
| Movie | British Intelligence | Valdar | 1939-11-10 |
| Movie | The Invisible Menace | Jevries | 1938-01-11 |
| Movie | Mr. Wong, Detective | James Lee Wong | 1938-10-05 |
| Movie | Cinema Circus | Himself | 1937-01-27 |
| Movie | Night Key | David Mallory | 1937-04-18 |
| Movie | Breakdowns of 1937 | Self | 1937-12-31 |
| Movie | West of Shanghai | "General" Wu Yen Fang | 1937-10-30 |
| Movie | The Invisible Ray | Dr. Janos Rukh | 1936-01-20 |
| Movie | The Walking Dead | John Ellman | 1936-03-01 |
| Movie | Juggernaut | Dr. Victor Sartorius | 1936-09-08 |
| Movie | Charlie Chan at the Opera | Gravelle | 1936-12-04 |
| Movie | The Man Who Changed His Mind | Dr. Laurence | 1936-09-11 |
| Movie | Bride of Frankenstein | The Monster | 1935-04-20 |
| Movie | Hollywood Hobbies | Himself | 1935-07-05 |
| Movie | The Black Room | Baron Gregor de Berghman / Anton de Berghman | 1935-07-15 |
| Movie | The Raven | Edmond Bateman | 1935-07-08 |
| Movie | The Lost Patrol | Sanders | 1934-02-16 |
| Movie | The House of Rothschild | Count Ledrantz | 1934-04-07 |
| Movie | Screen Snapshots No. 11 | Himself | 1934-01-01 |
| Movie | Gift of Gab | Himself | 1934-09-01 |
| Movie | The Black Cat | Hjalmar Poelzig | 1934-05-07 |
| Movie | The Ghoul | Prof. Morlant | 1933-08-01 |
| Movie | Scarface | Gaffney | 1932-04-09 |
| Movie | The Miracle Man | Nikko | 1932-04-01 |
| Movie | Business and Pleasure | Sheik Ali-Ben Joseph | 1932-02-24 |
| Movie | Night World | 'Happy' MacDonald | 1932-05-04 |
| Movie | The Cohens and Kellys in Hollywood | Boris Karloff | 1932-03-27 |
| Movie | Behind the Mask | Jim Henderson | 1932-02-25 |
| Movie | Skyscraper Souls | Man Approaching Ticket Counter | 1932-07-16 |
| Movie | The Mummy | Imhotep / Ardath Bey | 1932-12-22 |
| Movie | Boo | Frankenstein's Monster (edited from "Frankenstein") | 1932-12-01 |
| Movie | The Mask of Fu Manchu | Dr. Fu Manchu | 1932-11-05 |
| Movie | The Old Dark House | Morgan | 1932-10-20 |
| Movie | The Vanishing Legion | The Voice (voice) | 1931-06-01 |
| Movie | Young Donovan's Kid | Cokey Joe | 1931-06-06 |
| Movie | Cracked Nuts | Boris - First Revolutionary | 1931-04-18 |
| Movie | The Criminal Code | Ned Galloway | 1931-01-03 |
| Movie | The Public Defender | The Professor | 1931-08-01 |
| Movie | Tonight or Never | Waiter | 1931-01-04 |
| Movie | King of the Wild | Mustapha | 1931-03-01 |
| Movie | Smart Money | Sport Williams | 1931-06-11 |
| Movie | The Guilty Generation | Tony Ricca | 1931-11-19 |
| Movie | Frankenstein | The Monster | 1931-11-21 |
| Movie | I Like Your Nerve | Luigi - Pacheco's Butler | 1931-09-12 |
| Movie | The Yellow Ticket | Drunken Orderly | 1931-10-30 |
| Movie | The Mad Genius | Fedor's Father (uncredited) | 1931-09-30 |
| Movie | Graft | Terry | 1931-09-21 |
| Movie | Five Star Final | T. Vernon Isopod | 1931-09-26 |
| Movie | The Bad One | Monsieur Gaston | 1930-05-03 |
| Movie | The Utah Kid | Henchman Baxter | 1930-10-27 |
| Movie | The Sea Bat | Corsican | 1930-07-05 |
| Movie | Two Sisters | Cecil | 1929-03-23 |
| Movie | The Phantom of the North | Jules Gregg | 1929-05-27 |
| Movie | The King of the Kongo | Scarface Macklin | 1929-08-29 |
| Movie | The Unholy Night | Abdul Mohammed Bey - the Hindu Lawyer (uncredited) | 1929-09-13 |
| Movie | Behind That Curtain | Beetham's Manservent | 1929-06-30 |
| Movie | Sharp Shooters | Cafe Proprietor (uncredited) | 1928-01-15 |
| Movie | The Little Wild Girl | Maurice Kent | 1928-08-01 |
| Movie | The Princess from Hoboken | Pavel | 1927-03-01 |
| Movie | Let It Rain | Crook | 1927-02-12 |
| Movie | The Phantom Buster | Ramon | 1927-08-13 |
| Movie | Tarzan and the Golden Lion | Owaza | 1927-03-20 |
| Movie | The Love Mart | Fleming | 1927-12-18 |
| Movie | Two Arabian Knights | Purser | 1927-09-23 |
| Movie | Soft Cushions | The Chief Conspirator | 1927-08-27 |
| Movie | The Bells | The Mesmerist | 1926-07-29 |
| Movie | The Greater Glory | Scissors Grinder | 1926-05-02 |
| Movie | The Golden Web | Dave Sinclair | 1926-09-01 |
| Movie | Old Ironsides | Saracen Guard (uncredited) | 1926-12-06 |
| Movie | The Eagle of the Sea | Pirate (uncredited) | 1926-10-17 |
| Movie | Flaming Fury | Gaspard | 1926-12-05 |
| Movie | The Nickel-Hopper | Dance Hall Masher | 1926-12-04 |
| Movie | The Prairie Wife | Diego | 1925-02-23 |
| Movie | Perils of the Wild | 1925-08-27 | |
| Movie | Without Mercy | Madame Gordon's 2nd Henchman (uncredited) | 1925-10-04 |
| Movie | Never the Twain Shall Meet | 1925-09-13 | |
| Movie | Parisian Nights | Pierre | 1925-09-27 |
| Movie | The Hellion | The Outlaw | 1924-07-15 |
| Movie | Dynamite Dan | Tony Garcia | 1924-10-02 |
| Movie | The Prisoner | Prince Kapolski | 1923-03-18 |
| Movie | The Infidel | The Nabob | 1922-04-02 |
| Movie | Omar the Tentmaker | Imam Mowaffak | 1922-12-22 |
| Movie | The Hope Diamond Mystery | Priest of Kama-Sita / Dakar | 1921-02-19 |
| Movie | The Cave Girl | Baptiste | 1921-12-26 |
| Movie | The Deadlier Sex | Jules Borney | 1920-03-28 |
| Movie | The Last of the Mohicans | Indian (uncredited) | 1920-11-21 |
| Movie | The Lightning Raider | 1919-01-02 | |
| Movie | His Majesty, the American | Henchman in cloth cap | 1919-09-01 |