King of Horrors - Boris Karloff

Boris Karloff firmly established himself in the history of cinema as one of the most outstanding and famous actors of the horror genre. He started his career early, but he was not famous right away. World fame brought him the role of the Beast from the James Wayl picture "Frankenstein". For more than 50 years of acting career, he embodied on the screen about two hundred images, which makes him one of those who passed the longest creative path in the field of cinema.

Childhood

William Henry Pratt, this is the name of the boy at birth, was born on November 23, 1887. A large family, in addition to William had 7 children, lived in London, but it is known that the father of the future actor had Indian roots. It is noteworthy that the sister of one of his grandmothers was the same Anna, whose life events formed the basis for the musical "The King and I" and the pictures "Anna and the King". My father worked as a diplomat, so I often traveled. Little Boris Karloff, from childhood, also wanted to link the future destiny with diplomacy, which was deliberately prepared for every member of the family. Early lost his parents, he was brought up by brothers and sister.

Youth

The young man entered the University of London, after which he thought to follow in the footsteps of his deceased father. The First World War began, but Boris Karloff, still called William, did not take part in it because of health problems. At 22, he moved to Canada, where he worked for a while on the farm. It was at this time that he was passionately carried away by the theater. Having discovered his acting talent, he began to tour the country with various troupes. His roles were then minor, however, in order not to spoil the reputation of a diplomatic family, he took the name of Boris Karloff. The filmography of the actor originates in 1916, however, he played then in the background. Ahead of him is waiting for many years of hard work before he embodies the fateful image on the screen.

Hollywood

Three years after the debut, a novice actor moves to Hollywood, like any other who is looking for fame and success. There he is actively withdrawn in a variety of secondary roles, and in addition earns money in various positions: from the loader to the operatic stage. Every year on the screens there are many pictures with his participation. Among them you can name such as "Rider in a mask", "Dynamite Dan", "Tarzan and the Golden Lion", "Criminal Code", "King of the Congo" and dozens of others. In addition, he tries himself on television in several TV series, however this does not bring him fame. By 1931, more than 60 paintings appeared in the light, in the credits of which appeared Boris Karloff. Films, in which he managed to withdraw in the same year, number about 10, but he never managed to become popular.

Frankenstein

Suddenly, in his acting career, the era of serious change comes when Bela Lugosi refuses the role in the movie "Frankenstein" because his character does not have any lines. The director is actively looking for someone who will agree to the role of the Beast, and then his attention appears Boris Karloff. He successfully auditioned and gets a cherished role. Despite the fact that the work on the hero was given hard, he was interested to get such a valuable experience. Every day for drawing and removing a complex make-up took 5 hours. To make the image seem more vivid, Carloff himself suggested removing the lateral denture from his teeth. Thanks to this, his cheeks seemed hollow, which is very similar to the image of the monster. It may seem that the actor has a very large physique, but in life he was rather thin. This effect was achieved with the help of a giant, heavy suit, the weight of which, together with the make-up, was about 24 kilograms. The film has a huge box-office success, and its characters are still considered to be cult. It was then, at 44, the fame came to Boris Karloff, allowed him now to star in the main roles.

The most famous works

The next significant film, released on screens in 1932, is "Mummy". Boris Karloff played in him Imhotep, already firmly rooted in the images of various villains, monsters and monsters. However, sometimes he still rejected the usual role and appeared to the audience in completely unexpected roles. To such, for example, is the picture "Face with a scar," where he played a gangster. For many years of his career, he had time to work in a team with no less outstanding genre actors. For example, together with Lugosha, they appeared in such tapes as "Black Cat", "Raven", "Black Friday" and "Body Thieves". He also returns to the image of the Beast in the pictures of "The Bride of Frankenstein", which became a sensation, and "The Son of Frankenstein", is already less successful. In addition to the first plans, he still agrees to almost any role. This feature led him to the site of comic horror films about the adventures of famous at that time heroes: "Abbott and Costello meet the murderer of Boris Karloff" and "Abbott and Costello meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

Other activities

In addition to active filming in the cinema, he also repeatedly becomes a guest of famous TV shows, among them "Veil", "Donald O'Connera's Show", "Tales of Tomorrow" and a dozen others. In addition, he makes his debut on Broadway in the play "Arsenic and old lace," which is a parody. After that, he plays more than once on the stage in such performances as "Raven", "Die, monster, die," "Peter Pan" and "Comedy of Horrors." The last significant role on the screen is the debut film of Peter Bogdanovich "Target" in 1968.

Death

Over the years, Boris had problems with the spine, and in his old age he actively struggled with arthritis and emphysema. The last years of his life he moved with a wheelchair. Ill with pneumonia at age 81, he never recovered, and died in 1969 in Midhurst, West Sussex. During his long life he not only starred in a variety of paintings, but several times was married, and in his old age became the father of the first and only daughter. However, the legacy of the great actor goes far beyond the family life, because his films will live forever.