The First Year Ozzie Nelson, Harriet Hilliard Blind Alley Edward G. Robinson, Isabel Jewell, Broderick Crawford Arsenic and Old Lace Boris Karloff, Eddie Albert William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 -- 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.[1] 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, as well as the narrator, in the animated television special of Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966). His role as the Frankenstein monster in Frankenstein (1931) made Karloff a star. The bulky costume with four inch platform boots made it an arduous role but the costume and torturously administered makeup produced the classic image. The costume was a job in itself for Karloff with the shoes weighing 13 pounds (6 kg) each, and Karloff having to sleep in between two books to avoid ruining his monster makeup. Universal Studios was quick to acquire ownership of the copyright to the makeup format for the Frankenstein monster that Jack P. Pierce had designed. Boris was lucky to get the part, as it had supposedly been offered to Bela Lugosi, who declined it. A year later, Karloff played another iconic character, Imhotep in ...