Boris Karloff, or William Henry Pratt, was best known for his roles in horror through out the beginning of the classic horror genre. His role as Frankenstein's monster was what rocketed him to stardom in the early 30s. Interestingly enough though, this master of horror had a few problems growing up. Being originally from London, Karloff attended the King's College London for counseling. After dropping out and working various odd jobs he happened upon acting and pursued it from there. As a boy, Karloff had a lisp, stutter and was bow-legged. Not the best start, but he found ways past it. He never did quite get over the lisp, as you can still hear it a few of his movies. Karloff's major movies were Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), Son of Frankenstein (1939) (there are many others, but for the sake of listing them all out I'll stop with the most famous movies).
Karloff's activities in his free time are quite surprising. In contrast to the monsters and sinister personae he played in films, he later dressed up as a Santa and gave presents to disabled children in hospitals on Christmas. He also received two stars on the Hollywood walk of fame. Other interesting side notes, he had a friendly rivalry with other horror great Bela Lugosi. While they never became close friends, they still created some of their best works together. Karloff's most known non horror role was as the narrator in Dr. Seuss's how the Grinch Stole Christmas.
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