Object Details
- Artist
- Roman Freulich, 1898 - 1974
- Sitter
- Boris Karloff, 23 Nov 1887 - 2 Feb 1969
- Exhibition Label
- Born Camberwell, England
- With his portrayal of the terrifying monster in Frankenstein (1931), Boris Karloff established his standing as “the screen’s most celebrated menace.” He also helped establish the horror film as one of the movie industry’s most popular and enduring genres.
- First working in Hollywood as an extra, Karloff (born William Henry Pratt) played mostly minor parts in over sixty films before landing the role that ignited his career. After the huge box office success of Frankenstein, he starred in a series of sequels as well as in horror classics such as The Mummy (1932), The Walking Dead (1936), and The Body Snatcher (1945). Rather than resist such typecasting, Karloff embraced the ghoulish characters that became his trademark.
- Transforming Karloff into Dr. Frankenstein’s hideous creation required heavy makeup that could take up to four hours to apply. The actor appears here in character for his role in The Bride of Frankenstein (1935).
- Nacido en Camberwell, Inglaterra
- Con su interpretación del aterrador monstruo en Frankenstein (1931), Boris Karloff se estableció como “el peligro más célebre de la pantalla”. También contribuyó a hacer de las películas de horror uno de los géneros más populares y perdurables de la industria del cine.
- Karloff (nacido William Henry Pratt) se inició en Hollywood como extra y tuvo papeles pequeños en más de 60 filmes antes de conseguir el rol que impulsó su carrera. Tras el enorme éxito taquillero de Frankenstein, protagonizó una serie de secuelas, además de clásicos de horror como La momia (1932), Los muertos andan (1936) y El ladrón de cuerpos (1945). En vez de negarse a ser encasillado en roles macabros, Karloff los acogió, y se convirtieron en su marca distintiva.
- Transformar a Karloff en la horrible criatura del Dr. Frankenstein implicaba un maquillaje complicado que podía tardar cuatro horas. El actor aparece aquí listo para su papel en La novia de Frankenstein (1935).
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- 1935
- Object number
- NPG.91.56
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Estate of Roman Freulich
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Gelatin silver print
- Dimensions
- Image/Sheet/Mount: 35cm x 27.5cm (13 3/4" x 10 13/16")
- Place
- United States\California\Los Angeles\Los Angeles\Hollywood
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- 20th Century Americans: 1930-1960
- On View
- NPG, South Gallery 321
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Boris Karloff: Male
- Boris Karloff: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Theater\Stage actor
- Boris Karloff: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Film\Movie actor
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.91.56
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4a2113c0f-cd1a-4d2f-828f-dd1471742b57
