This Day in History November 23, 1887

By .Wikiwatcher1 at en.wikipedia [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons

I don't know how well known he is today, but he was an icon way back when.  On this date in 1887, Boris Karloff was born.  Who was he?  He was a horror actor best known for playing the monster in Frankenstein in 1931.  He was born in England, educated at London University with the hopes of a diplomatic career, but he emigrated to Canada in 1909.  William Henry Pratt was his birth name, but he changed it after joining a touring company which landed him in Hollywood.

He never legally changed his name to Boris Karloff, and he was actually a very kind man in real life who gave very generously.  He was on many television specials in the 1950's and 1960's, and he is very well-remembered as the narrator of How the Grinch Stole Christmas (but he was not the singer of the song although it is often attributed to him).

On February 2, 1969, he died of pneumonia in England.  His daughter, Sara, has the same birthday, and she is still alive.  She was born in 1938.

For more information:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000472/bio
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Karloff
http://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/boris-karloff.html