23. Boris Karloff became a beloved children’s star for the Christmas season, creating another American icon
On December 18, 1966 an animated Christmas special based on a book by Dr. Seuss was aired for the first time. It featured Boris Karloff, who first portrayed the Frankenstein monster on film, as the narrator of the story and as the voice of its main character, the Grinch. How the Grinch Stole Christmas became a major part of the Christmas season ever since its first airing, and finally freed Karloff from his typecasting as a star of horror films and television programs. Karloff’s was the only voice to appear on the special, other than the Whos’ singing and the song “You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch’, which was performed by Thurl Ravenscroft (they’rrrrrrrre great!).
Another performer who managed to escape the stereotype of being able to only perform in horror movies was Claude Rains, who by 1942 created the role of Inspector Renault in Casablanca, as well as many other notable roles. Rains eventually were nominated for Best Supporting Actor four times. He contributed his considerable skills to motion pictures including Lawrence of Arabia, Caesar and Cleopatra, Mrs. Skeffington, and Angel on My Shoulder. Most of the actors who performed as the Universal monsters, including Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney, fought with little success against the typecasting for the rest of their careers.