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The Karloff Compendium: The Films, TV, Radio, Theatrical Work and More of Boris Karloff
328 pages, Hardcover
Published November 6, 2023
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January 9, 2024
Full Disclosure Right Up Front:
I am a huge fan of Boris Karloff. In fact, he is my favorite performer. Also, of the many books I've read about Boris Karloff, BORIS KARLOFF: MORE THAN A MONSTER by Stephen Jacobs was by far the best ... and has a treasured spot in my home library.
For the Reader who has a curiosity about Boris Karloff, but not enough to work through a detailed biography, THE KARLOFF COMPENDIUM: THE FILMS, TV, RADIO, THEATRICAL WORK AND MORE OF BORIS KARLOFF is a superb alternative. It is exactly what the title advertises ... with short informative overviews of his life and work. It is also chock-full of wonderful photographs, many of which I had never seen before.
As a compendium, each highlight often involves a short description, interview quotes, some production side notes, and excerpts of critical reviews. I especially enjoyed the brief comments included from Boris Karloff about the topic at hand. It gave me the feeling of looking through a scrapbook while he provided observations he thought I would enjoy.
For fans of the original biography from Jacobs, there are some new discoveries. Foremost are the photographs, many of which came from personal collections and were, therefore, rarely seen. Jacobs also uncovered new evidence of Karloff's first film appearance ... and it is not the one that has been traditionally mentioned. The evidence? Proof that Karloff was in a theatrical troupe at the time, far away from where the production was filmed.
For those wanting a "deeper dive," the compendium only provides a lot of surface details. So, intriguing stories such as Susanna Foster not having a favorable impression of Karloff when they worked together in THE CLIMAX (despite his usually being well-liked by his colleagues and crew) ... or that Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss himself) didn't want Karloff to be associated with HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS ... are not even mentioned. Also, there is one blatant error about Karloff's appearance on the television show, "Shindig!" when he is identified as working with Jack Cassidy instead of Ted Cassidy ... as any fan of Lurch from "The Addams Family" television series would readily know.
Still. this book was a highly enjoyable read and one that gave me hours of pleasure revisiting many of the photographs. It is an excellent companion piece to BORIS KARLOFF: MORE THAN A MONSTER.
I am a huge fan of Boris Karloff. In fact, he is my favorite performer. Also, of the many books I've read about Boris Karloff, BORIS KARLOFF: MORE THAN A MONSTER by Stephen Jacobs was by far the best ... and has a treasured spot in my home library.
For the Reader who has a curiosity about Boris Karloff, but not enough to work through a detailed biography, THE KARLOFF COMPENDIUM: THE FILMS, TV, RADIO, THEATRICAL WORK AND MORE OF BORIS KARLOFF is a superb alternative. It is exactly what the title advertises ... with short informative overviews of his life and work. It is also chock-full of wonderful photographs, many of which I had never seen before.
As a compendium, each highlight often involves a short description, interview quotes, some production side notes, and excerpts of critical reviews. I especially enjoyed the brief comments included from Boris Karloff about the topic at hand. It gave me the feeling of looking through a scrapbook while he provided observations he thought I would enjoy.
For fans of the original biography from Jacobs, there are some new discoveries. Foremost are the photographs, many of which came from personal collections and were, therefore, rarely seen. Jacobs also uncovered new evidence of Karloff's first film appearance ... and it is not the one that has been traditionally mentioned. The evidence? Proof that Karloff was in a theatrical troupe at the time, far away from where the production was filmed.
For those wanting a "deeper dive," the compendium only provides a lot of surface details. So, intriguing stories such as Susanna Foster not having a favorable impression of Karloff when they worked together in THE CLIMAX (despite his usually being well-liked by his colleagues and crew) ... or that Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss himself) didn't want Karloff to be associated with HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS ... are not even mentioned. Also, there is one blatant error about Karloff's appearance on the television show, "Shindig!" when he is identified as working with Jack Cassidy instead of Ted Cassidy ... as any fan of Lurch from "The Addams Family" television series would readily know.
Still. this book was a highly enjoyable read and one that gave me hours of pleasure revisiting many of the photographs. It is an excellent companion piece to BORIS KARLOFF: MORE THAN A MONSTER.
Displaying 1 of 1 review