Interviews
From the Author
From the Author
My study of Boris Karloff's life and career has led to the realization of a goal I set back in 1976: to write the definitive biography of a Renaissance man whose background was shrouded in mystery. My first book on Karloff, published in 1991, covers the actor's career but features little material on his personal life. Why? Due to Karloff's lifelong desire for privacy and the fact that no one knew of existing papers, letters or other primary materials, previous biographers had little to work with. From 1981 until her death 12 years later, Karloff's widow, Evelyn, corresponded and spoke with me on a consistent basis, but knew little about her late husband's life prior to their marriage in 1946. After she passed away, Karloff's only child, Sara Jane, contacted me and, in 1995, authorized a new biography, Boris Karloff: A Gentleman's Life.
During three trips to Palm Springs and Lake Tahoe, I felt like a miner who finally struck a vein of gold after 20 years of hard labor. Having inherited several large trunks of material, Sara had not disturbed most of it, leaving it for me to debunk the myth that Karloff had not left any papers behind. Among the treasures were 100 letters written by Sara's mother (Karloff's fourth wife), scores of letters written by family friends, letters written by Karloff, and hundreds of rare photographs, many of them previously seen only by Karloff and his family in England. Published on March 1, 1999, the book reveals the silver screen 'bogeyman' as one of the most sensitive, considerate and accomplished gentlemen ever to work in the film industry, as well as a pioneer on radio and television. Karloff'searly years in England, his remarkable successes on Broadway, his labor activism and charity work, his contributions to the home front and the USO during World War II (including training with the Marines before starring in "Arsenic and Old Lace" for soldiers in the Pacific), his relationships with his wives, daughter and friends are only a few of the subjects covered in-depth. Several appendices provide the most extensive listings of Karloff's stage, film, radio, television, and recorded performances ever compiled. 150 photographs illustrate the text.
Also recommended: Please don't think my ego is out of control, but I had to include a 'star rating' to be able to submit these comments. Since this is the best book I've ever written, I could give it nothing less than 5 stars. I hope you think so, too!
— Scott Allen Nollen (snollen@hoover.nara.gov), the Author.
