Editing Boris Karloff (section)

===Adoption of stage name===
Pratt began appearing in theatrical performances in [[Canada]] in 1911. He was present in [[Regina, Saskatchewan]] in June 1912, the day the [[Regina Cyclone]] destroyed much of the city.  The theatre group he was with gave a benefit performance that night at the [[Regina Theatre (Saskatchewan)|Regina Theatre]] to assist in relief efforts.  The next week, appearing in [[Saskatoon, Saskatchewan|Saskatoon]], they donated half of the receipts from their performances to Regina relief.<ref>John E. Stewardson, [https://www.canadashistory.ca/explore/environment/regina-s-day-of-wrath-the-killer-cyclone-of-1912 "Regina's Day of Wrath: The Killer Cyclone of 1912"], ''[[Canada's History]]'', April 10, 2016.</ref>

During this period he chose ''Boris Karloff'' as his stage name.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s)/no by-line.--> |date= 9 April 1912|title=The Half-Breed: Mr. Boris Karloff Makes a Decided Hit as Ross Kennion |url= |work=[[Regina Leader-Post|Regina Leader]] |location= Regina, Saskatchewan |access-date= }}</ref>  Karloff always said he chose the first name "[[Boris (given name)|Boris]]" simply because it sounded foreign and exotic, and that "Karloff" was a family name. Karloff's daughter, Sara, publicly denied any knowledge of Slavic forebears, "Karloff" or otherwise. It has been speculated by film historians that he took the stage name from a [[mad scientist]] character named "Boris Karlov" in the novel ''[[The Drums of Jeopardy (novel)|The Drums of Jeopardy]]'' by [[Harold MacGrath]]. The novel was not published until 1920, at least eight years after Karloff had been using the name on stage and in films. ([[Warner Oland]] played "Boris Karlov" in a [[The Drums of Jeopardy (1931 film)|film version in 1931]].) Another possible influence was thought to be a character in the [[Edgar Rice Burroughs]] fantasy novel ''[[The Rider (novel)|The Rider]],'' which features a "Prince Boris of Karlova", but as the novel was not published until 1915, the influence may be backward, that Burroughs saw Karloff in a play and adapted the name for the character.

One reason for the name change was to prevent embarrassment to the Pratt family.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}} Whether or not his brothers (all dignified members of the [[British Foreign Service]]) actually considered young William the "black sheep of the family" for having become an actor, Karloff apparently worried they felt that way. He did not reunite with his family until he returned to Britain to make ''[[The Ghoul (1933 film)|The Ghoul]]'' (1933), extremely worried that his siblings would disapprove of his new, [[macabre]] claim to world fame. Instead, his brothers jostled for position around him and happily posed for publicity photographs upon their reunion with him. After the photo was taken, Karloff's brothers immediately started asking about getting a copy of their own. The story of the photo became one of Karloff's favorites.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mank|first1=Gregory William|title=Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff : the expanded story of a haunting collaboration, with a complete filmography of their films together|url=https://archive.org/details/belalugosiborisk00mank|url-access=limited|date=2009|publisher=McFarland & Co., Publishers|location=Jefferson, N.C.|isbn=978-0786434800|page=[https://archive.org/details/belalugosiborisk00mank/page/n148 140]}}</ref>